As the complicated and changing environment on the water imposes uncertain interference on the control of unmanned surface vehicles (USVs), a heading and speed controller for USVs with a Type-2 fuzzy control algorithm is proposed. On this basis, an intelligent autonomous and robust control system is developed.

First, a motion characteristic model for heading and speed is constructed. The recursive least square (RLS) method is then used to identify the parameters of the model. Finally, based on the identified model, a Type-2 fuzzy control algorithm and sliding mode control algorithm are designed and validated through actual ship experiments.

As the experimental results indicate, compared with the sliding mode control algorithm, the Type-2 fuzzy control algorithm demonstrates better robustness and ideal anti-interference ability in controlling USVs, but its real-time response is slightly longer.

The results of this study can provide references for the motion control of USVs subjected to uncertain interference.