Nonlinear Model-Predictive Integrated Guidance and Control Scheme applied for Missile-on-Missile Interception

The paper describes the methodology and the design process of a Model Predictive Controller (MPC) that has been applied to solve Missile-on-Missile Interception. The MPC combines the control and guidance laws to create an ideal control law with much higher performance and guarantees strike with a wide range of target and missile parameters. The MPC is also able to handle actuator delay and hence is more practically suited than traditional guidance/control schemes. Also, MPC satisfies sensor/seeker angle constraints, actuator constraints, angle of attack constraints, and fin deflection angle constraints, thus making it more versatile and powerful than any analytical method-based control/guidance schemes. The only disadvantage is the higher computational cost requirements, which will be easily mitigated in the future with the advancements of powerful microprocessors. The performance of the MPC is demonstrated in simulations where the missile is a standard supersonic missile but the target is a maneuvering hypersonic missile with initial separation of just a few kilometers.