Aerospace Sliding Mode Control Toolbox: Relative Degree Approach with Resource Prospector Lander and Launch Vehicle Case Studies

Abstract: Conventional Sliding mode control and observation techniques are widely used in aerospace applications, including aircrafts, UAVs, launch vehicles, missile interceptors, and hypersonic missiles. This work is dedicated to creating a MATLAB-based sliding mode controller design and simulation software toolbox that aims to support aerospace vehicle applications. An architecture of the aerospace sliding mode control toolbox (SMC Aero) using the relative degree approach is proposed. The SMC Aero libraries include 1st order sliding mode control (1-SMC), second order sliding mode control (2-SMC), higher order sliding mode (HOSM) control (either fixed gain or adaptive), as well as higher order sliding mode differentiators. The efficacy of the SMC Aero toolbox is confirmed in two case studies: controlling and simulating resource prospector lander (RPL) soft landing on the Moon and launch vehicle (LV) attitude control in ascent mode.