Simplex Solutions for Optimal Control Flight Paths in Urban Environments

The Department of Defense (DoD) has continued to recognize Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (SUAS) as critical assets and the demand on their capabilities continues to grow. They are ideally suited for the dangerous or repetitive missions that otherwise require human involvement [1]. Incorporating SUAS into the battlefield will streamline systems, sensors, and analytical tasks while significantly reducing the risk to human life [2]. Across the DoD and civilian industry, the demand for unmanned capabilities has become paramount. Specifically, Manned Unmanned Teaming (MUM-T) is one role SUAS perform that augment and enhance human capabilities with a desired goal to ensure operations in complex and contested environments [3]. Manned aircraft flying through terrain and over urban canyons can experience ground threats that significantly reduce their ability to accomplish the mission. By teaming with SUAS, the manned aircraft can maintain a safe distance from the threat environment while relying on SUAS to augment the mission through system sensors. This scenario becomes ideal if the SUAS can autonomously navigate through a constrained environment from one area of interest to the next without the requirement for human interface.