arXiv · 2508.11795
Matrix Control Barrier Functions
Abstract
This paper generalizes the control barrier function framework by replacing scalar-valued functions with matrix-valued ones. Specifically, we develop barrier conditions for safe sets defined by matrix inequalities -- both semidefinite and indefinite. Matrix inequalities can be used to describe a richer class of safe sets, including nonsmooth ones. The safety filters constructed from our proposed matrix control barrier functions via semidefinite programming (CBF-SDP) are shown to be continuous. Our matrix formulation naturally provides a continuous safety filter for Boolean-based control barrier functions, notably for disjunctions (OR), without relaxing the safe set. We illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed framework with applications in drone network connectivity maintenance and nonsmooth obstacle avoidance, both in simulations and hardware experiments.
Explore related subjects
Keep this discovery
Pio Ong, Yicheng Xu, Ryan M. Bena, Faryar Jabbari, Aaron D. Ames. 2025-08-15. Matrix Control Barrier Functions. https://arxiv.org/abs/2508.11795
Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.