Distributed Trajectory Optimization and Sliding Mode Control of Heterogenous Vehicular Platoons

This study investigates the problem of distributed trajectory optimization and platooning of a group of heterogenous vehicles. A distributed hierarchical framework is proposed for trajectory optimization and tracking control. The role of the upper layer is to provide an optimal trajectory for the vehicle, which is realized by minimizing the inter-vehicle spacing with regard to the desired values using convex optimization. The second layer contains an adaptive sliding mode controller for the vehicle to track the optimal trajectory obtained. To compensate for uncertain vehicle dynamics, a parameter adaptation law is involved in the controller. In the context of sliding mode control based on the tracking error dynamics, the controller parameters are determined so that both internal and string stability are guaranteed. Simulation examples with comparative results are presented to illustrate the effectiveness of the results.