This paper presents a design method for autopilot control system in course change to the specified direction based on a robust digital servo controlmelthod incorporating the concept of the annihilator polynormial. The mathematicalmodel of ship turning motion is very complex in the view of practical control because it has time varying parameters, nonlinear and dead time terms. To apply the digital servo control method based on computer control, the model is linearized at an equilibrium point and discretized with appropriate sampling time. The control algorithm was evaluated on the basis of computer simulation for a model ship and the practical experiment was carried out with an image processing method for measurement of ship position in a water tank. The results of overall experiments show that the proposed control method will be one of good way to keep a track plotted in the map.