funded projects

Multidisciplinary Approach to Explore Good Pedagogy Strategies in Project Guidance under TEG-Learning Community 2025

EDUCATION

RESERACH

Image-based in-orbit real-time space object tracking and trajectory under MOE ACADEMIC RESEARCH FUND (AcRF) TIER 1

other Projects

RESEARCH

All Electric Aircraft Mid-Air Recharging via Space Solar Power Satellite Constellation

Multi-sensor fusion algorithm for formation flying navigation

RESEARCH

Past Projects

Off-grid Solar System for Tsum Nunnery, Nepal

OTHER

Image-based in-orbit real-time space object tracking and trajectory

Phase 1

The machine learning algorithm could intelligently identifies and tracks the space object in the image captured by camera sensor. Then, the continuously tracking information will be integrated and processed by evolutionary algorithm to predict the trajectory of the particular space object.

Phase 2

A collaborative sensing method via satellite constellation or neighboring satellites will be studied. The collaborative sensing to improve space object trajectory prediction accuracy will be studied.

Team member(s):

Yu Haihong
Research Engineer

The project is funded under MOE ACADEMIC RESEARCH FUND (AcRF) TIER 1
 
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All Electric Aircraft Mid-Air Recharging via Space Solar Power Satellite Constellation

All Electric Aircraft mainly uses battery energy for its propulsion and electronic system. However, the current state-of-art battery’s specific energy (LiON at 300 Wh/kg) is much lower than Jet-Fuel (12 kWh/kg). Even thought the future Lithium-Air is theoretically has similar specific energy as Jet fuel (11.4 kWh/kg), but the usable specific energy at commercialization phase is expect to be no more than 70%.

In addition, Jet fuel is burned, and enable the commercial aircraft become lighter over the time. Lighter weight allow the aircraft to gain additional flying (or payload) distance. For AEA, the aircraft weight remains the same throughout the entire period, in additional to relatively lower available energy compared to existing commercial aircraft. Therefore, it is a need to recharge the AEA battery over the air to enable longer payload range. The over the air recharging method is known as “Mir Air Recharging (MAR)“.

The MAR method utilizes the Space Solar Power (SSP) constellation. The SSP is a constellation with large structure satellite that harvest solar energy and transfer the energy down to earth as electricity via Wireless Power Beaming (WPB). The same WPB concept will be directly applied between SSP satellite and AEA. Therefore, the AEA is able to recharged its battery while it is a cruising altitude using this MAR method via WPB concept.

Collaborator(s):

Seyed. A. Zekavat, PhD
Professor, Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Relevant Publications:

  1. Shu Ting Goh and Seyed A. Zekavat, “All-Electric Aircraft Mm-Wave High-Speed and Low Cost Mid-Air Recharging: Satellite and Aircraft Array Configuration Study,” IEEE International Conference on Wireless for Space and Extreme Environments, 12-14 Oct 2021, Cleveland, OH.

  2. Shu Ting Goh and Seyeded A. Zekavat, “Space Solar Power Millimeter Wave Mid-Air Recharging Performance Analysis: Atmospheric, Rain and Cloud Attenuation,” IEEE International Conference on Wireless for Space and Extreme Environments, 12-14 Oct 2020, Vicenza, Italy

  3. Shu Ting Goh and Seyed A. Zekavat, “All-Electric Aircraft Localization Performance Study via Space Solar Power Satellite Constellation,” IEEE International Conference on Wireless for Space and Extreme Environments, 16-18 Oct 2019, Ottawa, Canada.

  4. Shu Ting Goh and Seyed A. Zekavat, “All Electric Aircraft Mid-Air Recharging via Wireless Power Transfer: Battery Requirement Study”, IEEE International Conference on Wireless for Space and Extreme Environments, 11-13 Dec 2018, Huntsville, AL

  5. Shu Ting Goh and Seyed A. Zekavat, “Space Solar Power Orbit Design and Cost Analysis”, 7th International Conference on Recent Advances in Space Technologies, 16-19 June 2015, pp. 753-758, Istanbul, Turkey, doi: 10.1109/RAST.2015.7208441.

  6. Shu Ting Goh, Seyed A. (Reza) Zekavat, and Ossama Abdelkhalik, “LEO Satellite Formation for SSP: Energy and Doppler Analysis”, IEEE Transactions on Aerospace and Electronic Systems Vol. 51, No. 1, Jan. 2015, doi: 10.1109/TAES.2014.120333.

  7. Shu Ting Goh and Seyed A. (Reza) Zekavat “Space-based Solar Power via LEO Satellite Networks: Synchronization Efficiency Analysis”, 2013 IEEE Aerospace Conference, March 2013, pp 1-9, Big Sky, Montana, IEEAC 2555, doi: 10.1109/AERO.2013.6497319.

Multi-sensor fusion algorithm for formation flying navigation

Formation flying mission may not new, however, precise relative navigation is highly desired. In addition, certain navigation feature such as GNSS is only applicable for low-earth orbit satellite mission. Therefore, there is a need to explore relative navigation strategy that does not depend on GNSS.

The formation flying navigation project has been evolving several times since my doctorate program.

  • Explore the feasibility of satellite formation flying navigation by using only the relative navigation measurement such as time-of-arrival (TOA) and directional-of-arrival (DOA) measurements between each satellite in the formation.

  • Investigate the ground target tracking via multi-sensor fusion by formation flying navigation system

  • Design the orbit maneuver strategy to initiate the formation flying mission

  • Investigate the impact of sensor measurement’s time delay on satellite navigation system, and proposed an algorithm to minimize the error due to time delay issue

Relevant Publications:

  1. Shu Ting Goh, M. S. C. Tissera, Darius RongDe Tan, Srivastava Ankit, Kay-Soon Low and Lip San Lim, “Simplex Back Propagation Estimation Method for Out-of-Sequence Attitude Sensor Measurements”, Vol. 22, No. 20, Sensors, 2022.

  2. M.S.C. Tiserra, Ethan K.J. Foo, Kay-Soon Low, Shu Ting Goh and Darius Rongde Tan, “ROEKF-MPC Estimator for Satellite Attitude and Gyroscope Bias Estimation,” IEEE Transactions on Aerospace and Electronic System, 2022.

  3. Shu Ting Goh, Samuel Y.W. Low, Kay-Soon Low and Eng-Kee Poh, “An Optimized Plane Change Solution for Microsatellite Formation Flying,” IEEE Journal on Miniaturization for Air and Space Systems, Vol. 3, No. 4, 2022, pp. 211-220. doi: 10.1109/JMASS.2022.3208625.

  4. Shu Ting Goh, Kay-Soon Low and Eng-Kee Poh, “Leader-Followers Satellite Formation Control for Low-Thrust Small Satellite Application”, International Symposium on Space Technology and Science, 15-21 June 2019, Fukui City, Japan.

  5. Shu Ting Goh, Ossama Abdelkhalik and Seyed A. (Reza) Zekavat, “Implementation of Differential Geometric Filter for Spacecraft Formation Orbit Estimation”, International Journal of Aerospace Engineering, vol. 2012, Article ID 910496, 13 pages, 2012. doi:10.1155/2012/910496.

  6. Shu Ting Goh, Ossama Abdelkhalik and Seyed A. (Reza) Zekavat, “Constraint Estimation of Spacecraft Positions”, Journal of Guidance, Control, and Dynamics, Vol. 35, No. 2, 2012, pp 387-397, doi:10.2514/1.54864.

  7. Shu Ting Goh, Ossama Abdelkhalik and Seyed A. (Reza) Zekavat, “Differential Geometric Estimation for Spacecraft Formation Orbits via a Cooperative Wireless Positioning”, 2010 IEEE Aerospace Conference, March 2010, pp 1-11, Big Sky, Montana, IEEEAC 1644, doi: 10.1109/AERO.2010.5446996.

  8. Shu Ting Goh, Chris E. Passerello and Ossama Abdelkhalik, “Spacecraft Relative Attitude Determination”, 2010 IEEE Aerospace Conference, March 2010, pp 1-7, Big Sky, Montana, IEEEAC 1654, doi: 10.1109/AERO.2010.5446994.

  9. Shu Ting Goh, Ossama Abdelkhalik and Seyed A. (Reza) Zekavat, “Spacecraft Formation Orbit Estimation using WLPS-based Localization”, International Journal of Navigation and Observation, vol. 2011, Article ID 654057, 12 pages, 2011. doi:10.1155/2011/654057.

  10. Shu Ting Goh, Ossama Abdelkhalik and Seyed A. (Reza) Zekavat, “Spacecraft Constellation Orbit Estimation via a Novel Wireless Positioning System”, 2009 AAS/AIAA Space Flight Mechanics Meeting, Feb 2009, pp 1-19, Savannah, Georgia, AAS 09-116.