GAIN SCHEDULING CONTROL FOR COMBINED FOUR WHEEL STEERING AND INDIVIDUAL WHEEL BRAKING

A gain scheduling control concept for the lateral vehicle dynamics is presented. Based on a nonlinear state space model, a controller is derived combining active front and rear wheel steering with individual wheel braking. The control concept proposed is based on a family of linear state feedback controllers. Thereto, the nonlinear model is linearized around a collection of equilibrium points. Depending on the current driving situation, the nearest equilibrium is determined and the corresponding controller gain is chosen. In order to investigate the efficiency of the individual actuators, several controller configurations are derived and compared. The nonlinear process model and the control concepts are validated with a commercial simulation tool for virtual test driving.