Real-time guidance of reusable winged space plane using genetic algorithm implemented on field programmable gate array

An efficient and flexible real-time guidance system is one of the critical needs in the development of a future reusable space transportation system. The genetic algorithm employs an optimization model called the evolution of life, which is generally considered numerically robust but involves an extremely high calculation cost. To reduce the cost, this paper proposes an efficient procedure that optimizes the coefficients of a set of prescribed input functions. In addition, to reduce the calculation time by more than one tenth, the optimization scheme is implemented on a field programmable gate array. The resultant optimization system is applied to an on-board guidance system that optimizes the trajectory of an experimental winged rocket in real time.