An adaptive tracking control method for the all-wheel-driving and active-steering articulated vehicle with n -units

To achieve the running control of the all-wheel-driving and active-steering articulated vehicles (AWDASAVs) with n-units, an adaptive tracking control method is proposed in this paper, which includes a real-time target trajectory generation and an adaptive tracking control system. Firstly, the AWDASAV kinematics model is derived, and then the front-axle trace as the target trajectory is computed for all rear-axle steering by using data compressing and filtering, coordinate transformation, and local spline differences, which has small data storage and high computational efficiency and makes it easier to use in AWDASAV. Secondly, an adaptive tracking control system composed of an adaptive active steering controller and a differential distribution controller is designed to achieve accurate trajectory tracking and coordinated movement for AWDASAV. Finally, the AWDASAV simulation model with five-units was built in ADAMS by code development for cross-validation simulation, and the simulations with two cases at various speeds are carried out to verify the simulation model and control method. To further investigate the proposed method, the influence of three parameters on the tracking control performance and comparison with different control methods are carried out. The results exhibit excellent tracking control performance.