Coordinated stabilization of tumbling targets using tethered space manipulators

Abstract

Tethered space robots (TSR) have wide application prospects in future on-orbit missions such as debris removal. However, it's rather complex and difficult for TSR to realize stabilization of tumbling combinations after target capture. Therefore, this paper addresses a novel control scheme for achieving attitude stabilization by coordination of the tethered space manipulator (TSM), the tether itself, and thrusters accommodated on the base of the TSM. Simulation results validate the feasibility of the attitude control scheme in the postcapture phase.