System identification methodology for a wave adaptive modular unmanned surface vehicle

The design, implementation, and testing of an experimental setup intended to evaluate the dynamic maneuvering performance of the Wave Adaptive Modular Vessel (WAM-V) class USV12, a 3.7 meter unmanned surface vehicle (USV) is described. A comprehensive sensor package was designed, fabricated and assembled to record the vehicle's dynamic response to various control inputs. All subsystems were fabricated and installed on a test vehicle, GUSS, and full system, open-loop maneuvering tests were conducted to show validity of data collection technique. Simulations were performed using model parameters found in the literature to create a "simulated experimental" data set, upon which system identification techniques were used to rediscover a suitable model with similar parameterization. Combined, the sensor package and the method for creating this model support future work in the design of automatic control, navigation, and guidance systems for the WAM-V USV12.