rockets
rockets is a test-bed and 2D simulation of landing rockets using optimal control techniques. The simulation is written in Julia and source code is located on GitHub.
This project was of course inspired by the success of SpaceX landing their Falcon first stages: https://youtu.be/sf4qRY3h_eo?t=440.
The code currently includes a 3-degree of freedom simulation of a rocket, an LQR controller, and a module for visualization of the results. The LQR controller has significant limitations, but under certain conditions enables excellent control of flight and landing of “scale-model”-sized rockets. Current work is focusing on adding:
- Properly tuned LQR controller for landing a full-size Falcon 9
- Model-predictive control as replacement/supplement to LQR
- Continuous-time reinforcement learning algorithms to compare against classic LQR/MPC