Coordinated Standoff Tracking of Moving Targets Using Lyapunov Guidance Vector Fields

This paper presents a control structure for cooperative stand-off line-of-sight tracking of a moving target by a team of unmanned aircraft based on a Lyapunov guidance vector field that produces stable convergence to a circling limit cycle behavior. A guidance vector field is designed for a stationary target and then modified with a correction term that accounts for a moving target and constant background wind. Cooperative tracking by multiple unmanned aircraft is achieved through additional phasing, also with a Lyapunov stability analysis. Convoy protection, in which the unmanned aircraft must scout an area ahead of the moving target, is performed by extending the cooperative stand-offline-of-sight limit cycle attractor along the direction of travel. Simulation results demonstrate the behavior of the algorithms as well as the improvement that results from cooperation. Finally, simulations of a larger cooperative search, acquisition, and tracking scenario are described that illustrate the use of the cooperative standoff line-of-sight and convoy protection controllers in a realistic application.

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