Hypersonic Glide Vehicle Trajectory Design using Constrained Energy Maneuverability

This paper presents a method that enables the rapid generation of physically relevant trajectories for a hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV). The method uses the concept of energy maneuverability (EM), whereby a set of energy differential equations are solved to generate a trajectory that is also constrained by the lifting capabilities of the trimmed HGV. Constrained EM trajectories are ensured to be dynamically feasible because they encode information about trim, the vehicle’s energy state, and the equations of motion. EM trajectories can be computed rapidly and are well suited for initial vehicle design studies. A generic hypersonic glide vehicle developed at the University of Minnesota is used for the trajectory study. A high fidelity aerodynamic database generated from computational fluid dynamics is used to design and simulate trajectories. Heat, acceleration, aerodynamic loads are analyzed for the various trajectories computed. Additionally, transient temperature is computed using a lumped thermal mass model in the vehicle’s nose. Trajectories designed using the proposed constrained EM approach are shown to alleviate the effects of skipping associated with unguided trajectories operating at high lift to drag ratios.