On-orbit service (OOS) of spacecraft: A review of engineering developments

The concept of the OOS of spacecraft can be traced back to the 1960s, when the main focus was on providing the necessary maintenance to advance the lifetime of spacecraft and extending the scale and function through on-orbit assembly. During the past decades, the Hubble Space Telescope has made great contributions to the fields of astronomy and physics through both observational data and the success of five OOS missions to overcome big challenges. That included an initial flaw of its primary mirror and subsequent obstacles associated with replacing and upgrading its science instruments. Furthermore, many programs have been carried out in the area of the OOS of spacecraft with successful operations in space. It could be exemplified by the assembly of the International Space Station, service verification of ETS-VII and Orbital Express, and detailed research for future applications including servicer and client satellites and particularly large space systems. This paper attempts to summarize all reported programs of the OOS in terms of engineering developments and provide an overall perspective for investigators in this field. Based on the reviewed programs, an analysis is carried out to elucidate the logical architectures of the mission and technology of the OOS of spacecraft. Further attention is paid to discussions of the enabling technologies that support the development of the OOS and related spacecraft. As an outlook, the future development and challenges of the OOS and the application of novel technologies are finally discussed to extend the present review work.