Path following for marine surface vessels

This paper addresses the problem of path following for marine surface vessels by utilizing a novel guidance-based approach. The approach is equally applicable for land, sea and air vehicles. The main idea is to explicitly control the velocity vector of the vehicles in such a way that they converge to and follow desired geometrical paths in a natural and elegant manner. In this regard, all regular paths are feasible. A nonlinear model-based controller is designed for a fully actuated vessel to enable it to comply with the guidance commands. The vessel is exposed to a constant environmental force, hence integral action is added by means of parameter adaptation. By introducing sideslip compensation and a dynamic controller state, the results are extended to underactuated vessels