An investigation of video tracking on a formation flying satellite testbed

As the research for formation flying satellites moves from the theoretical arena to the experimental verification stage, video tracking during experiments becomes very important. The size. shape, and color of the marker play a significant role in determining how easily the satellite's position, velocities and attitude are calculated both in real-time and offline. A satellite tracking algorithm was developed to accurately identify the locations of the satellites within the field of view. The image processing system uses colored markers located on then top of the satellites to identify the position. The objective of the work discussed here is to determine the best size, shape, and color for tracking markers that are used on experimental formation flying satellites.