A tracking control method for articulated virtual rail train with N-unit based on the dynamic model

In this paper, an articulated virtual rail train running on an urban road with N-unit is introduced, and a new tracking control system is designed to realize the tracking control of the articulated virtual rail train. First, a dynamic model for the articulated virtual rail train with N-unit is derived with 11N degrees of freedom. Second, based on the dynamic model, a steering control system is designed, which includes the following sub-controllers: a unit 1 front-axle steering controller and a unit 1∼N rear-axle steering controller for approaching the virtual target path, a unit 2∼N front-axle steering controller for coordinating the movement of adjacent units, and a four-wheel-steering (4WS) controller for each unit. Finally, a numerical simulation model of the train with five units is built in MATLAB, and a cross-validation model is built in ADAMS software. The simulation and verification results show that the tracking errors are within 50 mm, and the lateral articulation forces are less than 2 kN, which indicates that the designed control system has a good tracking performance.