Applying pseudo-spectral (PS) method to optimizing entry trajectory of suborbital launch vehicle (SLV)

Sections 1 and 2 of the full paper explain how to apply the PS method to optimizing the entry trajectory of SLV. Their core consists of: to accelerate the optimization, we convert the dynamics equations to those with energy as independent variable and then normalize them into eqs. (11) through (15); the optimization problem with free final time is transformed into the optimization problem with fixed integration range; we, taking state constraints, control constraints, path constraints and final boundary conditions into consideration, implement the optimization of the entry trajectory of SLV. The simulation results, given in Table 1 and Figs. 1 and 2, and their analysis show preliminarily that the PS method gives good convergence speed and good computation precision and thus can optimize the entry trajectory of SLV.