Design of autopilots for bank-to-turn missiles

A method for the design of autopilots for bank-to-turn missiles is described. Based on linear-gaussian-quadratic control theory, the method makes use of the "adiabatic approxination" to deal with cross-coupling between the pitch and yaw axes of the missile proportional to roll rate. A software package has been developed to perform all the required design calculations, performance evaluation, and robustness asessment. This software has been used for the design of autopilots for several prospective airframes with results that achieve desired performance objectives. The control architecture is unlike that which a classical design would achieve, but performance of the two designs are comparable.