Path planning for taxi of carrier aircraft launching

Launching efficiency is an important index to measure the fighting capacity of an aircraft carrier. The study on path planning for taxi of carrier aircraft is of great significance for enhancing the launching efficiency. Considering the launching efficiency and the safety in operation of carrier aircraft launching and taking into account the carrier aircraft maneuver performance, deck environment and feature of mission, we proposed a conceptual model which contains the key elements of path planning for taxi of carrier aircraft. Subsequently, the objective function for the path planning problem and its mathematical model containing various constraints were established. With the A* search algorithm, a dynamic weight heuristic function was designed. According to the characteristic of path planning model for taxi of carrier aircraft, a simple and effective detection method was introduced. Finally, a feasible path for taxi of carrier aircraft, which meets the constraints, was presented. Taking the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier as an example, the paths for taxi of carrier aircraft launching from elevators to catapults were planned. Simulation results demonstrated the rationality of the model and the effectiveness of the algorithm.