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An executive master's programme thesis from Aalborg University
Book cover


Control of Satellite Swarms

Term

4. semester

Publication year

2025

Submitted on

Pages

41

Abstract

This project aims to test the feasbility of controlling two cube satellites with magnetorquers for swarming capabilities. This novel concept for swarm control based on magnetic actuation is investigated. The success criterion is to make the controller generate enough electromagnetic force to have two satellites attract and settle at some desired distance in between. A linear state-space control strategy is developed for a highly non-linear system by a means of translation and scheduled gains. An analysis of this non-linear is conducted and an approximation of the model is done. This is followed by linearization at the desired operating point and also at different points in order to schedule gains for the linear controller. A fictitious force is calculated that acts on the satellites in different orbits around Earth, which acts as the minimum requirement for the feasibility of this project. This is followed by the controller design. The strategy, namely, observer based control with full state-feedback is finally implemented in MATLAB Simulink platform and tested for the derived requirements.