Establishing a framework to explore the Servicer-Client relationship in On-Orbit Servicing
Authored by Carvalho Tiago Henrique Matos de, Jennifer Kingston
Date Published: 2018
DOI: 10.1016/j.actaastro.2018.10.040
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Abstract
On-Orbit Servicing (OOS) is becoming more extensively discussed in
research and commercial developments. The key point of servicing relies
on the relation between two systems, the Servicer executing the tasks
and the Client being serviced. With the increase of interest in OOS
applications, the exploration of the Client-Servicer relationship in
different scenarios becomes a necessary step in servicing
implementation. Exploring such a relationship involves translating the
information available about OOS into useful inputs for spacecraft
design, a challenging task due to the variety of applications and
possible interactions between both sides. Then, different modelling and
simulation techniques can be used to model and to explore the
interaction of such complex systems for different scenarios of
servicing. This paper presents an agent-based framework to explore the
relations of Servicer and Client for applications of On-Orbit Servicing.
To do so, the case for a hypothetical satellite operator is explored,
under a specific set of requirements and conditions for different
servicing solutions. First, the Agent Based Modelling and Simulation
(ABMS) is established based on a specific set of rules, definition
metrics and operation characteristics relating Servicer and Client.
Then, the basic assumptions of Client, Servicer and servicing operations
are discussed and the initial simulation parameters are defined. The
ABMS is used to simulate OOS for a fleet of geostationary communication
satellites for the cases of Lifetime Extension, Refuel and Rescue and
Recover. In the end, the ABMS outputs are used to explore the design
aspects of the Servicer and Client satellites at systems level. The
results highlight the advantages of having this type of framework for
early assessment of OOS under different types of context for both
Servicer and Client. The paper concludes with directions of how the
framework can be used to explore more complex and realistic scenarios of
OOS, and assess their potential benefits.
Tags
Agent based model
Reliability
On-orbit servicing
Servicer/client relation