Search of moving target by its informative character “trace”. Part 1. The general structure of optimal search trajectory

Solution of a planar problem of pursuer trajectory optimization is presented. The trajectory contains two parts – one is the search of a moving object (target) by informative character “trace” and the other – overtaking the target after trace detection. Minimax solution is found for the case when the target chooses its motion direction from some angle range and moves along a straight line with a constant speed.