Final approach trajectory control with fuzzy controller

Abstract

A tail chase guidance system for directing a steerable object, such as a pedo, to a contact along a final approach course. The guidance system senses a bearing from the steerable object to the contact and the course of the steerable object. If the contact is moving, the system determines a contact course as a final approach course; if stationary, a value is provided for the final approach course. Various signals are then generated based upon these bearings and courses and classified into sensed linguistic variables based on membership functions from the different sensed variable membership function sets to become fuzzy inputs to a controller that produces fuzzy control output linguistic variables and associated membership functions from a control output membership function set based upon logical manipulation of the fuzzy inputs. These fuzzy control output membership functions are converted into an output having an appropriate form for controlling the trajectory so that the steerable object intercepts the contact along the final approach course.