Adaptive coordinated tracking control of multiple autonomous underwater vehicles

A practical design method is developed for cooperative tracking control of multiple autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs). Each AUV is modeled by a system with time-varying parameters, unknown nonlinear dynamics and unknown disturbance. A robust adaptive distributed controller is designed for each AUV such that all AUVs ultimately synchronize to the desired paths with required formation. Moreover, these controllers are distributed in the sense that the controller design for each AUV only requires relative state in formation between itself and its neighbors. Finally, a simulation example demonstrates the effectiveness of the control method.