Reduced-Order Modeling for Flexible Spacecraft Deployment and Dynamics

The present work investigates reduced-order modeling for ultralight, packageable, and self-deployable spacecraft where reduced-order models (ROMs) are required to simulate deployment, structural dynamics during spacecraft maneuvers, and for real-time applications in trajectory optimization and control. In these contexts, ultralight, flexible spacecraft dynamics are characterized by geometrically nonlinear structural deformations combined with large rigid body motions. An approach based on proper orthogonal decomposition (POD), energy-conserving sampling and weighting (ECSW), and a floating frame of reference (FFR) is proposed to construct accurate and efficient ROMs. The proposed approach is then tested on a benchmark problem that involves geometrically nonlinear deformations, large rigid body motions, and strain energy release during dynamic snap-back, the last of which is analogous to the energy release during deployment. The resulting ROM for this benchmark problem is approximately 20% the size of the original full-order model with no appreciable loss of accuracy.