Patent ID: 8115148

Claim:
A method for targeting a preferred object from among a plurality of ballistic objects in an associated group of objects, said method comprising the steps of: sensing a group of potential target objects which includes a preferred object and an associated group of non-preferred objects to produce position and velocity vectors for each potential target object; computing from said position and velocity vectors at least one of specific energy and specific angular momentum for each of said potential target objects, to produce constants of orbital motion; from said constants of orbital motion, identifying three target objects having values of said one of said specific energy and specific angular momentum above a threshold, to identify a group of the three most likely target objects; calculating a spatially derived guidance point of said group of three most likely target objects; calculating a spatial rate of change of said constants of orbital motion, to produce a guidance direction increment; combining said spatially derived guidance point with said guidance direction increment to produce a target point which is closer to a location of said preferred object than is said spatially derived guidance point; and controlling thrust of an interceptor vehicle to guide said interceptor vehicle toward said target point.