Improvement of Guided Projectile Maneuverability Using Airframe-Controller Optimization

Abstract

Guided projectiles allow one to augment the effect of artillery on the battlefield, but their lack of control authority limits the flexibility of such means of fire support. In this article, a new methodology is proposed to extend the maximum angle of attack at which a fin-stabilized guided projectile can be controlled, in spite of stringent actuator limitations. Plant-controller optimization is leveraged to maximize the control performance and mitigate the detrimental effects of aerodynamic nonlinearities on the projectile attitude dynamics. A nonlinear model is introduced to account for the effects of canard stall at the design stage and evaluate the performance of the system. Closed-loop wind-tunnel testing is performed to validate the aforementioned model and assess the performance of the optimal design against other guided projectile configurations. Numerical and experimental results show that the optimal projectile is faster for most angles of attack between 0 and 10 deg and features better disturbance rejection properties than its closest competitor.