Robust Design of H-infinity Controller for a Launch Vehicle Autopilot against Disturbances

Atmospheric flight phase of a launch vehicle is utilized to evaluate the performance of an H∞ controller in the presence of disturbances. Dynamics of the vehicle is linearly modeled using time-varying parameters. An operating point was found to design a robust command tracker using H∞ control theory that guarantees a stable maneuver. At the end, the controller was employed on the launch vehicle to assess the capability of control design on the linearized aerospace vehicle. Experimental results illustrate the excellent performance of the H∞ controller and accurate tracking implemented by the autopilot. Also the robustness of the entire system against disturbances is demonstrated to be acceptable.