Coordinated target assignment via a finite-time gain measurement approach

In this study, the authors consider a coordinated target assignment problem where a group of unmanned flight vehicles cooperate with each other to combat with a set of target vehicles which may perform various manoeuvres. Each flight vehicle is expected to be optimally assigned to a manoeuvring target vehicle such that the maximal possibility of successful interception can be guaranteed. Considering the course of the engagement, the target assignment should be achieved in terms of the performance over a limited time interval. The authors establish a linear time-varying system in a finite-time horizon to study the target assignment problem. A cost function is proposed based on the finite-time generalised H₂ gain measurement and the finite-time final value performance measurement which can be viewed as the metric of the maximal required acceleration and the zero miss distance. For computation, the properties and performance criterion of the finite-time generalised H₂ gain are proved. The computation of the finite-time final value performance measurement is also treated. The targets are assigned by minimising the value of the overall assignment evaluation function. Finally, the authors give some simulation results to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed target assignment method.