Game-Based Collaborative Interception of a Maneuverable Threat by an Allied Spacecraft Group Under Incomplete Information

Maneuverable threats pose a significant risk to the orbital safety of spacecraft. To confront such threats effectively, this article proposes a strategy for an allied spacecraft group to collaboratively intercept a maneuverable threat under incomplete information. First, the relative dynamical model between the allied spacecraft group and the maneuverable threat is constructed, and a cost function including the sum of terminal miss distances of the spacecraft is designed. The terminal time of the game is inferred from the game situation. This function is then extended to scenarios with incomplete information. Second, the unscented Kalman filter is adopted to estimate the evasion strategy of the threat by the allied spacecraft group. Finally, the pursuit-evasion game is transformed into a unilateral optimization problem, where the interception strategy of the allied spacecraft group is calculated through the state transition equation, thereby avoiding the need to solve the Riccati equation. Simulation results show that the proposed interception strategy can quickly block the escape route of the maneuverable threat. Compared to conservative zero-sum game strategy, the proposed strategy reduces interception time effectively.