Nonlinear adaptive control of an underwater towed vehicle

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2010

Authors

Francisco Curado Teixeira (Author) Other; Antonio Pedro Aguiar (Author) Other; Antonio Pascoal (Author) Other

Journal

Title: Ocean Engineering

Vol. 37

Pages: 1193-1220

ISSN: 0029-8018

Publisher: Elsevier

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 14 Citations

Scopus - 24 Citations

Scientific classification

FOS: Engineering and technology > Civil engineering

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-003-3QS

DOI: 10.1016/j.oceaneng.2010.05.010

Abstract (EN): This paper addresses the problem of simultaneous depth tracking and attitude control of an underwater towed vehicle. The system proposed uses a two-stage towing arrangement that includes a long primary cable, a gravitic depressor, and a secondary cable. The towfish motion induced by wave driven disturbances in both the vertical and horizontal planes is described using an empirical model of the depressor motion and a spring-damper model of the secondary cable. A nonlinear, Lyapunov-based, adaptive output feedback control law is designed and shown to regulate pitch, yaw, and depth tracking errors to zero. The controller is designed to operate in the presence of plant parameter uncertainty: When subjected to bounded external disturbances, the tracking errors converge to a neighbourhood of the origin that can be made arbitrarily small. In the implementation proposed, a nonlinear observer is used to estimate the linear velocities used by the controller thus dispensing with the need for costly sensor suites. The results obtained with computer simulations show that the controlled system exhibits good performance about different operating conditions when subjected to sea-wave driven disturbances and in the presence of sensor noise. The system holds promise for application in oceanographic missions that require depth tracking or bottom-following combined with precise vehicle attitude control.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 28