Super-twisting integral sliding mode control for trajectory tracking of an Unmanned Underwater Vehicle

This research work focuses on the design of a robust control algorithm for 3D trajectory tracking of a 4DOF Unmanned Underwater Vehicle (UUV). The proposed strategy is based on a combination of the integral sliding mode control technique with the super-twisting controller, guaranteeing a continuous compensation of bounded disturbances and accomplishing a significant reduction on the chattering phenomenon. In order to verify stability of the closed-loop system, Lyapunov theory is used to guarantee the asymptotic stability in the tracking errors. To demonstrate the satisfactory performance of the proposed controller even in presence of disturbances, a set of simulations and real-time experiments were performed for the trajectory tracking. The graphs show that the proposed controller guarantees the converges to the desired references and a high reduction in the chattering effect on the inputs control.