Release of Space Debris From Flexible Nets for Active Debris Removal

Net-based debris capture is one of the countermeasures against space debris. This paper considers the system which consists of flexible net with actuators attached to the corner nodes to release multiple debris into transitioned orbit. The debris releasing from a net system is assumed, and the net-debris composite system is attributed to nonlinear programming. The nonlinear dynamics of net’s flexibility and contact between the net and the debris are explicitly considered so that the debris can realize the target speed and angle of velocity, and the optimized control input history of the net system actuators is derived accordingly. The validity of derived actuator inputs is verified by numerical simulations.