Motion planning of a space robot

Abstract

The plane problem of motion control of a free-floating space robot is investigated. The robot is supposed to be in a state of passive flight. It is assumed that the vectors of momentum and kinetic moment of the robot equal to zero. The movement of the arm relative to the robot body changes the position of the center of masses of the body and leads to its rotation around the center of masses. There are constraints on the range of variation of the manipulator length and the angle of its rotation relative to the body. It is shown that while carrying out special movements of the manipulator, it is possible to ensure the movement of robot gripper from arbitrary initial to an arbitrary final position, if they are located inside the workspace, which is a ring with a centre in the centre of masses of the robot. Moreover, it is possible to get the desired value of the angle between the manipulator and the body in the final position.