Experimental validation of model-based thruster fault detection for underwater vehicles

This paper describes a model-based thruster fault detection scheme for an autonomous underwater vehicle. For a vehicle equipped with servo motor based marine thrusters, the velocity and current feedback from the motor controllers can be used to derive two independent thrust approximations. The difference between the two models reveals the presence of fault conditions, and quantifies the error of the output thrust relative to the desired reference. The method is proven effective through experimental validation.