Seeker Guidance and Seeker Discrimination Information Fusion

"In an MDA interception of a threat complex there may be a number of objects, none of which has been identified positively as an RV. As the interception proceeds, discrimination provides for each object a probability that it is an RV, and theseprobabilities may change with time as more information is accumulated in the interceptor. An algorithm is presented which uses these probabilities to select the point in space towards which the interceptor should fly to maximize the probability ofintercepting the RV. This algorithm attempts to look ahead in the interception to change this point in space when it is no longer possible for the interceptor to reach all the objects in the threat complex. A Phase I effort is proposed to investigatethis algorithm, using realistic representations of threats, discrimination processes, and interceptors. Simulation of various situations will result in a modified algorithm which will be robust and have wide applicability. We anticipate that the proposedPhase I effort if successful will result in a robust algorithm which will use on-board discrimination to improve the kill probability of MDA interceptors. In addition, the conditions under which it is most effective will be determined, and possiblemodifications to interceptor software to take maximum advantage of the algorithm will be suggested.Potential Commercial Applications:The algorithm we propose is a particular example of a class of algorithms ha