A composite impact-time-control guidance law and simultaneous arrival

A new composite impact time control guidance law is proposed for simultaneous attack against a ground target. The guidance strategy is composed of two phases. Specifically, the first phase is to guide the missile to proper switching relative range for the second phase. After which, the second phase will lead the missile to the target with a desired impact time by using the proposed Lyapunov based guidance scheme. The impact time is given in a simple analytical form of initial states and switching relative range, the value of which is determined to control the impact time. The proper range of the switching state is analyzed considering the line of sight angle constraint. And the permissible range for impact time can be calculated corresponding to the proper switching state. Two classes of simultaneous attack are considered to demonstrate the effectiveness of the impact time control. One is the sequential launch, and the other is a salvo launch of multiple missiles from different positions. Numerical simulations are carried out to verify the performance of the proposed methodology. (C) 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.