A low communication burden DEV guidance and event-triggered control for USV-UAV system

A widely recognized and challenging issue in the control of USV-UAV systems is the high communication burden for the control signals. In the context of UAV encircling guard task for USV, it is typically necessary for the USV to transmit real-time guidance signals to the UAV to ensure that the UAV maintains a consistent distance from the USV, which results in a significant communication burden. This paper proposes a double-layer encircling virtual (DEV) guidance principle, which allows for the pre-planning of guidance paths and signals for USV-UAV system by an L1VS and a virtual aircraft. This approach eliminates the UAV’s reliance on real-time communication with the USV during the path-following process. The controller design integrates event-triggered control and a disturbance compensation mechanism, effectively reducing environmental disturbances while minimizing the update frequency of control signals. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm is validated through the Lyapunov stability analysis and simulation experiments.