APPLICATION OF FUZZY MODIFIED POTENTIAL GRADIENTS FOR VEHICLE MANEUVERING PROBLEMS

This paper presents a strategy of combining the fuzzy membership function and the potential function for controlling the course of a vehicle in the presence of obstacles. The strategy provides additional freedom in selecting the potential function and the steering parameters. In case of multiple vehicles (with different steering capabilities) moving on a given surface, the proposed methodology helps to choose appropriate fuzzy functions for each vehicle according to its steering capabilities. Applications for this strategy are demonstrated for two different cases - (1) for maneuvering a vehicle moving on plane surface, and (2) for planning in-plane orbit maneuvers to achieve orbit acquisition with required phase angle for constellation establishment.