Implementation and Performances Evaluation of Advanced Automotive Lateral Stability Controls on a Real-Time Hardware in the Loop Driving Simulator

This study concerns the comparative investigation of two advanced lateral stability automotive controllers with respect to a commercial solution. The research aims to improve the stability performances achieved by a combined tracking of yaw rate and side-slip angle through the application of optimal efforts. The proposed solutions are based on Linear Quadratic Regulation and Sliding Mode Control, respectively. Both rely on the same approach for the control objective definition but differ from the action perspective. This solution involves the adoption of a differential braking actuation technique to deliver a desired yaw moment to the car body to track controlled states. Indeed, a sliding controller can also traction torques of hub-motor configurations as well as steering corrections, achieving vehicle stability and a driving response in accordance with the pilot’s intentions. Calibration and validation of the controllers are performed through a Hardware-in-the-Loop simulation rig, along with a real-time static simulator, performing different close-loop maneuvers to assess achievements in terms of lateral stability. Results show that both solutions ensure higher handling performances if compared to Non-controlled or Commercial-controlled vehicle scenarios.