Trajectory Control of an Automated Guided Vehicle Using Feedback Linearization

In this paper, the dynamics and control of an automated guided vehicle (AGV) is described. The objective is to control the vehicle direction and location with respect to a prescribed trajectory. This is accomplished based on an optimum control strategy using vehicle state variables. A four-wheel vehicle with three degrees of freedom including longitudinal, lateral and yaw motion is considered. The nonlinearity of the tire and steering mechanism is also included. The control system design for circular, straight forward and composite path is presented based on feedback linearization. Some trajectory simulation for discrete curvatures is carried out. The controller was implemented within MATLAB environment. The design was also evaluated using ADAMS full vehicle assembly. The results demonstrated the accuracy of the model and the effectiveness of the developed control system.