Practical optimization method of control allocation for dual-controlled agile missile

The autopilot of tactical missiles with high agility generally adopts scheme of dual-controlled effectors, blended with reaction control system jets and aerodynamic fins. This scheme will create a new problem addressed as control allocation, which is how to exploit the full potential of the above non-homogenous effectors, with aim to respond the desired demand for missile’s maneuvering. Currently, a significant challenge of control allocation for dual-controlled agile missile is the lack of a clear solution method, which can optimally allocate the control of the non-homogenous effectors, while also being computed with a fast computation speed in compliance with the time limit given by the real-time operation system of the autopilot. In this paper, we propose a practical method which can tackle the above challenge efficiently. The proposed method addresses the control allocation for dual-controlled agile missile as a mixed-integer nonlinear programming problem, and guarantees to solve the problem optimally. In contrast to the conventional branch & bound algorithm for general integer programming problems, we demonstrate that the proposed method has a smaller worst-case computational complexity and thus owns a better computational efficiency in theory. Finally, we implement numerical tests based on two Raytheon’s air-to-air dual-controlled agile missiles and the results reveal the effectiveness of the proposed method.