FPGA hardware nonlinear control design for modular CubeSat attitude control system

CubeSat attitude control systems must be compact, fast, and accurate to achieve success in space missions with stringent control requirements. Nonlinear control strategies allow the creation of robust algorithms for orbit and attitude control, but can have higher processing requirements for effective operation. In addition, It is desirable to distribute components of a CubeSat control system across hardware as much as possible to decrease the load on a central computing unit and to make the system more tolerant to point failures. Field Programmable Gate Array technology has become a popular solution to the limited electronic space and demanding processing requirements present in new-generation CubeSat systems. This paper will focus on demonstrating the feasibility and effectiveness of a proposed nonlinear adaptive fuzzy controller implemented on a Field Programmable Gate Array as part of a highly-integrated space hardware system that is under development.