Suboptimal Sliding Mode-based Heading and Speed Guidance Scheme for Boundary Tracking with Autonomous Vehicle

摘要

In this paper, a Sub-Optimal Sliding Mode (SOSM) guidance scheme is proposed to induce boundary tracking behaviours in autonomous vehicles. The spread of an environmental feature in 2-dimensional space is modelled as a scalar field characterised by an unknown spatial gradient. It is assumed that a single autonomous vehicle is deployed and this provides a point measurement of the density value of the spatial phenomenon at its current position. Based on this instantaneous reading, a novel control scheme is proposed to simultaneously regulate the heading angle and the speed of the vehicle to track the desired contour line in finite time. In contrast to the previous scheme upon which the work in this paper builds, the novel guidance scheme is capable of automatically regulating the speed to help accurately maintain the vehicle alignment with the contour line. Numerical simulations demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed control scheme also when compared with other solutions available in the existing literature.