Modeling and simulations of orbital capture with space tether-net system

A new flexible tether-net space robotic system used to capture space debris is presented in this paper. With a mass point assumption, a dynamic model of the tether-net system was established in orbital frame by applying Lagrange Equations. In order to investigate the net in-plane trajectories after being cast, the non-controlled R-bar and V-bar captures were simulated with ignoring the out-of-plane libration, and the effect of in-plane libration on the trajectories of the capture net was demonstrated by simulation results. With an effort to damp the in-plane libration, the control scheme based on tether tension was investigated, then an integrated control scheme was proposed by introducing thrusters into the system, and the nonlinear close-loop dynamics was linearised by feedforward strategy. Simulation results show that the feedforward controller is effective for in-plane libration damping and enables the capture net to track an expected trajectory.