Trajectory Tracking Control of a Truck Trailer Robot Using Feedback Linearization

Abstract

A truck trailer system consist of a tractor connected to the trailer by means of connecting point called hitch point. The trajectory tracking control of a tractor trailer robot with on axle hitching in both forward and backward motion is addressed in this paper. The kinematic model of the truck trailer is developed and a nonlinear controller is designed which ensures that the center point of the trailer axle follows a predefined trajectory, described by a geometric path and a velocity profile. A closed loop stabilization control by using the feedback of the states is done. A controller based on feedback linearization is used to drive the truck trailer robot through the generated trajectory to move the robot from the initial pose to the final pose. The effectiveness of the proposed controller is validated using MATLAB simulations. The simulation results of the work show that the tractor trailer robot can be effectively controlled to track the curved and linear paths by using the control law.