The Design of Fixed-Time Observer and Finite-Time Fault-Tolerant Control for Hypersonic Gliding Vehicles

This paper proposes a fault-tolerant control (FTC) scheme for a hypersonic gliding vehicle to counteract actuator faults and model uncertainties. Starting from the kinematic and aerodynamic models of the hypersonic vehicle, the control-oriented model subject to actuator faults is built. The observers are designed to estimate the information of actuator faults and model uncertainties, and to guarantee the estimation errors for converging to zero in fixed settling time. Subsequently, the finite-time multivariable terminal sliding mode control and composite-loop design are pursued to enable integration into the FTC, which can ensure the safety of the postfault vehicle in a timely manner. Simulation studies of a six degree-of-freedom nonlinear model of the hypersonic gliding vehicle are carried out to manifest the effectiveness of the investigated FTC system.