The ability to perform experiments on space robotic systems within a laboratory setting is crucial to development and testing of satellites and space robots prior to launch. One of the most widely used techniques which recreate the on-orbit motion of space robots and targets is hardware-in-the-loop simulation. This method requires extensive knowledge of the space robot model dynamic parameters. This research proposes a method which uses force feedback to control a robotic platform on which the space robot is mounted. The robotic platform is driven in such a way that the gravity-compensated forces and torques at the mounting interface are nullified. This method requires minimal knowledge of the system model and dynamic parameters. In this thesis, simulations are performed on both two-dimensional and three-dimensional systems and experimental validation on a two-dimensional system is conducted for proof-of-concept.
","abstract_html":"<p>The ability to perform experiments on space robotic systems within a laboratory setting is crucial to development and testing of satellites and space robots prior to launch. One of the most widely used techniques which recreate the on-orbit motion of space robots and targets is hardware-in-the-loop simulation. This method requires extensive knowledge of the space robot model dynamic parameters. This research proposes a method which uses force feedback to control a robotic platform on which the space robot is mounted. The robotic platform is driven in such a way that the gravity-compensated forces and torques at the mounting interface are nullified. This method requires minimal knowledge of the system model and dynamic parameters. In this thesis, simulations are performed on both two-dimensional and three-dimensional systems and experimental validation on a two-dimensional system is conducted for proof-of-concept.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Muraleedharan, Narendran"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering","degree_level":"Thesis - Open Access","degree_discipline":"Mechanical Engineering","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2017,"date_issued":"2017-05-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2017-05-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-27T19:26:28Z","subjects":["free-floating","testing","space robots","Mechanical Engineering"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://commons.erau.edu/edt/341","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Muraleedharan, Narendran"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Mechanical Engineering"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis - Open Access"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["free-floating","testing","space robots","Mechanical Engineering"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://commons.erau.edu/edt/341"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The ability to perform experiments on space robotic systems within a laboratory setting is crucial to development and testing of satellites and space robots prior to launch. One of the most widely used techniques which recreate the on-orbit motion of space robots and targets is hardware-in-the-loop simulation. This method requires extensive knowledge of the space robot model dynamic parameters. This research proposes a method which uses force feedback to control a robotic platform on which the space robot is mounted. The robotic platform is driven in such a way that the gravity-compensated forces and torques at the mounting interface are nullified. This method requires minimal knowledge of the system model and dynamic parameters. In this thesis, simulations are performed on both two-dimensional and three-dimensional systems and experimental validation on a two-dimensional system is conducted for proof-of-concept.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Development of an Emulated Free-Floating Environment for On-Earth Testing of Space Robots"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Muraleedharan, Narendran"],"dc:description.abstract":["The ability to perform experiments on space robotic systems within a laboratory setting is crucial to development and testing of satellites and space robots prior to launch. One of the most widely used techniques which recreate the on-orbit motion of space robots and targets is hardware-in-the-loop simulation. This method requires extensive knowledge of the space robot model dynamic parameters. This research proposes a method which uses force feedback to control a robotic platform on which the space robot is mounted. The robotic platform is driven in such a way that the gravity-compensated forces and torques at the mounting interface are nullified. This method requires minimal knowledge of the system model and dynamic parameters. In this thesis, simulations are performed on both two-dimensional and three-dimensional systems and experimental validation on a two-dimensional system is conducted for proof-of-concept.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://commons.erau.edu/edt/341"],"dc:subject":["free-floating","testing","space robots","Mechanical Engineering"],"dc:title":["Development of an Emulated Free-Floating Environment for On-Earth Testing of Space Robots"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Mechanical Engineering"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis - Open Access"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-27T19:26:28Z"}