Design, analysis and experimental validation of a robust nonlinear path following controller for marine surface vessels

The problem of path following for marine surface vessels using the rudder angle is addressed in this paper. A four-degree-of-freedom nonlinear surface vessel model, together with the Serret–Frenet equations, is introduced to describe the ship dynamics and path following error dynamics. While similar models have been used and reported in the literature for path following control algorithm development, the novelty of the approach presented in this work lies in the following aspects. (a) The back-stepping nonlinear controller design is based on feedback dominance, instead of feedback linearization and nonlinearity cancelation; (b) additional design parameters are employed in the Lyapunov function that lead to simplification of the controller in the design procedure and normalization of different variables in the Lyapunov function to improve the controller performance; (c) relying on feedback dominance and the introduction of the additional parameters in the Lyapunov function, the resulting controller is almost linear, with very benign nonlinearities allowing for analysis and evaluation; and (d) the performance of the nonlinear controller, in terms of path following, is analyzed for robustness in the presence of model uncertainties. The simulation results are presented to verify and illustrate the analytic development and the effectiveness of the resulting control against rudder saturation and rate limits, and delays in the control execution, as well as measurement noises. Furthermore, the control design is validated by experimental results conducted in a tank using a model ship.