Traditional flight termination systems (FTS) rely on a man-in-the-loop to monitor vehicle flight path and related vehicle trajectory performance parameters based on multiple radar tracking sources along with sensory data sent from onboard the vehicle via telemetry. An autonomous flight safety system (AFSS) brings the decision process onboard the vehicle via digital high-speed processing of positional data coming from onboard sensors, such as global positioning system (GPS), Optical (star or sun trackers), laser, and/or inertial measurement system (IMU)sensors. The sensor type is flexible in the architecture, but may require a software adjustment for the sensors position, velocity, and time(PVT) transmission formats. The Range Safety (RS) preprogrammed flight path and keep-out areas, along with flight deviation allowances, and related safety rules are uploaded to the AFSS prior to launch and stored in protective computer memory. The AFSS continuously determines the instantaneous impact point (IIP) of the vehicle based on real-time navigation data obtained from the onboard sensors. Current AFSS have been primarily designed for pad-launched systems; however, submarine-launched missiles present some unique issues that must be considered when leveraging this existing technology
Benefit: Current AFSS have been primarily designed for pad-launched systems; however, submarine-launched missiles present some unique issues that must be considered when leveraging this existing technology. Some of the key differences that impact how AFSS is implemented for submarine-launched systems include: a) the launch site is mobile and b) the launch will occur from a submerged environment resulting in signal loss / signal acquisition issues for sensors such as Global Positioning System (GPS). In addition to a submarine launched missile, Innoveerings AFSS provides solutions that are well suited for the hypersonics flight testing community. Current test articles are either launched off a support vehicle like the B-52 with the current DARPA HAWC (Hypersonic Airbreathing Weapon Concept) or the Air Force ARRW (Air-launch Rapid Response Weapon) program. The flight testing is also performed using a variety of sounding rocket tests with various integrators. The customers for the AFSS include government, industry, and academia (although the universities typically partner with the other two). For industry, it can be broken into defense and private commercial flight which includes space tourism. In several cases, companies offer private flight-testing options capable of launching smaller hypersonic experiments.
Keywords: Missile Launch, submarine launch, Autonomous Flight Safety System, Range Safety
