OPTIMIZED FUZZY CONTROL DESIGN OF AN AUTONOMOUS UNDERWATER VEHICLE

In this study, the roll, yaw and depth fuzzy control of an Au- tonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) are addressed. Yaw and roll angles are regulated only using their errors and rates, but due to the complexity of depth dynamic channel, additional pitch rate quantity is used to improve the depth loop performance. The discussed AUV has four aps at the rear of the vehicle as actuators. Two rule bases and membership functions based on Mamdani type and Sugeno type fuzzy rule have been chosen in each loop. By invoking the normalized steepest descent optimization method, the optimum values for the membership function parameters are found. Though the AUV is a highly nonlinear system, the simulation of the designed fuzzy logic control system based on the equations of motion shows desirable behavior of the AUV spe- cially when the parameters of the fuzzy membership functions are optimized.