Abstract: The dynamic characteristics analysis and stable deployment control of a space tethered formation with triangular configuration are studied in this paper. Firstly, according to the accuracy problem of the previous formation dynamics modeling, the system’s dynamic model is established by the Lagrange method, in which the tethers’ elasticity is fully considered. The model retains the system’s elasticity without increasing the calculation amount. Secondly, based on the established dynamic model, the range of the angular velocity for stable spinning is quantitatively analyzed, which provides a theoretical basis for the subsequent stable deployment control. Constrained by the actuators’ accuracy and the control input, the space tethered formation system is a typical underactuated system. The hierarchical sliding mode is used to realize the stable deployment control of the formation and the effectiveness of the control method is verified by the simulation results.

Key words: Space tethered formation, Dynamic analysis, Deployment control, Hierarchical sliding mode