Spacecraft constrained maneuver planning for moving debris avoidance using positively invariant constraint admissible sets

This paper extends our prior work on spacecraft debris avoidance based on positively invariant sets to the case of moving debris. In this approach, a time-varying connectivity graph is constructed between a set of forced equilibria, forming a virtual net that is centered around a nominal orbital position of the spacecraft. The connectivity between two equilibria is determined based on contractive sets in order to guarantee that collision-free transitions between equilibria can be effected within a giving time period. A graph search algorithm is implemented to find the shortest path around the debris, or through the debris' path once it has moved on. Simulation results are presented that illustrate this approach.