This thesis considers the design of distributed state and output feedback control algorithms for linear multi-agent systems with performance guarantees in the presence of delays. The multi-agent systems considered are assumed to exchange relative information over an information network. As a first contribution, a novel distributed state feedback control design method with a sub-optimal LQR performance is developed for a network of multiple agents. For the control design process, it is assumed that the exchange of relative information is instantaneous. A stability analysis of the proposed control law is performed by incorporating delays in relative information to ascertain the maximum possible delay that can be accommodated by the communication network. Subsequently, the assumption of the exchange of instantaneous relative information in the control design process is relaxed and the relative information is assumed to be delayed. The system is then represented as a time-delay system. Distributed state feedback control synthesis methods are then developed for the system with a certain level of LQR performance. In the above contributions, the time delay analysis and the development of delay based control methods, it is implicitly assumed that delays are detrimental to achieving cooperative tasks for a multi-agent system. Subsequently, positive effects of delays in communication of relative information are explored. For this a network of vehicles described by double integrator dynamics, which cannot be stabilized by static output feedback without delays, is considered. A novel control design method to achieve exponential stabilization of such a multi-agent system by static output feedback using delayed relative information is developed. Conclusions are drawn from the results of the research presented in this thesis and a few directions for future work are identified.

Ship-mounted cranes are used to transfer cargo from large container ships to smaller lighters when deep-water ports are not available. The wave-induced motion of the crane ship produces large pendulations of hoisted cargo and causes operations to be suspended. In this work, we show that in boom type ship-mounted cranes, it is possible to reduce these pendulations significantly by controlling the slew and luff angles of the boom. Such a control can be achieved with the heavy equipment that is already part of the crane so that retrofitting existing cranes would require a small effort. Moreover, the control is superimposed on the commands of the operator transparently. The successful control strategy is based on delayed-position feedback of the cargo motion in-plane and out-of-plane of the boom and crane tower. Its effectiveness is demonstrated with a fully nonlinear three-dimensional computer simulation and with an experiment on a 1/24 scale model of a T-ACS (The Auxiliary Crane Ship) crane mounted on a platform moving with three degrees of freedom to simulate the ship roll, pitch, and heave motions of the crane ship. The results demonstrate that the pendulations can be significantly reduced, and therefore the range of sea conditions in which cargo-transfer operations could take place can be greatly expanded. Furthermore, the control strategy is applied experimentally to a scaled model of a tower crane. The effectiveness of the controller is demonstrated for both rotary and gantry modes of operation of the crane. This work was supported by the Office of Naval Research under Contract #N00014-96-1-1123. / Ph. D.

It is sometimes necessary to transfer cargo from a large ship to a smaller ship at sea. Specially designed craneships are used for this task, however the wave-induced motions of the ship can cause large pendulations of cargo being hoisted by a ship-mounted crane. This makes cargo transfer in rough seas extremely dangerous and therefore transfer operations normally cease when sea state 3 is reached. If the cargo pendulations could be reduced in higher sea states, transfer operations would be possible. By controlling the boom luff angle, one can reduce the cargo pendulations in the plane of the boom significantly. A two-dimensional pendulum with a rigid massless cable and massive point load is used to model the system. A control law using time-delayed position feedback is developed and the system is simulated on a computer using the full nonlinear equations of motion. A three-degree-of-freedom ship-motion simulation platform, capable of simulating heave, pitch, and roll motions, was built. The computer simulation results were experimentally verified by mounting a 1/24th scale model of a T-ACS crane on the ship-motion simulation platform. / Master of Science

Esta tese versa sobre a síntese de compensadores antiwindup para sistemas lineares contínuos invariantes no tempo, com restrições no atuador e atraso no tempo. Baseados em um funcional Liapunov-Krasovskii e uma condição de setor para a função zona-morta já existentes na literatura, são propostas condições suficientes expressas em LMIs para a existência de compensadores antiwindup para duas classes de sistemas: sistemas com atraso nos estados, e sistemas com atraso na entrada. Em ambos os casos, considera-se a síntese de um compensador de ordem plena para um sistema com um controlador dado a priori desprezando limites do atuador. A síntese dos compensadores antiwindup considera um atuador restrito em amplitude e o sistema sujeito a perturbações limitadas em norma L2. A verificação das condições enunciadas garante a estabilidade da origem em malha fechada, e um conjunto de inicialização dos estados do sistema tolerante à perturbação com norma L2 inferior a um máximo, determinado juntamente com a síntese do compensador antiwindup. Na ausência de perturbação a origem é garantida assintoticamente estável. Para sistemas com atraso no estado, primeiro propõe-se um método para a síntese de compensadores dinâmicos racionais de ordem plena. Este método é baseado no Lema de Projeção. Em seguida, estende-se o resultado, propondo-se um framework genérico que permite a síntese de compensadores racionais e não racionais. Este método é baseado em uma transformação de variáveis linearizante. Para sistemas com atraso na entrada, propõe-se três resultados de síntese de compensadores antiwindup: compensadores estáticos, dinâmicos racionais, e dinâmicos não racionais. Estes métodos são novamente baseados no Lema de Projeção. Em todos os casos, as condições obtidas que garantem a existência de um compensador antiwindup são expressas em forma de LMIs e garantem a estabilidade local da origem. Em seguida, estende-se os resultados para garantir a estabilidade global da origem, nos casos em que a planta é estável em malha aberta. Problemas de otimização são propostos para ambos os métodos para maximizar a tolerância à perturbação e a minimização do ganho L2 da perturbação à saída regulada. Exemplos numéricos ilustram cada método na solução dos problemas de máxima tolerância à perturbação, e minimização do ganho L2 da perturbação à saída regulada. / This thesis verses about antiwindup compensator synthesis for linear time invariant continuous systems, presenting constraints in actuator and time delay. Based on a Liapunov-Krasovskii functional and a sector condition for the dead-zone nonlinearity already castign in literature, it is proposed sufficient conditions expressed in LMI to the existance of an antiwindup compensator for two classes of systems: systems with state delay, and systems with input delay. In both cases it is considered the synthesis of a full order antiwindup compensator for a system with a controller a priori given that disregards the actuator bounds. The synthesis of antiwindup compensators considers an actuator constrained in amplitude and a system subjected to norm-L2 bounded disturbances. Once the casted conditions are verified, it is assured the closed loop origin stability; a set for the initial states of the system tolerating disturbances up to a maximum L2 norm, which is also determined along the antiwindup compensator synthesis procedure. In the absence of disturbance the origin is assuredly asymptotically stable. For state delay systems, first it is proposed a method for designing full order rational antiwindup compensators. This method is based on the Projection Lemma. Afterwards, results are extended proposing a generic framework allowing the synthesis of rational and nonrational compensators of different topologies. This method is based on a linearizing variable transformation. For input delay systems, it is proposed three synthesis results: static, rational dynamic and nonrational dynamic compensators. These methods are based on the Projection Lemma. In all cases, the conditions obtained assuring the existance of an antiwindup compensator are expressed by means of LMIs that, once verified, assure the origin local stability. Then, the conditions are extended for the global stability case, when the system is open loop stable. Optimization problems are proposed for both methods to maximize the disturbance tolerance and the minimization of the L2-gain of the disturbance to the regulated output. Numerical examples are presented to illustrate each method in the solution of the problems of maximum disturbance tolerance, and minimization of L2-gain from the disturbance to the regulated output.

The goal of this thesis is to extend the delayed Kalman filter so it can be used with non-linear systems and that it can handle randomized delays on the measurements. In the particular case of this study, the filter is used to estimates the states of an unmanned aerial system. The outputs of the filter are used to point an antenna and a camera towards a UAS. Different scenarios are simulated for the purpose of comparing the efficiency of this technique in various situations.

Esta tese versa sobre a síntese de compensadores antiwindup para sistemas lineares contínuos invariantes no tempo, com restrições no atuador e atraso no tempo. Baseados em um funcional Liapunov-Krasovskii e uma condição de setor para a função zona-morta já existentes na literatura, são propostas condições suficientes expressas em LMIs para a existência de compensadores antiwindup para duas classes de sistemas: sistemas com atraso nos estados, e sistemas com atraso na entrada. Em ambos os casos, considera-se a síntese de um compensador de ordem plena para um sistema com um controlador dado a priori desprezando limites do atuador. A síntese dos compensadores antiwindup considera um atuador restrito em amplitude e o sistema sujeito a perturbações limitadas em norma L2. A verificação das condições enunciadas garante a estabilidade da origem em malha fechada, e um conjunto de inicialização dos estados do sistema tolerante à perturbação com norma L2 inferior a um máximo, determinado juntamente com a síntese do compensador antiwindup. Na ausência de perturbação a origem é garantida assintoticamente estável. Para sistemas com atraso no estado, primeiro propõe-se um método para a síntese de compensadores dinâmicos racionais de ordem plena. Este método é baseado no Lema de Projeção. Em seguida, estende-se o resultado, propondo-se um framework genérico que permite a síntese de compensadores racionais e não racionais. Este método é baseado em uma transformação de variáveis linearizante. Para sistemas com atraso na entrada, propõe-se três resultados de síntese de compensadores antiwindup: compensadores estáticos, dinâmicos racionais, e dinâmicos não racionais. Estes métodos são novamente baseados no Lema de Projeção. Em todos os casos, as condições obtidas que garantem a existência de um compensador antiwindup são expressas em forma de LMIs e garantem a estabilidade local da origem. Em seguida, estende-se os resultados para garantir a estabilidade global da origem, nos casos em que a planta é estável em malha aberta. Problemas de otimização são propostos para ambos os métodos para maximizar a tolerância à perturbação e a minimização do ganho L2 da perturbação à saída regulada. Exemplos numéricos ilustram cada método na solução dos problemas de máxima tolerância à perturbação, e minimização do ganho L2 da perturbação à saída regulada. / This thesis verses about antiwindup compensator synthesis for linear time invariant continuous systems, presenting constraints in actuator and time delay. Based on a Liapunov-Krasovskii functional and a sector condition for the dead-zone nonlinearity already castign in literature, it is proposed sufficient conditions expressed in LMI to the existance of an antiwindup compensator for two classes of systems: systems with state delay, and systems with input delay. In both cases it is considered the synthesis of a full order antiwindup compensator for a system with a controller a priori given that disregards the actuator bounds. The synthesis of antiwindup compensators considers an actuator constrained in amplitude and a system subjected to norm-L2 bounded disturbances. Once the casted conditions are verified, it is assured the closed loop origin stability; a set for the initial states of the system tolerating disturbances up to a maximum L2 norm, which is also determined along the antiwindup compensator synthesis procedure. In the absence of disturbance the origin is assuredly asymptotically stable. For state delay systems, first it is proposed a method for designing full order rational antiwindup compensators. This method is based on the Projection Lemma. Afterwards, results are extended proposing a generic framework allowing the synthesis of rational and nonrational compensators of different topologies. This method is based on a linearizing variable transformation. For input delay systems, it is proposed three synthesis results: static, rational dynamic and nonrational dynamic compensators. These methods are based on the Projection Lemma. In all cases, the conditions obtained assuring the existance of an antiwindup compensator are expressed by means of LMIs that, once verified, assure the origin local stability. Then, the conditions are extended for the global stability case, when the system is open loop stable. Optimization problems are proposed for both methods to maximize the disturbance tolerance and the minimization of the L2-gain of the disturbance to the regulated output. Numerical examples are presented to illustrate each method in the solution of the problems of maximum disturbance tolerance, and minimization of L2-gain from the disturbance to the regulated output.

Esta tese versa sobre a síntese de compensadores antiwindup para sistemas lineares contínuos invariantes no tempo, com restrições no atuador e atraso no tempo. Baseados em um funcional Liapunov-Krasovskii e uma condição de setor para a função zona-morta já existentes na literatura, são propostas condições suficientes expressas em LMIs para a existência de compensadores antiwindup para duas classes de sistemas: sistemas com atraso nos estados, e sistemas com atraso na entrada. Em ambos os casos, considera-se a síntese de um compensador de ordem plena para um sistema com um controlador dado a priori desprezando limites do atuador. A síntese dos compensadores antiwindup considera um atuador restrito em amplitude e o sistema sujeito a perturbações limitadas em norma L2. A verificação das condições enunciadas garante a estabilidade da origem em malha fechada, e um conjunto de inicialização dos estados do sistema tolerante à perturbação com norma L2 inferior a um máximo, determinado juntamente com a síntese do compensador antiwindup. Na ausência de perturbação a origem é garantida assintoticamente estável. Para sistemas com atraso no estado, primeiro propõe-se um método para a síntese de compensadores dinâmicos racionais de ordem plena. Este método é baseado no Lema de Projeção. Em seguida, estende-se o resultado, propondo-se um framework genérico que permite a síntese de compensadores racionais e não racionais. Este método é baseado em uma transformação de variáveis linearizante. Para sistemas com atraso na entrada, propõe-se três resultados de síntese de compensadores antiwindup: compensadores estáticos, dinâmicos racionais, e dinâmicos não racionais. Estes métodos são novamente baseados no Lema de Projeção. Em todos os casos, as condições obtidas que garantem a existência de um compensador antiwindup são expressas em forma de LMIs e garantem a estabilidade local da origem. Em seguida, estende-se os resultados para garantir a estabilidade global da origem, nos casos em que a planta é estável em malha aberta. Problemas de otimização são propostos para ambos os métodos para maximizar a tolerância à perturbação e a minimização do ganho L2 da perturbação à saída regulada. Exemplos numéricos ilustram cada método na solução dos problemas de máxima tolerância à perturbação, e minimização do ganho L2 da perturbação à saída regulada. / This thesis verses about antiwindup compensator synthesis for linear time invariant continuous systems, presenting constraints in actuator and time delay. Based on a Liapunov-Krasovskii functional and a sector condition for the dead-zone nonlinearity already castign in literature, it is proposed sufficient conditions expressed in LMI to the existance of an antiwindup compensator for two classes of systems: systems with state delay, and systems with input delay. In both cases it is considered the synthesis of a full order antiwindup compensator for a system with a controller a priori given that disregards the actuator bounds. The synthesis of antiwindup compensators considers an actuator constrained in amplitude and a system subjected to norm-L2 bounded disturbances. Once the casted conditions are verified, it is assured the closed loop origin stability; a set for the initial states of the system tolerating disturbances up to a maximum L2 norm, which is also determined along the antiwindup compensator synthesis procedure. In the absence of disturbance the origin is assuredly asymptotically stable. For state delay systems, first it is proposed a method for designing full order rational antiwindup compensators. This method is based on the Projection Lemma. Afterwards, results are extended proposing a generic framework allowing the synthesis of rational and nonrational compensators of different topologies. This method is based on a linearizing variable transformation. For input delay systems, it is proposed three synthesis results: static, rational dynamic and nonrational dynamic compensators. These methods are based on the Projection Lemma. In all cases, the conditions obtained assuring the existance of an antiwindup compensator are expressed by means of LMIs that, once verified, assure the origin local stability. Then, the conditions are extended for the global stability case, when the system is open loop stable. Optimization problems are proposed for both methods to maximize the disturbance tolerance and the minimization of the L2-gain of the disturbance to the regulated output. Numerical examples are presented to illustrate each method in the solution of the problems of maximum disturbance tolerance, and minimization of L2-gain from the disturbance to the regulated output.

The main objective of this work is to design robust, fast, and practical controllers for gantry and tower cranes. The controllers are designed to transfer the load from point to point as fast as possible and, at the same time, the load swing is kept small during the transfer process and completely vanishes at the load destination. Moreover, variations of the system parameters, such as the cable length and the load weight, are also included. Practical considerations, such as the control action power, and the maximum acceleration and velocity, are taken into account. In addition, friction effects are included in the design using a friction-compensation technique. The designed controllers are based on two approaches. In the first approach, a gain-scheduling feedback controller is designed to move the load from point to point within one oscillation cycle without inducing large swings. The settling time of the system is taken to be equal to the period of oscillation of the load. This criterion enables calculation of the controller feedback gains for varying load weight and cable length. The position references for this controller are step functions. Moreover, the position and swing controllers are treated in a unified way. In the second approach, the transfer process and the swing control are separated in the controller design. This approach requires designing two controllers independently: an anti-swing controller and a tracking controller. The objective of the anti-swing controller is to reduce the load swing. The tracking controller is responsible for making the trolley follow a reference position trajectory. We use a PD-controller for tracking, while the anti-swing controller is designed using three different methods: (a) a classical PD controller, (b) two controllers based on a delayed-feedback technique, and (c) a fuzzy logic controller that maps the delayed-feedback controller performance. To validate the designed controllers, an experimental setup was built. Although the designed controllers work perfectly in the computer simulations, the experimental results are unacceptable due to the high friction in the system. This friction deteriorates the system response by introducing time delay, high steady-state error in the trolley and tower positions, and high residual load swings. To overcome friction in the tower-crane model, we estimate the friction, then we apply an opposite control action to cancel it. To estimate the friction force, we assume a mathematical model and estimate the model coefficients using an off-line identification technique using the method of least squares. With friction compensation, the experimental results are in good agreement with the computer simulations. The gain-scheduling controllers transfer the load smoothly without inducing an overshoot in the trolley position. Moreover, the load can be transferred in a time near to the optimal time with small swing angles during the transfer process. With full-state feedback, the crane can reach any position in the working environment without exceeding the system power capability by controlling the forward gain in the feedback loop. For large distances, we have to decrease this gain, which in turn slows the transfer process. Therefore, this approach is more suitable for short distances. The tracking-anti-swing control approach is usually associated with overshoots in the translational and rotational motions. These overshoots increase with an increase in the maximum acceleration of the trajectories . The transfer time is longer than that obtained with the first approach. However, the crane can follow any trajectory, which makes the controller cope with obstacles in the working environment. Also, we do not need to recalculate the feedback gains for each transfer distance as in the gain-scheduling feedback controller. / Ph. D.

No description available.

Semi-autonomous uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) are telerobotic operations by definition where the UAV assumes the role of a telerobot and the human assumes the role of a supervisor. All telerobotic operations are susceptible to time delays due to communication, mechanical, and other constraints. Typically, these delays are small and do not affect the telerobotic operation for most of the tasks. However, for long-distance telerobotic operations like interplanetary rovers, deep underwater vehicles, etc. the delays can be so significant that they can render the entire operation void. This dissertation investigates the use of a novel heterogeneous stereo-vision system to mitigate the effects of time delays in a UAV-based visual interface presented to a human operator. The heterogeneous stereo-vision system consists of an omnidirectional camera and a pan-tilt-zoom camera. Two predictive display setups were developed that modify the delayed video imagery that would otherwise be presented to the operator in a way that provides an almost immediate visual response to the operator's control actions. The usability of the system is determined through human performance testing with and without the predictive algorithms. The results indicate that the predictive algorithm allows more efficient, accurate, and user-friendly operation. The second half of the dissertation deals with improving the performance of the predictive display and expanding the concept of the prediction from a stationary gimbal-camera system to a moving 6 DoF aircraft. Specifically, it talks about a novel extended Kalman filter (EKF)-based nonlinear predictor – the extended Kalman predictor (EKP) – and compares its performance with two linear predictors, the Smith predictor (SP) and the Kalman predictor (KP). This dissertation provides the mathematical formulation of the EKP, as well as the two linear predictors, and describes their use with simulated flight data obtained using a nonlinear motion model for a small, fixed-wing UAV. The EKP performs comparably to the KP when the aircraft motion experiences small perturbations from a nominal trajectory, but the EKP outperforms the KP for larger excursions. The SP performs poorly in every case. / Doctor of Philosophy / Semi-autonomous uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) are telerobotic operations by definition where the aerial vehicle assumes the role of a telerobot and the human assumes the role of a supervisor. This dissertation addresses the challenges posed by time delays in uncrewed aerial vehicle operations, particularly for long-distance operations such as interplanetary exploration and deep-sea missions. It investigates the use of a novel heterogeneous stereo-vision system to mitigate these delays, providing operators with nearly real-time visual feedback. Human performance testing confirms the predictive algorithm allows more efficient, accurate, and user-friendly operation. Additionally, the dissertation presents advancements in the predictive display performance for moving UAVs with six degrees of freedom. It introduces a novel extended Kalman predictor and compares it to traditional linear predictors like the Smith predictor and the Kalman predictor using simulated flight data. The extended Kalman predictor demonstrates superior performance for larger deviations from trajectory, highlighting its effectiveness in predicting the motion of an aircraft when there are time delays present.