Dynamically modeling the flexible characteristics of large-scale jointed composite spacecraft is challenging. In this study, a dynamic modeling method for rigid–flexible composite spacecraft is proposed based on the absolute nodal coordinate formulation (ANCF). First, the spacecraft in the jointed composite is simplified as a rigid body, and the docking mechanisms between spacecraft are approximated using the fully parameterized beam model. Next, regarding the constraints between the beam and the rigid body, the beam’s absolute nodal coordinates are converted into rigid body coordinates. This allows the dynamic equations to be simplified using independent coordinates, reducing the model dimension. Finally, system damping is increased through the mean stress noise reduction method, which suppresses high-frequency components in the dynamic model and further reduces the rigidity of the dynamic equations for the composite body. This modeling method decreases the complexity of the composite body dynamics and avoids the difficulty of solving algebraic–differential equations exhibited by Lagrange multiplier methods, facilitating numerical simulations. The proposed method is applicable to both tree and mesh topologies. MATLAB simulations demonstrate that the proposed dynamic model alleviates the dimensionality disaster caused by conventional algorithms, significantly reducing computation time. The simulation results are consistent with ADAMS. The proposed model exhibits displacement errors less than 1 mm, highlighting its efficiency and accuracy.
The spacecraft microgravity simulation air-bearing platform is a crucial component of the spacecraft ground testing system. Special disturbances, such as the flatness and roughness of the contact surface between the air bearings and the granite platform, increasingly affect the control accuracy of the simulation experiment as the number of air bearings increases. To address this issue, this paper develops a novel compensation control system based on Active Disturbance Rejection Control (ADRC), which estimates and compensates for the disturbing forces and moments caused by the roughness and levelness of the contact surface, thereby improving the control precision of the spacecraft ground simulation system. A dynamic model of the multi-air-bearing platform under disturbance is established. A cascade ADRC algorithm based on the Linear Extended State Observer (LESO) is designed. The Gauss–Newton iteration method is used to identify the parameters of the sliding friction coefficient and the tilt angle of the air-bearing platform. A full-physics simulation experimental platform for spacecraft with rotor-based propulsion is constructed, and the proposed algorithm is validated. The experimental results show that on a marble surface with a flatness of grade 00, an overall tilt angle of 0–1 degrees, and a surface friction coefficient of 0–0.01, the position control accuracy for the simulated spacecraft can reach 1.5 cm, and the attitude control accuracy can reach 1°. Under ideal conditions, the identification accuracy for the contact surface friction coefficient is 2 × 10−4, and the recognition accuracy for the overall levelness of the marble surface can reach 1 × 10−3, laying the foundation for high-precision ground simulation experiments of spacecraft in multi-air-bearing scenarios.
6 January 2026 in Aerospace Science and Technology