TABLE OF CONTENTS Science is not formal logic it needs the free play of the mind in as great a degree as any other creative art. It is true that this is a gift which can hardly be taught. But its growth can be encouraged in those who already possess it. 1
Max Born (1882, 1970),
German physicist, Nobel Laureate
The leading idea of this book has been to provide an overview of the system identification methodology as applied to flight vehicles, focusing on the key methods of parameter estimation in the time domain and emphasizing nonlinear modeling. Although a certain degree of mathematical treatment is unavoidable, we have attempted to keep the theoretical development simple and understandable, including that for the methods in the stochastic framework. The major thrust has been on practical issues, and on explaining in simple terms the need, purpose, background theory, and scope of the various topics covered in this book. The book is not intended as a cookbook, but certain guidelines demonstrated and recommended herein help the reader to arrive at an adequate model. In a few cases the discussion has been on a philosophical level, but this was intentional, with the goal of sharing the process learnt and experience gathered during the exercises.
It is our strong belief that system identification should be a goal-oriented task. Hence, at the outset we need to define the specific purpose for which the model is required, because this determines to a large extent the amount of effort that will be...
