Adaptive finite-time backstepping control for attitude tracking of spacecraft based on rotation matrix

This paper investigates two finite-time controllers for attitude control of spacecraft based on rotation matrix by an adaptive backstepping method. Rotation matrix can overcome the drawbacks of unwinding which makes a spacecraft perform a large-angle maneuver when a small-angle maneuver in the opposite rotational direction is sufficient to achieve the objective. With the use of adaptive control, the first robust finite-time controller is continuous without a chattering phenomenon. The second robust finite-time controller can compensate external disturbances with unknown bounds. Theoretical analysis shows that both controllers can make a spacecraft following a time-varying reference attitude signal in finite time and guarantee the stability of the overall closed-loop system. Numerical simulations are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed control schemes.