A simple tractor-trailer backing control law for path following

Backing of tractor-trailer systems is a problem addressed in many literatures. It is usually solved using various nonlinear-based control methods, which are often not easy to implement or tune. Similar to other work focused on backing a single axle trailer with a car like vehicle, we propose a two-tier controller that is simple and intuitive. However, ours is based upon curvature as opposed to hitch angle, which allows the control input to be more directly related to path specification and to handle path curvature discontinuity better. Experimental results are provided to illustrate the capability of this new algorithm applied to a full scale autonomous vehicle and trailer system in a real field environment using minimal sensing capability. Results demonstrate good performance on sloped grounds with various grades.