Nonholonomic Redundancy of Space Robots and its Utilization via Hierarchical Liapunov Functions

Recent advances in space applications have necessitated the deployment of robotic systems in space. These systems have intrinsic features due to the nonholonomic constraints governing their motion. In this paper we discuss the presence of nonholonomic redundancy, as different from ordinary kinematic redundancy, in space robots. Nonholonomic redundancy can be utilized to make maximum use of the workspace of space robots. In this paper we present a path planning scheme using Liapunov functions in hierarchy for the utilization of nonholonomic redundancy.