Attitude consensus with fixed rotational axis via energy dissipation

A consensus control framework for the rotational dynamics of multiple spacecraft is developed. The approach is energy based and guarantees asymptotic convergence of relative states between the spacecraft. Since the proposed control law emulates internal forces between the spacecraft, the overall angular momentum is kept constant. Furthermore, it is shown that the angular velocities of each spacecraft can be made to asymptotically converge towards a constant value, i.e. each spacecraft can be made to rotate around a fixed common rotational axis.