Guidance, Navigation, and Control System Performance Trades for Mars Pinpoint Landing
01 Jan 2010-Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets (American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA))-Vol. 47, Iss: 1, pp 188-198
TL;DR: This assessment has shown that negligible propellant mass fraction benefits are seen for reducing the three-sigma position dispersion at the end of the hypersonic guidance phase (parachute deployment) below approximately 3 km.
Abstract: Landing site selection is a compromise between safety concerns associated with the site’s terrain and scientific interest. Therefore, technologies enabling pinpoint landing performance (sub-100-m accuracies) on the surface of Mars are of interest to increase the number of accessible sites for in situ research, as well as allow placement of vehicles nearby prepositioned assets. A survey of the performance of guidance, navigation, and control technologies that could allow pinpoint landing to occur at Mars was performed. This assessment has shown that negligible propellant mass fraction benefits are seen for reducing the three-sigma position dispersion at the end of the hypersonic guidance phase (parachute deployment) below approximately 3 km. Four different propulsive terminal descent guidancealgorithms were examined. Of these four, a near propellant-optimal analytic guidance law showed promisefortheconceptualdesignofpinpointlandingvehicles.Theexistenceofapropellantoptimumwithregardto theinitiationtimeofthepropulsiveterminaldescentwasshowntoexistforvarious flightconditions.Subsonicguided parachutes were shown to provide marginal performance benefits, due to the timeline associated with descent through the thin Mars atmosphere. This investigation also demonstrates that navigation is a limiting technology for Mars pinpoint landing, with landed performance being largely driven by navigation sensor and map tie accuracy.
Citations
More filters
TL;DR: A convexification of the control constraints that is proven to be lossless enables the use of interior point methods of convex optimization to obtain optimal solutions of the original nonconvex optimal control problem.
Abstract: Planetary soft landing is one of the benchmark problems of optimal control theory and is gaining renewed interest due to the increased focus on the exploration of planets in the solar system, such as Mars. The soft landing problem with all relevant constraints can be posed as a finite-horizon optimal control problem with state and control constraints. The real-time generation of fuel-optimal paths to a prescribed location on a planet's surface is a challenging problem due to the constraints on the fuel, the control inputs, and the states. The main difficulty in solving this constrained problem is the existence of nonconvex constraints on the control input, which are due to a nonzero lower bound on the control input magnitude and a nonconvex constraint on its direction. This paper introduces a convexification of the control constraints that is proven to be lossless; i.e., an optimal solution of the soft landing problem can be obtained via solution of the proposed convex relaxation of the problem. The lossless convexification enables the use of interior point methods of convex optimization to obtain optimal solutions of the original nonconvex optimal control problem.
212 citations
TL;DR: This paper presents a new onboard-implementable, real-time convex optimization-based powered-descent guidance algorithm for planetary pinpoint landing developed for onboard use and flight-tested on a terrestrial rocket with the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the NASA Flight Opportunities Program in 2013.
Abstract: This paper presents a new onboard-implementable, real-time convex optimization-based powered-descent guidance algorithm for planetary pinpoint landing. Earlier work provided the theoretical basis of convexification, the equivalent representation of the fuel-optimal pinpoint landing trajectory optimization problem with nonconvex control constraints as a convex optimization problem. Once the trajectory optimization problem is convexified, interior-point method algorithms can be used to solve the problem to global optimality. Though having this guarantee of convergence motivated earlier convexification results, there were no real-time interior point method algorithms available for the computation of optimal trajectories on flight computers. This paper presents the first such algorithm developed for onboard use and flight-tested on a terrestrial rocket with the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the NASA Flight Opportunities Program in 2013. First, earlier convexification results are summarized and the result...
128 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the problem of powered descent guidance and control for autonomous precision landing for next-generation planetary missions is addressed within the model predictive control framework by representing the dynamics of the rigid body in a uniform gravity field via a piecewise affine system taking advantage of the unit dual-quaternion parameterization.
Abstract: The problem of powered descent guidance and control for autonomous precision landing for next-generation planetary missions is addressed. The precision landing algorithm aims to trace a fuel-optimal trajectory while keeping geometrical constraints such as the line of sight to the target site. The design of an autonomous control algorithm managing such mission scenarios is challenging due to fact that critical geometrical constraints are coupled with the translational and rotational motions of the lander spacecraft, leading to a complex motion-planning problem. This problem is approached within the model predictive control framework by representing the dynamics of the rigid body in a uniform gravity field via a piecewise affine system taking advantage of the unit dual-quaternion parameterization. Such a parameterization in turn enables a six-degree-of-freedom motion planning in a unified framework while also admitting a quadratic cost on the required control commands to minimize propellant consumption. A n...
112 citations
Cites background from "Guidance, Navigation, and Control S..."
...Other substantial factors leading to these position uncertainties at the landing site include uncertainties in navigating the spacecraft to the desired entry point in the atmosphere as well as measuring the vehicle aerodynamic coefficients [1]....
[...]
19 Sep 2016
TL;DR: In this article, the NRC report provides a systematic and thorough ranking of the future technology needs for NASA, it does not discuss in detail the technical aspects of the prioritized technologies (which clearly lie beyond its scope).
Abstract: In early 2011, NASA’s Office of the Chief Technologist (OCT) released a set of technology roadmaps with the aim of fostering the development of concepts and cross-cutting technologies addressing NASA’s needs for the 2011–2021 decade and beyond. In an attempt to engage the external technical community and enhance the development program in light of scarce resources, NASA reached out to the National Research Council (NRC) to review the program’s objectives and prioritize its list of technologies. In January 2012, the NRC released its report entitled “Restoring NASA's Technological Edge and Paving the Way for a New Era in Space.” While the NRC report provides a systematic and thorough ranking of the future technology needs for NASA, it does not discuss in detail the technical aspects of the prioritized technologies (which clearly lie beyond its scope). This chapter, building upon the NRC report and an earlier assessment of NASA’s needs in terms of guidance, navigation, and control technologies, aims at providing such technical details for a selected number of high-priority technologies in the autonomous systems area. Specifically, this chapter focuses on technology area TA04 “Robotics, Tele-Robotics, and Autonomous Systems” and discusses in some detail the technical aspects and challenges associated with three high-priority TA04 technologies: “Relative Guidance Algorithms,” “Extreme Terrain Mobility,” and “Small Body/Microgravity Mobility.” The result is a unified presentation of key autonomy challenges for next-generation space missions.
109 citations
Cites background from "Guidance, Navigation, and Control S..."
...In all planetary or lunar landing missions, the associated autonomous guidance problems for translational motion can be expressed as highly-constrained optimal control problems (Açıkmeşe and Ploen, 2005, 2007; Blackmore et al., 2010; Steinfeld et al., 2010)....
[...]
...…the possible landing envelope (the initial conditions from which it is physically possible to land), it is observed that the full version of the problem must be solved by explicitly accounting for the constraints (Açıkmeşe and Ploen, 2005, 2007; Blackmore et al., 2010; Steinfeld et al., 2010)....
[...]
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors systematically summarized the past development and current state-of-the-art of Mars entry guidance and control technologies and analyzed the advantages and disadvantages of various existing methods.
Abstract: The Mars atmospheric entry phase plays a vital role in the whole Mars exploration mission-cycle. It largely determines the success of the entire Mars mission. In order to achieve a pin-point Mars landing, advanced entry guidance and control is essential. This paper systematically summarizes the past development and current state-of-art of Mars entry guidance and control technologies. More specifically, the Mars entry process and main technical challenges are first introduced. Second, the guidance and control technologies adopted in the past successful Mars landing mission are reviewed in detail. Next, current state-of-art and recent developments of guidance and control for Mars atmospheric entry are summarized at length. The advantages and disadvantages of the various existing methods are analyzed. Lastly, supposing future Mars pin-point landing missions as the potential project application goals, a more comprehensive outlook and prospect for the next-generation Mars entry guidance and control technologies are described.
84 citations
Cites background from "Guidance, Navigation, and Control S..."
...4 Challenges of Mars atmospheric entry guidance and control Most previous Mars landing missions adopted the inertial measurement unit (IMU) based dead reckoning navigation mode and the unguided ballistic trajectory entry without aerodynamic lift control, which led to the larger landing error ellipse in the order of several hundred kilometers and cannot meet the requirements of future Mars landing missions [59-62, 86]....
[...]
...The entry, descent and landing phase is crucial for Mars landing exploration mission, which directly determines the success or not of the entire mission [59-62]....
[...]
...Therefore, the entry and landing error caused by the accumulated navigation error, uncertainties in the atmospheric density and aerodynamic parameter of entry vehicles cannot be effectively suppressed and reduced, which leads to the larger landing error ellipse in the order of several hundred kilometers [59-62]....
[...]
...In order to ensure the mission success, the next-generation entry vehicle must have the capability of accurate landing a large mass vehicle/rover on a high-elevation landing site [59-62, 98, 106]....
[...]
...However, even with the best approach navigation available in the near future, the expected dispersions of unguided ballistic Mars entry can still be in the order of 50~100 km [61, 62, 86]....
[...]
References
More filters
TL;DR: This paper describes how to work with SeDuMi, an add-on for MATLAB, which lets you solve optimization problems with linear, quadratic and semidefiniteness constraints by exploiting sparsity.
Abstract: SeDuMi is an add-on for MATLAB, which lets you solve optimization problems with linear, quadratic and semidefiniteness constraints. It is possible to have complex valued data and variables in SeDuMi. Moreover, large scale optimization problems are solved efficiently, by exploiting sparsity. This paper describes how to work with this toolbox.
7,655 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, an efficient primal-dual interior-point method for solving second-order cone programs (SOCP) is presented. But it is not a generalization of interior point methods for convex problems.
Abstract: In a second-Order cone program (SOCP) a linear function is minimized over the intersection of an affine set and the product of second-Order (quadratic) cones. SOCPs are nonlinear convex Problems that include linear and (convex) quadratic programs as special cases, but are less general than semidefinite programs (SDPs). Several efficient primaldual interior-Point methods for SOCP have been developed in the last few years. After reviewing the basic theory of SOCPs, we describe general families of Problems that tan be recast as SOCPs. These include robust linear programming and robust leastsquares Problems, Problems involving sums or maxima of norms, or with convex hyperbolic constraints. We discuss a variety of engineering applications, such as filter design, antenna array weight design, truss design, and grasping forte optimization in robotics. We describe an efficient primaldual interior-Point method for solving SOCPs, which shares many of the features of primaldual interior-Point methods for linear program
2,215 citations
01 Jan 2012
TL;DR: A significant special case of the problems which could be solved were those whose constraints were given by semidefinite cones, and these have a wide range of applications, some of which are discussed in Section 5, and can still be solved efficiently using interior point methods.
Abstract: A significant special case of the problems which could be solved were those whose constraints were given by semidefinite cones. A Semidefinite Program (SDP) is an optimisation over the intersection of an affine set and cone of positive semidefinite matrices (Alizadeh and Goldfarb, 2001). Cone programming is discussed more in Section 3. Within semidefinite programming there is a smaller set of problems which can be modelled as Second Order Cone Programs (SOCPs), discussed more in Section 4. These have a wide range of applications, some of which are discussed in Section 5, and can still be solved efficiently using interior point methods. Lobo et al. (1998) justifies that the study of SOCPs in their own right is warranted. Software for solving SOCPs is now readily available, see Mittelmann (2012) for an overview on existing code.
503 citations
TL;DR: The United States has successfully landed five robotic systems on the surface of Mars as mentioned in this paper, all of which had landing mass below 0.6 metric tons (t), had landing footprints on the order of hundreds of km and landing at sites below -1 km MOLA elevation due to the need to perform entry, descent and landing operations in an environment with sufficient atmospheric density.
Abstract: The United States has successfully landed five robotic systems on the surface of Mars. These systems all had landed mass below 0.6 metric tons (t), had landed footprints on the order of hundreds of km and landed at sites below -1 km MOLA elevation due the need to perform entry, descent and landing operations in an environment with sufficient atmospheric density. Current plans for human exploration of Mars call for the landing of 40-80 t surface elements at scientifically interesting locations within close proximity (10's of m) of pre-positioned robotic assets. This paper summarizes past successful entry, descent and landing systems and approaches being developed by the robotic Mars exploration program to increased landed performance (mass, accuracy and surface elevation). In addition, the entry, descent and landing sequence for a human exploration system will be reviewed, highlighting the technology and systems advances required.
495 citations