Application of LPV modeling, design and analysis methods to a re-entry vehicle

In this paper the application of linear parameter varying (LPV) modeling, design and analysis methods to a re-entry vehicle is presented. The selected atmospheric re-entry benchmark includes full nonlinear motion, a detailed aerodynamic database (from hypersonic to subsonic), relevant actuator and sensor models and physically-meaningful aerodynamic and parametric uncertainty profiles. The results show that: (i) LPV controller design methods can solve gain-scheduling problems in a very effective manner, (ii) integral quadratic constraint (IQC) analysis methods can be used very efficiently to accurately interpret the nonlinear time domain simulation results, and, (iii) the use of linear fractional transformation (LFT) and LPV modeling representations are key to a successful analysis.