Formation controller design for heterogeneous ships based on sliding mode control

Ship formation control has been widely used in environmental protection and ocean mapping due to its high efficiency. The recent researches on ship formation are mainly aimed at isomorphic types of ships and theoretical simulations. To enhance the feasibility of ship formation for specific scenarios in water, this paper proposes a formation controller based on the leader-follower approach, sliding-mode, and Lyapunov method for heterogeneous ship formation. Finally, the successful implementation of real heterogeneous ship models illustrates the correctness and effectiveness of the formation controller.