Safe Learning of Quadrotor Dynamics Using Barrier Certificates

To effectively control complex dynamical systems, accurate nonlinear models are typically needed. However, these models are not always known. In this paper, we present a data-driven approach based on Gaussian processes that learns models of quadrotors operating in partially unknown environments. What makes this challenging is that if the learning process is not carefully controlled, the system will go unstable, i.e., the quadcopter will crash. To this end, barrier certificates are employed for safe learning. The barrier certificates establish a non-conservative forward invariant safe region, in which high probability safety guarantees are provided based on the statistics of the Gaussian Process. A learning controller is designed to efficiently explore those uncertain states and expand the barrier certified safe region based on an adaptive sampling scheme. In addition, a recursive Gaussian Process prediction method is developed to learn the complex quadrotor dynamics in real-time. Simulation results are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.Comment: Submitted to ICRA 2018, 8 page

DATT: Deep Adaptive Trajectory Tracking for Quadrotor Control

Precise arbitrary trajectory tracking for quadrotors is challenging due to unknown nonlinear dynamics, trajectory infeasibility, and actuation limits. To tackle these challenges, we present Deep Adaptive Trajectory Tracking (DATT), a learning-based approach that can precisely track arbitrary, potentially infeasible trajectories in the presence of large disturbances in the real world. DATT builds on a novel feedforward-feedback-adaptive control structure trained in simulation using reinforcement learning. When deployed on real hardware, DATT is augmented with a disturbance estimator using L1 adaptive control in closed-loop, without any fine-tuning. DATT significantly outperforms competitive adaptive nonlinear and model predictive controllers for both feasible smooth and infeasible trajectories in unsteady wind fields, including challenging scenarios where baselines completely fail. Moreover, DATT can efficiently run online with an inference time less than 3.2 ms, less than 1/4 of the adaptive nonlinear model predictive control baselin

Path-tracking of a tractor-trailer vehicle along rectilinear and circular paths: A Lyapunov-based approach

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Performance, Precision, and Payloads: Adaptive Nonlinear MPC for Quadrotors

Agile quadrotor flight in challenging environments has the potential to revolutionize shipping, transportation, and search and rescue applications. Nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC) has recently shown promising results for agile quadrotor control, but relies on highly accurate models for maximum performance. Hence, model uncertainties in the form of unmodeled complex aerodynamic effects, varying payloads and parameter mismatch will degrade overall system performance. In this letter, we propose L1 -NMPC, a novel hybrid adaptive NMPC to learn model uncertainties online and immediately compensate for them, drastically improving performance over the non-adaptive baseline with minimal computational overhead. Our proposed architecture generalizes to many different environments from which we evaluate wind, unknown payloads, and highly agile flight conditions. The proposed method demonstrates immense flexibility and robustness, with more than 90% tracking error reduction over non-adaptive NMPC under large unknown disturbances and without any gain tuning. In addition, the same controller with identical gains can accurately fly highly agile racing trajectories exhibiting top speeds of 70 km/h, offering tracking performance improvements of around 50% relative to the non-adaptive NMPC baseline

In-domain control of a heat equation: an approach combining zero-dynamics inverse and differential flatness

This paper addresses the set-point control problem of a heat equation with in-domain actuation. The proposed scheme is based on the framework of zero dynamics inverse combined with flat system control. Moreover, the set-point control is cast into a motion planing problem of a multiple-input, multiple-out system, which is solved by a Green's function-based reference trajectory decomposition. The validity of the proposed method is assessed through convergence and solvability analysis of the control algorithm. The performance of the developed control scheme and the viability of the proposed approach are confirmed by numerical simulation of a representative system.Comment: Preprint of an original research pape

Coupled nonlinear vehicle control: Flatness-based setting with algebraic estimation techniques

International audienceA combined nonlinear longitudinal and lateral vehicle control is investigated. Flatness-based nonlinear control and new algebraic estimation techniques for noise removal and numerical differentiation are the main theoretical tools. An accurate automatic path-tracking via vehicle steering angle and driving/braking wheel torque is thus ensured. It combines the control of the lateral and longitudinal motions in order to track straight or curved trajectories and to perform a combined lane-keeping and steering control during critical driving situations such as obstacle avoidance, stop-and-go control, lane-change maneuvers or any other maneuvers. Promising results have been obtained with noisy experimental data, which were acquired by a laboratory vehicle with high dynamic loads and high lateral accelerations