Attitude control of nanosatellite using optimal quadratic linear and nonlinear methods

Linear algorithms are the most widely used method for satellite attitude control using reaction wheels because of their simplicity and low computational cost. The first part of the paper introduces different attitude determination and control algorithms, and reviews resources that utilized optimal linear and nonlinear control methods (such as LQR and SDRE). Next, dynamic equations for the control of the satellite using reaction wheels have been extracted, then the satellite controller has been designed by using optimal linear and nonlinear methods, which are robust against noise and disturbance, as an alternative for the PD controller. Finally, the designed control algorithms have been implemented for different satellite pointing scenarios, and by simulating these methods in MATLAB software, their performance has been studied and compared.