Superiority of canards in homing missiles

We suggest a first-order model to distinguish between nose control (canards) and tail control. We present optimal guidance strategies and demonstrate the superiority of nose control. This simple model enables us to develop simple and robust guidance strategies based on three approaches: unconstrained optimal control, constrained optimal control, and constrained differential games. It turns out that nose control requires low gain and is capable of forcing small miss distance in the presence of a maneuvering target.     

Tracking targets using adaptive Kalman filtering

A simple algorithm for estimating the unknown process noise variance of an otherwise known linear plant, using a Kalman filter is suggested. The process noise variance estimator is essentially dead beat, using the difference between the expected prediction error variance, computed in the Kalman filter, and the measured prediction error variance. The estimate is used to adapt the Kalman filter. The use of the adaptive filter is demonstrated in a simulated example in which a wildly maneuvering target is tracked     

System quality factors for LPI communications

Quality factors are developed for low-probability-intercept (LPI) communication systems in order to provide a quantitative technique that allows the system engineer to evaluate LPI effectiveness in the presence of jammers and intercept receivers. LPI quality factors are derived from the system link equations, which describe the signal power gains and losses as a function of system link parameters. Quality factors for the essential components of the LPI system that provide some advantage to the cooperative transmitter and receiver over the jammer and intercept receiver are described. These include quality factors for the antennas, type of modulation, atmospheric propagation conditions, and interference rejection capability