Which are the main control theories behind the landing maneuvers of the Falcon 9? For the hovering part, as it approaches the landing surface, I guess the inverted pendulum control approaches would do it. But what about the control from stage separation till it the reentry burn? Any textbook references appreciated!
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7$\begingroup$ Oddly, no hovering. The engine has a T/W ratio greater than 1. Cannot hover, even if they wanted too. Cannot throttle down low enough to hover. $\endgroup$– geoffcJan 25, 2015 at 1:05
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2$\begingroup$ Duplicate? How will SpaceX achieve landing of the Falcon 9 first stage? $\endgroup$– minsJan 26, 2015 at 19:19
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3$\begingroup$ Not sure, seems to be asking about "control theories", which probably includes the algorithms computing location and guidance. The question you pose as a duplicate is about the hardware. $\endgroup$– StuJan 26, 2015 at 20:10
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2$\begingroup$ Something like this? -- old stuff. $\endgroup$– minsJan 27, 2015 at 7:44
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1$\begingroup$ @space_voyager: A Predictor-Corrector Guidance Algorithm Design for a Low L/D Autonomous Re-entry Vehicle by Carla Haroz, 1996 $\endgroup$– minsSep 12, 2015 at 10:33
1 Answer
One of the key control algorithms involved is called G-FOLD, or Guidance for Fuel-Optimal Large Diverts. This is something that JPL has been working on for Mars landings, and some people involved have actually went to work for SpaceX a few years ago. Here is a high level description:
http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meetings/marsconcepts2012/pdf/4193.pdf
And you can find more here : https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=xZvK9z0AAAAJ&view_op=list_works&sortby=pubdate