Second order Sliding Mode Control with Disturbance Observer for bicycle stabilization

Controlling a riderless bicycle is a challenging problem because the dynamics are nonlinear. In this paper, an innovative robust control strategy based on 2(nd) order sliding mode control (SMC) is proposed for the stabilization of an autonomous bicycle. In order to improve overall performance, application of a disturbance observer (DOB) is suggested. The combination of 2nd order SMC and DOB enables to increase the robustness of the system trajectories while avoiding the chattering phenomenon. The proposed control scheme is validated by simulation and experimental results for bicycle stabilization at low and zero velocities.