Mobile robot path tracking of aggressive maneuvers on sloped terrain

Path tracking control on non-flat terrain is an important capability of mobile robots operating in outdoor environments. A path tracking controller based on the model predictive control (MPC) framework is presented that explicitly considers terrain geometry and actuator limitations. The controller performance is studied with three vehicle dynamic models in a high-fidelity ADAMS simulation. The effect of model order on path tracking performance on flat terrain and sloped terrain is evaluated. It is shown that improved performance can be obtained by explicitly considering terrain effects.