Torque-Limited Attitude Control for Rigid Spacecraft with Motion Constraints

A continuous saturated attitude control scheme is proposed that meets the control object of reorientation and attitude forbidden zone avoidance. Constructed from the classical potential-function-based control methodology, the derived controller can achieve uniformly ultimate boundedness without the obstruction of local minima or saddle points of the potential function. Specifically, the properties of derived potential are analyzed meticulously. Moreover, an explicit controllable domain is integrated into certain inequalities featuring initial states and control parameters to describe the capability of avoidance. The control performance can be also estimated and adjusted by tuning control parameters. A Lyapunov-based analysis is provided to show the convergence of the potential function, the gradient of the potential function and the closed-loop system. Furthermore, simulations are performed to demonstrate the effectiveness and features of the control law.