An Integrated Estimation Scheme for Resolving Tire Deformation Problem of Autonomous Vehicles

Tire deformation problem of autonomous vehicles can not be neglected for most practical applications due to the complex road conditions, unsmooth motion control inputs, time-varying load weight, etc. This paper presents a novel scheme for on-line state estimation of an autonomous vehicle with tire deformation. Specifically, an adaptive estimator is designed to provide essential positions, velocities, and perturbation estimation of the vehicle by combining the inertial measurements and visual feedback. The convergence properties of the proposed estimator can be theoretically proved. Moreover, the developed estimation scheme can be easily implemented with low-cost onboard sensors. Simulation results validate the effectiveness and robustness of the proposed estimator in the presence of tire deformation.