Three-dimensional nonlinear H∞ guidance law with maneuvering targets

Abstract

Abstract This paper proposes a three-dimensional H ∞ robust guidance law for homing missiles with nonlinear kinematics in the homing phase. Unlike conventional approaches where target's acceleration is often assumed to be known or needs to be estimated in real time, the proposed 3D robust guidance law can achieve performance robustness in the absence of target's acceleration information. The most difficult and challenging task involved in applying nonlinear H∞ control theory is the solution of the associated Hamilton-Jacobi partial differential inequality (HJPDI). In this paper we show that the HJPDI of the three-dimensional missile guid ance problem can be solved analytically with simple manipulations. The numerical simulations show that the three-dimensional H ∞ robust guidance law exhibits strong robustness properties against disturbances from target's maneuvers.