In this paper we develop a simplified mathematical model representing the main elements of the behaviour of sailing vessels as a basis for simulation and controllerdesign. For adaptive real-time optimization of the sail and heading angle we then apply extremum seeking control (which is a gradient based control law thatdrives the output of a linear or nonlinear system to its extremum) as an approach to maximize the longitudinal velocity. The basic idea behind extremum seeking and “how it works” is presented, as well as a simulation study on noise, convergence and stability issues.
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