Advanced intelligent control strategies for enhanced lateral dynamics of autonomous vehicles

This chapter proposes an enhanced lateral control strategy for autonomous vehicles by combining time-delay estimation (TDE) with fast terminal sliding-mode control (FTSMC). The approach ensures precise tracking and robustness against modeling uncertainties and disturbances. A barrier Lyapunov function (BLF) maintains system stability and confines state trajectories within safe bounds. TDE estimates known dynamics in real time, reducing the need for exact models, while FTSMC guarantees finite-time convergence of tracking errors. Lyapunov-based analysis confirms system stability, and simulations validate the method’s effectiveness under diverse driving conditions.