Robust sliding mode attitude synchronization control of satellite formation with communication time-delay

A robust sliding mode synchronized attitude control scheme has been developed for the satellite formation with parameter uncertainties and external disturbance, in which communication time-delay is considered explicitly. The parameter of time-delay between adjacent satellites is introduced to enhance the synchronization of formation. And also, the perturbation from both inertia matrix uncertainties and environmental disturbance is restrained by using sliding mode control. A well-chosen Lyapunov function is constructed to prove the asymptotic stability of closed-loop system and its robustness to uncertainties as well as disturbance. Simulation results are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of proposed synchronized attitude controller.