Related papers: Threat Mitigation: The Asteroid Tugboat
UAVs equipped with a single depth camera encounter significant challenges in dynamic obstacle avoidance due to limited field of view and inevitable blind spots. While active vision strategies that steer onboard cameras have been proposed to…
Trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs) are small, icy bodies in the outer solar system. They are observed to have a complex orbital distribution that was shaped by the early dynamical history and migration of the giant planets. Comparisons between…
A current-aided inertial navigation framework is proposed for small autonomous underwater vehicles in long-duration operations (> 1 hour), where neither frequent surfacing nor consistent bottom-tracking are available. We instantiate this…
We demonstrate the efficiency and effectiveness of using a satellite-based sensor with visual and infrared focal plane arrays to search for NEAs with orbits largely interior to the Earth's orbit. Such a space-based system could detect…
The ever increasing dependence of modern societies in space based services results in a rising number of objects in orbit which grows the probability of collisions between them. The increase in space debris is a threat to space assets,…
Low-thrust electric propulsion missions are often designed under simplifying assumptions such as constant thrust or fixed specific impulse, neglecting the strong coupling between trajectory dynamics, spacecraft power availability, and…
This paper focuses on the spacecraft attitude control problem with intermittent actuator activation, taking into account the attitude rotation rate limitation and input saturation issue simultaneously. To address this problem, we first…
Passive bearing-only tracking (BOT) estimates the target states by utilising noisy bearing measurements captured by a sensor array. The sensor array is often towed behind the ship, using a long flexible cable to reduce interference from the…
The modified dynamical equation of motions introduced in previous publication topological torsion current (TTC) [Mario J. Pinheiro (2013) 'A Variational Method in Out-of-Equilibrium Physical Systems', Scientific Reports {\bf 3}, Article…
A novel onboard tracking approach enabling vision-based relative localization and communication using Active blinking Marker Tracking (AMT) is introduced in this article. Active blinking markers on multi-robot team members improve the…
In real-world field operations, aerial grasping systems face significant challenges in dynamic environments due to strong winds, shifting surfaces, and the need to handle heavy loads. Particularly when dealing with heavy objects, the…
This paper investigates a swarm-based concept in which a number of nanosatellites, referred to as NanoTugs, are deployed by a mother spacecraft to capture and cooperatively stabilize and de-orbit space debris. The study focuses on the…
Modern information technologies rely on controlling the flow of electrons through their charge and spin. A rapidly emerging alternative is to use the orbital motion of electrons, the way they circulate around atomic sites as a new carrier…
We aim at providing a preliminary approach on the dynamics of a spacecraft in orbit about the asteroid (99942) Apophis during its Earth close approach. The physical properties from the polyhedral shape of the target are derived assigning…
A new dynamic control algorithm in order to direct the trajectory of a glider to a pre-assigned target point is proposed. The algorithms runs iteratively and the approach to the target point is self-correcting. The algorithm is applicable…
The operation-planning of satellites, aimed at introducing a certain level of supervised automation during the execution of the operations, poses a great challenge to both designers and operators. From one side, the routine operations for…
Maneuverable tether-net systems launched from an unmanned spacecraft offer a promising solution for the active removal of large space debris. Guaranteeing the successful capture of such space debris is dependent on the ability to reliably…
The use of electric low-thrust propulsion systems for orbit maneuvers is becoming a popular choice among satellite manufacturers due to their inherent merits over their chemical counterparts. Many designers choose to incorporate multiple of…
Objects gravitationally captured by the Earth-Moon system are commonly called temporarily captured orbiters (TCOs), natural Earth satellites, or minimoons. TCOs are a crucially important subpopulation of near-Earth objects (NEOs) to…
Quadruped robots face limitations in long-range navigation efficiency due to their reliance on legs. To ameliorate the limitations, we introduce a Reinforcement Learning-based Active Transporter Riding method (\textit{RL-ATR}), inspired by…