A Warm-start Interior-point Method for Predictive Control

In predictive control, a quadratic program (QP) needs to be solved at each sampling instant. We present a new warm-start strategy to solve a QP with an interior-point method whose data is slightly perturbed from the previous QP. In this strategy, an initial guess of the unknown variables in the perturbed problem is determined from the computed solution of the previous problem. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our warm-start strategy to a number of online benchmark problems. Numerical results indicate that the proposed technique depends upon the size of perturbation and it leads to a reduction of 30–74% in floating point operations compared to a cold-start interior-point method

Sparse preconditioning for model predictive control

We propose fast O(N) preconditioning, where N is the number of gridpoints on the prediction horizon, for iterative solution of (non)-linear systems appearing in model predictive control methods such as forward-difference Newton-Krylov methods. The Continuation/GMRES method for nonlinear model predictive control, suggested by T. Ohtsuka in 2004, is a specific application of the Newton-Krylov method, which uses the GMRES iterative algorithm to solve a forward difference approximation of the optimality equations on every time step.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures, to appear in proceedings of the American Control Conference 2016, July 6-8, Boston, MA, USA. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1509.0286

A Simple and Efficient Algorithm for Nonlinear Model Predictive Control

We present PANOC, a new algorithm for solving optimal control problems arising in nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC). A usual approach to this type of problems is sequential quadratic programming (SQP), which requires the solution of a quadratic program at every iteration and, consequently, inner iterative procedures. As a result, when the problem is ill-conditioned or the prediction horizon is large, each outer iteration becomes computationally very expensive. We propose a line-search algorithm that combines forward-backward iterations (FB) and Newton-type steps over the recently introduced forward-backward envelope (FBE), a continuous, real-valued, exact merit function for the original problem. The curvature information of Newton-type methods enables asymptotic superlinear rates under mild assumptions at the limit point, and the proposed algorithm is based on very simple operations: access to first-order information of the cost and dynamics and low-cost direct linear algebra. No inner iterative procedure nor Hessian evaluation is required, making our approach computationally simpler than SQP methods. The low-memory requirements and simple implementation make our method particularly suited for embedded NMPC applications

Preconditioned warm-started Newton-Krylov methods for MPC with discontinuous control

We present Newton-Krylov methods for efficient numerical solution of optimal control problems arising in model predictive control, where the optimal control is discontinuous. As in our earlier work, preconditioned GMRES practically results in an optimal $O(N)$ complexity, where $N$ is a discrete horizon length. Effects of a warm-start, shifting along the predictive horizon, are numerically investigated. The~method is tested on a classical double integrator example of a minimum-time problem with a known bang-bang optimal control.Comment: 8 pages, 10 figures, to appear in Proceedings SIAM Conference on Control and Its Applications, July 10-12, 2017, Pittsburgh, PA, US

New optimization methods in predictive control

This thesis is mainly concerned with the efficient solution of a linear discrete-time finite horizon optimal control problem (FHOCP) with quadratic cost and linear constraints on the states and inputs. In predictive control, such a FHOCP needs to be solved online at each sampling instant. In order to solve such a FHOCP, it is necessary to solve a quadratic programming (QP) problem. Interior point methods (IPMs) have proven to be an efficient way of solving quadratic programming problems. A linear system of equations needs to be solved in each iteration of an IPM. The ill-conditioning of this linear system in the later iterations of the IPM prevents the use of an iterative method in solving the linear system due to a very slow rate of convergence; in some cases the solution never reaches the desired accuracy. A new well-conditioned IPM, which increases the rate of convergence of the iterative method is proposed. The computational advantage is obtained by the use of an inexact Newton method along with the use of novel preconditioners. A new warm-start strategy is also presented to solve a QP with an interior-point method whose data is slightly perturbed from the previous QP. The effectiveness of this warm-start strategy is demonstrated on a number of available online benchmark problems. Numerical results indicate that the proposed technique depends upon the size of perturbation and it leads to a reduction of 30-74% in floating point operations compared to a cold-start interior point method. Following the main theme of this thesis, which is to improve the computational efficiency of an algorithm, an efficient algorithm for solving the coupled Sylvester equation that arises in converting a system of linear differential-algebraic equations (DAEs) to ordinary differential equations is also presented. A significant computational advantage is obtained by exploiting the structure of the involved matrices. The proposed algorithm removes the need to solve a standard Sylvester equation or to invert a matrix. The improved performance of this new method over existing techniques is demonstrated by comparing the number of floating-point operations and via numerical examples