arXiv subjects

Ravi Banavar

Publications and source records attributed to Ravi Banavar.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2022

Equivariant Filters are Equivariant

Observers for systems with Lie group symmetries are an active area of research that is seeing significant impact in a number of practical domains, including aerospace, robotics, and mechatronics. This paper builds on the theory of the recently proposed Equivariant Filter (EqF), which is a general observer design for systems on homogeneous spaces that takes advantage of symmetries to yield significant performance advantages. It is shown that the EqF error dynamics are invariant to transformation of the input signal and equivariant as a parametrised vector field. The main theorem shows that two EqF's with different choices of local coordinates and origins and with equivalent noise modelling yield identical performance. In other words, the EqF is intrinsic to the system equations and symmetry. This is verified in a simulation of a 2D robot localisation problem, which also shows how the ability to choose an origin for the EqF can yield practical performance advantages by mitigating floating point precision errors.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2021

Stabilizing a spherical pendulum on a quadrotor

In this article we design a backstepping control law based on geometric principles to swing up a spherical pendulum mounted on a moving quadrotor. The available degrees of freedom in the control vector also permit us to position the plane of the quadrotor parallel to the ground. The problem addressed here is, indeed, novel and has many practical applications which arise during the transport of a payload mounted on top of a quadrotor. The modeling and control law are coordinate-free and thus avoid singularity issues. The geometric treatment of the problem greatly simplifies both the modeling and control law for the system. The control action is verified and supported by numerical experiments for aggressive manoeuvres starting very close to the downward stable equilibrium position of the pendulum.

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arXiv2019

Variational collision and obstacle avoidance of multi-agent systems on Riemannian manifolds

In this paper we study a path planning problem from a variational approach to collision and obstacle avoidance for multi-agent systems evolving on a Riemannian manifold. The problem consists of finding non-intersecting trajectories between the agent and prescribed obstacles on the workspace, among a set of admissible curves, to reach a specified configuration, based on minimizing an energy functional that depends on the velocity, covariant acceleration and an artificial potential function used to prevent collision with the obstacles and among the agents. We apply the results to examples of a planar rigid body, and collision and obstacle avoidance for agents evolving on a sphere.

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arXiv2019

Design of a Discrete Time Observer for the Continuous Time Rotation Kinematics on $\mathbb{S}\mathbb{O}(3)$

This report proposes a discrete time observer for the continuous time rigid body kinematics on the rotation group $\mathbb{S}\mathbb{O}(3)$. The work draws on two research schools - one by Chang based on feedback integrators for systems evolving on manifolds,and the other by Mahony, who proposed an observer for attitude dynamics. The discrete time observer is based on the modified dynamics of the Mahony observer for attitude dynamics, where the modification of the vector field enables numerical integration based on Euclidean schemes.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2019

Attitude Control of a Novel Tailsitter: Swiveling Biplane-Quadrotor

This paper proposes a solution to the attitude tracking problem for a novel quadrotor tailsitter unmanned aerial vehicle called swiveling biplane quadrotor. The proposed vehicle design addresses the lack of yaw control authority in conventional biplane quadrotor tailsitters by proposing a new design wherein two wings with two attached propellers are joined together with a rod through a swivel mechanism. The yaw torque is generated by relative rotation of the thrust vector of each wing. The unique design of this configuration having two rigid bodies interconnected through a rod with zero torsional rigidity makes the vehicle underactuated in the attitude configuration manifold. An output tracking problem is posed which results in a single equivalent rigid body attitude tracking problem with second-order moment dynamics. The proposed controller is uniformly valid for all attitudes and is based on dynamic feedback linearization in a geometric control framework. Almost-global asymptotic stability of the desired equilibrium of the tracking error dynamics is shown. The efficacy of the controller is shown with numerical simulation and flight tests.

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arXiv2019

Scenario approach for minmax optimization with emphasis on the nonconvex case: positive results and caveats

We treat the so-called scenario approach, a popular probabilistic approximation method for robust minmax optimization problems via independent and indentically distributed (i.i.d) sampling from the uncertainty set, from various perspectives. The scenario approach is well-studied in the important case of convex robust optimization problems, and here we examine how the phenomenon of concentration of measures affects the i.i.d sampling aspect of the scenario approach in high dimensions and its relation with the optimal values. Moreover, we perform a detailed study of both the asymptotic behaviour (consistency) and finite time behaviour of the scenario approach in the more general setting of nonconvex minmax optimization problems. In the direction of the asymptotic behaviour of the scenario approach, we present an obstruction to consistency that arises when the decision set is noncompact. In the direction of finite sample guarantees, we establish a general methodology for extracting `probably approximately correct' type estimates for the finite sample behaviour of the scenario approach for a large class of nonconvex problems.

math.OC↗

arXiv2019

A simple proof of the discrete time geometric Pontryagin maximum principle on smooth manifolds

We establish a geometric Pontryagin maximum principle for discrete time optimal control problems on finite dimensional smooth manifolds under the following three types of constraints: a) constraints on the states pointwise in time, b) constraints on the control actions pointwise in time, c) constraints on the frequency spectrum of the optimal control trajectories. Our proof follows, in spirit, the path to establish geometric versions of the Pontryagin maximum principle on smooth manifolds indicated in [Cha11] in the context of continuous-time optimal control.

math.OC↗

arXiv2019

A frequency-constrained geometric Pontryagin maximum principle on matrix Lie groups

In this article we present a geometric discrete-time Pontryagin maximum principle (PMP) on matrix Lie groups that incorporates frequency constraints on the controls in addition to pointwise constraints on the states and control actions directly at the stage of the problem formulation. This PMP gives first order necessary conditions for optimality, and leads to two-point boundary value problems that may be solved by shooting techniques to arrive at optimal trajectories. We validate our theoretical results with a numerical experiment on the attitude control of a spacecraft on the Lie group SO(3).

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arXiv2019

Discrete time optimal control with frequency constraints for non-smooth systems

We present a Pontryagin maximum principle for discrete time optimal control problems with (a) pointwise constraints on the control actions and the states, (b) frequency constraints on the control and the state trajectories, and (c) nonsmooth dynamical systems. Pointwise constraints on the states and the control actions represent desired and/or physical limitations on the states and the control values; such constraints are important and are widely present in the optimal control literature. Constraints of the type (b), while less standard in the literature, effectively serve the purpose of describing important spectral properties of inertial actuators and systems. The conjunction of constraints of the type (a) and (b) is a relatively new phenomenon in optimal control but are important for the synthesis control trajectories with a high degree of fidelity. The maximum principle established here provides first order necessary conditions for optimality that serve as a starting point for the synthesis of control trajectories corresponding to a large class of constrained motion planning problems that have high accuracy in a computationally tractable fashion. Moreover, the ability to handle a reasonably large class of nonsmooth dynamical systems that arise in practice ensures broad applicability our theory, and we include several illustrations of our results on standard problems.

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arXiv2019

Lyapunov-like functions for attitude control via feedback integrators

The notion of feedback integrators permits Euclidean integration schemes for dynamical systems evolving on manifolds. Here, a constructive Lyapunov function for the attitude dynamics embedded in an ambient Euclidean space has been proposed. We then combine the notion of feedback integrators with the proposed Lyapunov function to obtain a feedback law for the attitude control system. The combination of the two techniques yields a domain of attraction for the closed loop dynamics, where earlier contributions were based on linearization ideas. Further, the analysis and synthesis of the feedback scheme is carried out entirely in Euclidean space. The proposed scheme is also shown to be robust to numerical errors.

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arXiv2019

A Lagrangian Model to Predict Microscallop Motion in non Newtonian Fluids

The need to develop models to predict the motion of microrobots, or robots of a much smaller scale, moving in fluids in a low Reynolds number regime, and in particular, in non Newtonian fluids, cannot be understated. The article develops a Lagrangian based model for one such mechanism - a two-link mechanism termed a microscallop, moving in a low Reynolds number environment in a non Newtonian fluid. The modelling proceeds through the conventional Lagrangian construction for a two-link mechanism and then goes on to model the external fluid forces using empirically based models for viscosity to complete the dynamic model. The derived model is then simulated for different initial conditions and key parameters of the non Newtonian fluid, and the results are corroborated with a few existing experimental results on a similar mechanism under identical conditions. Lastly, with a view to implementing control algorithms we explore accessibility of the system at certain configurations.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2018

A discrete-time Pontryagin maximum principle on matrix Lie groups

In this article we derive a Pontryagin maximum principle (PMP) for discrete-time optimal control problems on matrix Lie groups. The PMP provides first order necessary conditions for optimality; these necessary conditions typically yield two point boundary value problems, and these boundary value problems can then solved to extract optimal control trajectories. Constrained optimal control problems for mechanical systems, in general, can only be solved numerically, and this motivates the need to derive discrete-time models that are accurate and preserve the non-flat manifold structures of the underlying continuous-time controlled systems. The PMPs for discrete-time systems evolving on Euclidean spaces are not readily applicable to discrete-time models evolving on non-flat manifolds. In this article we bridge this lacuna and establish a discrete-time PMP on matrix Lie groups. Our discrete-time models are derived via discrete mechanics, (a structure preserving discretization scheme,) leading to the preservation of the underlying manifold over time, thereby resulting in greater numerical accuracy of our technique. This PMP caters to a class of constrained optimal control problems that includes point-wise state and control action constraints, and encompasses a large class of control problems that arise in various field of engineering and the applied sciences.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2018

Further insights into the damping-induced self-recovery phenomenon

In a series of papers, D. E. Chang, et al., proved and experimentally demonstrated a phenomenon they termed "damping-induced self-recovery". However, these papers left a few questions concerning the observed phenomenon unanswered - in particular, the effect of the intervening lubricant-fluid and its viscosity on the recovery, the abrupt change in behaviour with the introduction of damping, a description of the energy dynamics, and the curious occurrence of overshoots and oscillations and its dependence on the control law. In this paper we attempt to answer these questions through theory. In particular, we derive an expression for the infinite-dimensional fluid-stool-wheel system, that approximates its dynamics to that of the better understood finite-dimensional case.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2018

Variational collision avoidance problems on Riemannian manifolds

In this article we introduce a variational approach to collision avoidance of multiple agents evolving on a Riemannian manifold and derive necessary conditions for extremals. The problem consists of finding non-intersecting trajectories of a given number of agents, among a set of admissible curves, to reach a specified configuration, based on minimizing an energy functional that depends on the velocity, covariant acceleration and an artificial potential function used to prevent collision among the agents. The results are validated through numerical experiments on the manifolds $\mathbb{R}^{2}$ and $S^2$.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2017

Locomotion of the generalized Purcell's swimmer : Modelling, controllability and motion primitives

Micro-robotics at low Reynolds number has been a growing area of research over the past decade. We propose and study a generalized 3-link robotic swimmer inspired by the planar Purcell's swimmer. By incorporating out-of-plane motion of the outer limbs, this mechanism generalizes the planar Purcell's swimmer, which has been widely studied in the literature. Such an evolution of the limbs' motion results in the swimmer's base link evolving in a 3-dimensional space. The swimmer's configuration space admits a trivial principal fiber bundle structure, which along with the slender body theory at the low Reynolds number regime, facilitates in obtaining a principal kinematic form of the equations. We derive a coordinate-free expression for the local form of the kinematic connection. A novel approach for local controllability analysis of this 3-dimensional swimmer in the low Reynolds number regime is presented by employing the controllability results of the planar Purcell's swimmer. This is followed by control synthesis using the motion primitives approach. We prove the existence of motion primitives based control sequence for maneuvering the swimmer's base link whose motion evolves on a Lie group. Using the principal fiber bundle structure, an algorithm for point to point reconfiguration of the swimmer is presented. A set of control sequences for translational and rotational maneuvers is then provided along with numerical simulations.

cs.RO↗

arXiv2017

Structure-preserving discrete-time optimal maneuvers of a wheeled inverted pendulum

The Wheeled Inverted Pendulum (WIP) is a nonholonomic, underactuated mechanical system, and has been popularized commercially as the {\it Segway}. Designing optimal control laws for point-to-point state-transfer for this autonomous mechanical system, while respecting momentum and torque constraints as well as the underlying manifold, continues to pose challenging problems. In this article we present a successful effort in this direction: We employ geometric mechanics to obtain a discrete-time model of the system, followed by the synthesis of an energy-optimal control based on a discrete-time maximum principle applicable to mechanical systems whose configuration manifold is a Lie group. Moreover, we incorporate state and momentum constraints into the discrete-time control directly at the synthesis stage. The control is implemented on a WIP with parameters obtained from an existing prototype; the results are highly encouraging, as demonstrated by numerical experiments.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2017

Trajectory Tracking Using Motion Primitives for the Purcell's Swimmer

Locomotion at low Reynolds numbers is a topic of growing interest, spurred by its various engineering and medical applications. This paper presents a novel prototype and a locomotion algorithm for the 3-link planar Purcell's swimmer based on Lie algebraic notions. The kinematic model based on Cox theory of the prototype swimmer is a driftless control-affine system. Using the existing strong controllability and related results, the existence of motion primitives is initially shown. The Lie algebra of the control vector fields is then used to synthesize control profiles to generate motions along the basis of the Lie algebra associated with the structure group of the system. An open loop control system with vision-based positioning is successfully implemented which allows tracking any given continuous trajectory of the position and orientation of the swimmer's base link. Alongside, the paper also provides a theoretical interpretation of the symmetry arguments presented in the existing literature to generate the control profiles of the swimmer.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2017

Almost-globally stable tracking for on compact Riemannian manifolds

In this article, we propose a control law for almost-global asymptotic tracking (AGAT) of a smooth reference trajectory for a fully actuated simple mechanical system (SMS) evolving on a Riemannian manifold which can be embedded in a Euclidean space. The existing results on tracking for an SMS are either local, or almost-global, only in the case the manifold is a Lie group. In the latter case, the notion of a configuration error is naturally defined by the group operation and facilitates a global analysis. However, such a notion is not intrinsic to a Riemannian manifold. In this paper, we define a configuration error followed by error dynamics on a Riemannian manifold, and then prove AGAT. The results are demonstrated for a spherical pendulum which is an SMS on $S^2$ and for a particle moving on a Lissajous curve in $\mathbb{R}^3$.

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