Distributed Leader-Follower Formation Control for Autonomous Vessels based on Model Predictive Control

Formation control of autonomous surface vessels (ASVs) has been studied extensively over the last few years since it offers promising advantages. In this paper, two control methods for distributed leader-follower formation control are proposed: A Nonlinear Model Predictive Control (MPC) method and an MPC method using Feedback Linearization. One agent per vessel performs planning and control. The agents exchange information on their current and predicted positions. The two proposed methods are compared with each other and also with a conventional Proportional-Integral (PI) control method. The performance of the proposed strategies is evaluated through simulations and field experiments using small scale vessels. The simulation and field experiment results show that the proposed MPC-based approaches outperform the conventional PI control method.

I. INTRODUCTION

Formation control is seen as a promising opportunity for autonomous surface vessels (ASVs) and has been studied for years. Advantages of formation control include robustness, reliability and efficiency [1]. Furthermore, formation control is useful for applications such as search and rescue [2], ocean sampling [3], large object transport [4], and surveillance [5]. Autonomous ground, aerial, underwater and surface vehicles are among the main applications of formation control. Most research works have focused on ground and aerial vehicles [6], [7].