An active anti-rollover device based on Predictive Functional Control: application to an All-Terrain Vehicle

The active devices dedicated to on-road vehicle stability cannot be applied satisfactorily in an off-road context, since the variability and the non-linear features of grip conditions can no longer be neglected. Specific solutions have then to be investigated. In this paper, the prevention of light all-terrain vehicle (ATV) rollover is addressed. First, a backstepping observer is designed in order to estimate online a rollover indicator accounting for sliding phenomena, from a low-cost perception system. Next, the maximum vehicle velocity, compatible with a safe motion over some horizon of prediction, is computed via predictive functional control (PFC), and can then be applied, if needed, to the vehicle actuator to prevent from rollover. The capabilities of the proposed device are demonstrated and discussed thanks to an advanced simulation testbed that has proved to supply results very close to experimental ones.