1,120 research outputs found
Formal Synthesis of Control Strategies for Positive Monotone Systems
We design controllers from formal specifications for positive discrete-time
monotone systems that are subject to bounded disturbances. Such systems are
widely used to model the dynamics of transportation and biological networks.
The specifications are described using signal temporal logic (STL), which can
express a broad range of temporal properties. We formulate the problem as a
mixed-integer linear program (MILP) and show that under the assumptions made in
this paper, which are not restrictive for traffic applications, the existence
of open-loop control policies is sufficient and almost necessary to ensure the
satisfaction of STL formulas. We establish a relation between satisfaction of
STL formulas in infinite time and set-invariance theories and provide an
efficient method to compute robust control invariant sets in high dimensions.
We also develop a robust model predictive framework to plan controls optimally
while ensuring the satisfaction of the specification. Illustrative examples and
a traffic management case study are included.Comment: To appear in IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control (TAC) (2018), 16
pages, double colum
Traffic Network Control from Temporal Logic Specifications
We propose a framework for generating a signal control policy for a traffic
network of signalized intersections to accomplish control objectives
expressible using linear temporal logic. By applying techniques from model
checking and formal methods, we obtain a correct-by-construction controller
that is guaranteed to satisfy complex specifications. To apply these tools, we
identify and exploit structural properties particular to traffic networks that
allow for efficient computation of a finite state abstraction. In particular,
traffic networks exhibit a componentwise monotonicity property which allows
reach set computations that scale linearly with the dimension of the continuous
state space
Formal methods for resilient control
Many systems operate in uncertain, possibly adversarial environments, and their successful operation is contingent upon satisfying specific requirements, optimal performance, and ability to recover from unexpected situations. Examples are prevalent in many engineering disciplines such as transportation, robotics, energy, and biological systems. This thesis studies designing correct, resilient, and optimal controllers for discrete-time complex systems from elaborate, possibly vague, specifications.
The first part of the contributions of this thesis is a framework for optimal control of non-deterministic hybrid systems from specifications described by signal temporal logic (STL), which can express a broad spectrum of interesting properties. The method is optimization-based and has several advantages over the existing techniques. When satisfying the specification is impossible, the degree of violation - characterized by STL quantitative semantics - is minimized. The computational limitations are discussed.
The focus of second part is on specific types of systems and specifications for which controllers are synthesized efficiently. A class of monotone systems is introduced for which formal synthesis is scalable and almost complete. It is shown that hybrid macroscopic traffic models fall into this class. Novel techniques in modular verification and synthesis are employed for distributed optimal control, and their usefulness is shown for large-scale traffic management. Apart from monotone systems, a method is introduced for robust constrained control of networked linear systems with communication constraints. Case studies on longitudinal control of vehicular platoons are presented.
The third part is about learning-based control with formal guarantees. Two approaches are studied. First, a formal perspective on adaptive control is provided in which the model is represented by a parametric transition system, and the specification is captured by an automaton. A correct-by-construction framework is developed such that the controller infers the actual parameters and plans accordingly for all possible future transitions and inferences. The second approach is based on hybrid model identification using input-output data. By assuming some limited knowledge of the range of system behaviors, theoretical performance guarantees are provided on implementing the controller designed for the identified model on the original unknown system
Dissipation of stop-and-go waves via control of autonomous vehicles: Field experiments
Traffic waves are phenomena that emerge when the vehicular density exceeds a
critical threshold. Considering the presence of increasingly automated vehicles
in the traffic stream, a number of research activities have focused on the
influence of automated vehicles on the bulk traffic flow. In the present
article, we demonstrate experimentally that intelligent control of an
autonomous vehicle is able to dampen stop-and-go waves that can arise even in
the absence of geometric or lane changing triggers. Precisely, our experiments
on a circular track with more than 20 vehicles show that traffic waves emerge
consistently, and that they can be dampened by controlling the velocity of a
single vehicle in the flow. We compare metrics for velocity, braking events,
and fuel economy across experiments. These experimental findings suggest a
paradigm shift in traffic management: flow control will be possible via a few
mobile actuators (less than 5%) long before a majority of vehicles have
autonomous capabilities
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