Steering law for a cluster of magnetically suspended momentum wheels with vernier gimballing capability

This paper focuses on the steering law for a magnetically suspended momentum wheel (MSMW) cluster with vernier gimballing capability. Firstly, the dynamical model of the spacecraft equipped with the MSMW cluster is constructed in a generalized form. Then a new steering law for the MSMW cluster is proposed to switch between two operation modes: the conventional momentum wheel mode for outputting spin torque, and the double gimbaled wheel mode for outputting the gyroscopic torques. Compared with the traditional steering law, the proposed steering law with two modes switch can avoid the small vernier gimbal angles saturation. Finally, simulation results demonstrate the merits of using vernier gimballing capability and the effectiveness of the proposed steering law in providing the command torques and avoiding the saturation of the vernier gimbal angles.