Relative Pose Estimation of a Spin Stabilized Spacecraft
This paper presents filtering solutions for estimating the relative trajectory of a spin stabilized satellite. The SPHERES satellites have been selected as the hardware testbed for implementing a Multiplicative Extended Kalman Filter and novel Multiplicative Unscented Kalman Filter. Relative state measurements are provided by imaging fiducial markers on the target. The results from this analysis show that when the dynamic nonlinearities and non-Gaussian noises are not ignored, the Unscented Kalman Filter performs measurably better than the MEKF. In future ISS test sessions, an Unscented Kalman Filter is expected to now be implemented in order to improve satellite estimation and increase the probability of successful satellite docking.
