Time-Optimal Rendezvous From a Circular Orbit Using a Thrust-Limited Rocket.

Abstract

The time-optimal rendezvous problem is solved for the case of specified final mass. Pontryagin's maximum principle gives the necessary conditions for existence of the optimal controls (thrust magnitude and direction). The generalized Newton-Raphson algorithm is used to numerically solve the problem. The optimal trajectory for the rendezvous point considered has three thrust phases: maximum, zero, and maximum thrust, in that order. When the Newton-Raphson method is applied to the problem with range angle as independent variable, the solution approximation must be quite good for convergence. Changes in the switching point locations must be restricted to achieve convergence. (Author)

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 01, 1969
Accession Number
AD0859711

Entities

People

  • Glenn H. Bryner

Organizations

  • Air Force Institute of Technology

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Algorithms
  • Circular Orbits
  • Convergence
  • Mathematics
  • Orbits
  • Rendezvous
  • Switching
  • Trajectories

Readers

  • Control Systems Engineering.
  • Finite Element Method (FEM) for solving Partial Differential Equations (PDEs)

Technology Areas

  • Space
  • Space - Spacecraft Maneuvers