Modeling and Control of a Rotating Flexible Spacecraft: A Port-Hamiltonian Approach

In this brief, we develop a mathematical model of a flexible spacecraft system composed of a hub and two symmetrical beams using the port-Hamiltonian framework. This class of system has favorable properties, such as passivity for controller synthesis and stability analysis, where the global Hamiltonian plays the role of a Lyapunov function candidate. The spacecraft model is viewed as a power-conserving interconnection between an infinite (beam) and finite (hub) dimensional system. We show that the interconnection result has a port-Hamiltonian structure and is passive. The introduction of a nonlinear feedback term, which takes into account the beam's flexibility, is developed using the control by an interconnection approach. The closed-loop stability is proven; then, through explicitly solving the partial differential equations of the system, asymptotic stability is obtained. Finally, the experimental results are carried out to assess the validity of the proposed design methodology.