Micro-satellite attitude determination algorithm based on adaptive UKF

This paper addresses the problem of Micro-satellite attitude determination via adaptive unscented kalman filter (UKF). First, mathematical model for satellite attitude determination system is established based on bi-Vector method; then an adaptive UKF is constructed to achieve satellite attitude determination. Compared with UKF-based approach, the present method has an advantage to deal with the occurrence of external disturbance and the noise statistics. In adaptive UKF design, the adaptive factors are introduced to real-time adjust covariance matrix and gain matrix such that the present filter has self-adaptive ability. Finally, simulation results on a satellite example are provided to verify the effectiveness of the proposed attitude determination technique.