Logo
ScienceStack
Table of Contents
Fetching ...
Sign In

Route-Phasing-Split-Encoded Genetic Algorithm for Multi-Satellite On-Orbit Servicing Mission Planning

Shridhar Velhal, Avijit Banerjee, George Nikolakopoulos

Abstract

This article addresses multi-servicer on-orbit servicing mission planning in geosynchronous Earth orbit, where routing decisions are tightly coupled with time-dependent orbital phasing and strict propellant and mission-duration constraints. We propose a Route-Phasing-Split Genetic Algorithm (RPS-GA) that simultaneously optimizes target sequencing, discrete phasing rotation decisions (i.e., the number of phasing revolutions/waiting cycles), and route partitioning across multiple servicing spacecrafts (SSCs). An RPS triplet chromosome encodes route order, phasing rotations, and route splits in a unified structure, enabling split-aware recombination without disrupting feasible multi-servicer route blocks. Feasibility is enforced through a constraint-aware fitness function that ranks feasible solutions based on total $ΔV$, while penalizing propellant and mission duration violations, using aggregate and imbalance penalties. This formulation discourages the concentration of violations on a single servicing spacecraft (SSC). Once a feasible best solution is identified, it is preserved as feasible in subsequent generations, thereby enhancing convergence stability. The framework incorporates split-aware crossover, mutation and a regret-based Large Neighborhood Search for local intensification. Experiments on representative GEO servicing scenarios demonstrate that RPS-GA produces feasible multi-servicer plans with substantially improved fuel efficiency, reducing total $ΔV$ by $24.5\%$, (from $1956.36 \ m/s$ to $ 1476.32\ m/s $) compared with a state-of-the-art LNS-AGA baseline.

Route-Phasing-Split-Encoded Genetic Algorithm for Multi-Satellite On-Orbit Servicing Mission Planning

Abstract

This article addresses multi-servicer on-orbit servicing mission planning in geosynchronous Earth orbit, where routing decisions are tightly coupled with time-dependent orbital phasing and strict propellant and mission-duration constraints. We propose a Route-Phasing-Split Genetic Algorithm (RPS-GA) that simultaneously optimizes target sequencing, discrete phasing rotation decisions (i.e., the number of phasing revolutions/waiting cycles), and route partitioning across multiple servicing spacecrafts (SSCs). An RPS triplet chromosome encodes route order, phasing rotations, and route splits in a unified structure, enabling split-aware recombination without disrupting feasible multi-servicer route blocks. Feasibility is enforced through a constraint-aware fitness function that ranks feasible solutions based on total , while penalizing propellant and mission duration violations, using aggregate and imbalance penalties. This formulation discourages the concentration of violations on a single servicing spacecraft (SSC). Once a feasible best solution is identified, it is preserved as feasible in subsequent generations, thereby enhancing convergence stability. The framework incorporates split-aware crossover, mutation and a regret-based Large Neighborhood Search for local intensification. Experiments on representative GEO servicing scenarios demonstrate that RPS-GA produces feasible multi-servicer plans with substantially improved fuel efficiency, reducing total by , (from to ) compared with a state-of-the-art LNS-AGA baseline.
Paper Structure (50 sections, 45 equations, 8 figures, 4 tables)

This paper contains 50 sections, 45 equations, 8 figures, 4 tables.

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Preliminaries on Orbital Transfers
  3. Transfer Method Overview
  4. Mathematical Formulation of $\Delta V$ and Temporal Components
  5. Angular Separation Between Orbits:
  6. Plane Change Maneuver
  7. ${\Delta v}_{plane}$
  8. Coast Time ($t_\text{coast}$):
  9. Phasing Maneuver
  10. Phasing Revolutions
  11. Delta-V for Phasing
  12. Combined Plane Change and Phasing Maneuver Strategy
  13. Waiting Time
  14. Summary
  15. Multi-TSP Formulation for Orbital Routing in GEO
  16. ...and 35 more sections

Figures (8)

  • Figure 1: A snapshot of on-Orbit servicing mission
  • Figure 2: Combined plane-change and phasing maneuver illustrating $\Delta V$ components
  • Figure 3: Phasing maneuvers
  • Figure 4: Structure of the Route--Phasing--Split (RPS) chromosome. Routing genes encode task order, phasing genes specify transfer rotations, and split genes define route segmentation.
  • Figure 5: Convergence Curve for RPS-based LNSAGA
  • ...and 3 more figures