Fuzzy logic for spacecraft control: An European approach

As technology allows the growth in size and performance of spacecraft their control systems are continuously redesigned and perfection to achieve improvements in accuracy and stabilization. A clear line in research is the improvement in the design and development of sensors and actuators to became smaller, more precise and cheap. The research line in intelligent control leads to the development of new control strategies based on new ideas and principles. The goal of the paper is to describe the undergoing European projects to develop and achieve a fuzzy logic based technology for the control of a spacecraft. In the search for an easy, efficient, cost-effective control design and development technique, fuzzy logic seems to provide a method of reducing system complexity while increasing control performance. First, the article analyses which the current techniques in spacecraft control systems. The emphasis is put on the analyses and design of spacecraft control systems due to its complexity. Second, the article discusses in detail if fuzzy logic can be applied to spacecraft control systems and how can this be done easyly and efficiently. Two different techniques are detailed: direct control and supervisory control. The advantage and disadvantages of each of them are carefully described. Next, the paper details the available systems in Europe at this moment. The focus is centered around the efforts made by ESA to build three different models of spacecraft control systems based on fuzzy logic: 3-axis stabilized spacecraft model, rendezvous and docking model, and re-entry model. After that, the paper concludes with the efforts to develop a proprietary technology to cover the existing gap in Europe. Fuzzy Logic may lead the path to new fast, robust, extensible, upgradable, and much cheaper spacecraft control systems.