Facilitating Infrared Seeker Performance Trade Studies Using Design Sheet

The Tactical Systems Division of Rockwell International is a supplier of infrared (IR) seeker based weapons systems. An important part of their activities is the design of missile seeker systems. During the conceptual design phase of these systems, an engineering concept team makes decisions which will ultimately affect the quality, cost, performance, availability and reliability of the weapon. Realizing the importance of the conceptual design phase, TSD has initiated efforts to popularize the use of computer-based analytical tools during the early phases of design. FLIR92 [1], a computer model developed by the US Army Night Vision Laboratory, is currently used for system level design analysis of infrared seeker systems. In spite of its accuracy and utility, it is limited by a lack of flexibility. This model can only perform an analysis of a single design at a time. Though one could modify it to perform analysis of several designs at a time in a batch mode of operation, the lack of integrated trade-study capability does not lend the FLIR92 model for easily searching large areas of design space before making crucial design decisions. The Palo Alto Laboratory of the Rockwell International Science Center has a strong research program in conceptual design methodology. The centerpiece of this program is the Rockwell-proprietary software system called Design Sheet. Design Sheet is a flexible analysis tool for carrying out engineering trade studies. Design Sheet uses algebraic equations for modeling, and integrates robust equation solving routines with graphical trade study capabilities to provide a powerful tool for quickly searching vast design spaces. Design Sheet only needs the design equations in a declarative mathematical form, without requiring the user to provide any control information on how the equations are solved. The user can decide at run-time, which variables are input and which are the desired output, and the internal graph-theoretic algorithms figure out a robust way for solving these equations. Therefore, the user can decide at run-time what trade studies are desired to search the design space and Design Sheet performs these trades without requiring any additional coding effort on the part of the user. An important goal of this project and the primary subject of this report is the development of a Design Sheet model of infrared seeker performance. The next section documents the model development process and describes the various components of the model. It then demonstrates how the Design Sheet model can be …