Arie Levant

Higher-order sliding modes, differentiation and output-feedback control

Being a motion on a discontinuity set of a dynamic system, sliding mode is used to keep accurately a given constraint and features theoretically-infinite-frequency switching. Standard sliding modes provide for finite-time convergence, precise keeping of the constraint and robustness with respect to internal and external disturbances. Yet the relative degree of the constraint has to be 1 and a dangerous chattering effect is possible. Higher-order sliding modes preserve or generalize the main properties of the standard sliding mode and remove the above restrictions. r-Sliding mode realization provides for up to the rth order of sliding precision with respect to the sampling interval compared with the first order of the standard sliding mode. Such controllers require higher-order real-time derivatives of the outputs to be available. The lacking information is achieved by means of proposed arbitrary-order robust exact differentiators with finite-time convergence. These differentiators feature optimal asymptotics with respect to input noises and can be used for numerical differentiation as well. The resulting controllers provide for the full output-feedback real-time control of any output variable of an uncertain dynamic system, if its relative degree is known and constant. The theoretical results are confirmed by computer simulation.

Sliding order and sliding accuracy in sliding mode control

The synthesis of a control algorithm that stirs a nonlinear system to a given manifold and keeps it within this constraint is considered. Usually, what is called sliding mode is employed in such synthesis. This sliding mode is characterized, in practice, by a high-frequency switching of the control. It turns out that the deviation of the system from its prescribed constraints (sliding accuracy) is proportional to the switching time delay. A new class of sliding modes and algorithms is presented and the concept of sliding mode order is introduced. These algorithms feature a bounded control continuously depending on time, with discontinuities only in the control derivative. It is also shown that the sliding accuracy is proportional to the square of the switching time delay.

Robust exact differentiation via sliding mode technique

Abstract The main problem in differentiator design is to combine differentiation exactness with robustness in respect to possible measurement errors and input noises. The proposed differentiator provides for proportionality of the maximal differentiation error to the square root of the maximal deviation of the measured input signal from the base signal. Such an order of the differentiation error is shown to be the best possible one when the only information known on the base signal is an upper bound for Lipschitz’s constant of the derivative.

Second-order sliding-mode observer for mechanical systems

The super-twisting second-order sliding-mode algorithm is modified in order to design a velocity observer for uncertain mechanical systems. The finite time convergence of the observer is proved. Thus, the observer can be designed independently of the controller. A discrete version of the observer is considered and the corresponding accuracy is estimated.

Sliding Mode Control and Observation

The sliding mode control methodology has proven effective in dealing with complex dynamical systems affected by disturbances, uncertainties and unmodeled dynamics. Robust control technology based on this methodology has been applied to many real-world problems, especially in the areas of aerospace control, electric power systems, electromechanical systems, and robotics. Sliding Mode Control and Observation represents the first textbook that starts with classical sliding mode control techniques and progresses toward newly developed higher-order sliding mode control and observation algorithms and their applications.The present volume addresses a range of sliding mode control issues, including:*Conventional sliding mode controller and observer design*Second-order sliding mode controllers and differentiators*Frequency domain analysis of conventional and second-order sliding mode controllers*Higher-order sliding mode controllers and differentiators*Higher-order sliding mode observers *Sliding mode disturbance observer based control *Numerous applications, including reusable launch vehicle and satellite formation control, blood glucose regulation, and car steering control are used as case studiesSliding Mode Control and Observation is aimed at graduate students with a basic knowledge of classical control theory and some knowledge of state-space methods and nonlinear systems, while being of interest to a wider audience of graduate students in electrical/mechanical/aerospace engineering and applied mathematics, as well as researchers in electrical, computer, chemical, civil, mechanical, aeronautical, and industrial engineering, applied mathematicians, control engineers, and physicists. Sliding Mode Control and Observation provides the necessary tools for graduate students, researchers and engineers to robustly control complex and uncertain nonlinear dynamical systems. Exercises provided at the end of each chapter make this an ideal text for an advanced coursetaught in control theory.

Homogeneity approach to high-order sliding mode design

It is shown that a general uncertain single-input-single-output regulation problem is solvable only by means of discontinuous control laws, giving rise to the so-called high-order sliding modes. The homogeneity properties of the corresponding controllers yield a number of practically important features. In particular, finite-time convergence is proved, and asymptotic accuracy is calculated in a very general way in the presence of input noises, discrete measurements and switching delays. A robust homogeneous differentiator is included in the control structure thus yielding robust output-feedback controllers with finite-time convergence. It is demonstrated that homogeneity features significantly simplify the design and investigation of a new family of high-order sliding-mode controllers. Finally, simulation results are presented.

Principles of 2-sliding mode design

Second-order sliding modes are used to keep exactly a constraint of the second relative degree or just to avoid chattering, i.e. in the cases when the standard (first order) sliding mode implementation might be involved or impossible. Design of a number of new 2-sliding controllers is demonstrated by means of the proposed homogeneity-based approach. A recently developed robust exact differentiator being applied, robust output-feedback controllers with finite-time convergence are produced, capable to control any general uncertain single-input-single-output process with relative degree 2. An effective simple procedure is developed to attenuate the 1-sliding mode chattering. Simulation of new controllers is presented.

Quasi-continuous high-order sliding-mode controllers

A universal finite-time-convergent controller is developed capable to control the output of any uncertain single-input-single-output system with a known permanent relative degree r. The tracking error /spl sigma/ is steered to zero by means of a control dependent only on /spl sigma/, /spl sigma//spl dot/, ..., /spl sigma//sup (r-1)/ and continuous everywhere except the set /spl sigma/=/spl sigma//spl dot/=/spl middot//spl middot//spl middot/=/spl sigma//sup (r-1)/=0. A robust output-feedback controller version provides for the tracking accuracy proportional to the sampling noise magnitude.

Universal single-input-single-output (SISO) sliding-mode controllers with finite-time convergence

An universal controller is constructed, formulated in input-output terms only, which causes the output of any uncertain smooth single-input single-output (SISO) minimum-phase dynamic system with known relative degree to vanish in finite time. This allows exact tracking of arbitrary real-time smooth signals. Only one parameter is to be adjusted. Since the approach is based on higher order finite time-convergence sliding modes, the control can be made arbitrarily smooth, providing for the arbitrarily-high tracking-accuracy order with respect to the sampling step.

Brief paper: Smooth second-order sliding modes: Missile guidance application

A new smooth second-order sliding mode control is proposed and proved using homogeneity-based technique for a system driven by sufficiently smooth uncertain disturbances. The main target application of this technique-the missile-interceptor guidance system against targets performing evasive maneuvers is considered. The smooth second-order sliding mode control-based guidance law is designed and compared with augmented proportional navigation guidance law via computer simulations of a guided missile intercepting a maneuvering ballistic target.