Design, Simulation, and Field Testing of an Intelligent Control Algorithm Based on Event-Triggered and Nonlinear MPC for USVs

The design, simulation, and testing of intelligent trajectory-tracking control in narrow waters are essential issues for unmanned surface vehicles (USVs). Due to limited actuators, spatial constraints, and obstacles in narrow waters, the reference trajectory for USVs has various curves. This presents significant challenges to the accuracy and computational load of trajectory tracking. Therefore, a novel event-triggered-based nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC) with an artificial reference trajectory (ENMPC-ART) method is proposed. The artificial reference decision variables are integrated into the quadratic trajectory planning of reference trajectory and motion control of USVs to reduce the cross-track error. An event-triggered mechanism is designed to improve NMPC’s efficiency. Further, a cyber-physical simulation test framework based on virtual reality is designed to verify the algorithm’s performance and enhance the immersion. Finally, the proposed ENMPC-ART shows significant improvements through virtual simulations and field tests, such as the maximum cross-track error being reduced by 16% and the computation time being reduced by 20.2%.