TD-Based Adaptive Output Feedback Control of Ship Heading with Stochastic Noise and Unknown Actuator Dead-Zone Input

To meet the demand of ship control, a new heading control tactic is explored using switching theory. Different from the previous results, the stochastic noise and switched control are considered in the Norrbin nonlinear mathematical model concurrently to discuss ship heading control. Then, for the resulting systems, the adaptive control issue is addressed, while the dead-zone input is embedded and unknown. By establishing switched state observers for the corresponding subsystems, the conservatism of the common state observer can be reduced greatly, and the analysis can be achieved under the switching signal satisfying the average dwell time (ADT). The “explosion of terms” problem occurring in the backstepping technique is well remedied via an innovative tracking differentiator (TD) technology, which is an innovation in itself. According to the theory proof, under the developed control tactic, the resulting signals are then to be bounded in probability, with the tracking goal being achieved well. The theoretical design result was analyzed, and the corresponding validity is given through simulation experiments.