Loss of Control (LOC)
is the primary factor responsible for the majority of fatal air accidents during
past decade. LOC is characterized by the pilot’s inability to control the
aircraft and is typically associated with unpredictable behavior, potentially
leading to loss of the aircraft and life. In this work, the minimum time
dynamic optimization problem to LOC is treated using Pontryagin’s Maximum Principle
(PMP). The resulting two point boundary value problem is solved using stochastic
shooting point methods via a differential evolution scheme (DE). The minimum
time until LOC metric is computed for corresponding spatial control limits.
Simulations are performed using a linearized longitudinal aircraft model to
illustrate the concept.
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