A High-level model predictive control guidance law for unmanned aerial vehicles

This tutorial paper describes a high-level guidance algorithm based on model predictive control. The algorithm follows a precomputed flight plan (which provides a reference trajectory based on straight segments) by calculating the aerodynamic velocity, flight path angle and bank angle commands for a low level attitude controller. To compute these control signals, the guidance law uses a nonlinear 3DoF aircraft model for state prediction that leads to a nonlinear optimization problem, which is solved using a iterative scheme. The algorithm uses as a hotstart a robust missile guidance law, thus guaranteeing feasibility. Simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed guidance law.