Duality and singular value functions of the nonlinear normalized right and left coprime factorizations

This paper considers the nonlinear left coprime factorization (NLCF) of a nonlinear system. In order to study the balanced realization of such NLCF first a dual system notion is introduced. The important energy functions for the original NLCF and their relation with the dual NLCF are studied and relations between these functions are established. These developments can be used for studying a relation between the singular value functions of the NLCF and the normalized right coprime factorization (NRCF) of a nonlinear system. The singular value functions are a useful tool for model reduction of unstable nonlinear systems.

Balancing and model reduction for discrete-time nonlinear systems based on Hankel singular value analysis

This paper is concerned with balanced realization and model reduction for discrete-time nonlinear systems. Singular perturbation type balanced truncation method is proposed. In this procedure, the Hankel singular values and the related controllability and observability properties are preserved, which is a natural generalization of both the linear discrete-time case and the nonlinear continuous-time case.

A power-based perspective of mechanical systems

This paper is concerned with the construction of a power-based modeling framework for a large class of mechanical systems. Mathematically this is formalized by proving that every standard mechanical system (with or without dissipation) can be written as a gradient vector field with respect to an indefinite metric. The form and existence of the corresponding potential function is shown to be the mechanical analogue of Brayton and Moser's mixed-potential function as originally derived for nonlinear electrical networks in the early sixties. In this way, several recently proposed analysis and control methods that use the mixed-potential function as a starting point can also be applied to mechanical systems.

Nonlinear input-normal realizations based on the differential eigenstructure of hankel operators

This paper investigates the differential eigenstructure of Hankel operators for nonlinear systems. First, it is proven that the variational system and the Hamiltonian extension with extended input and output spaces can be interpreted as the Gâteaux differential and its adjoint of a dynamical input-output system, respectively. Second, the Gâteaux differential is utilized to clarify the main result the differential eigenstructure of the nonlinear Hankel operator which is closely related to the Hankel norm of the original system. Third, a new characterization of the nonlinear extension of Hankel singular values are given based on the differential eigenstructure. Finally, a balancing procedure to obtain a new input-normal/output-diagonal realization is derived. The results in this paper thus provide new insights to the realization and balancing theory for nonlinear systems.

Nonlinear cross Gramians and gradient systems

We study the notion of cross Gramians for non-linear gradient systems, using the characterization in terms of prolongation and gradient extension associated to the system. The cross Gramian is given for the variational system associated to the original nonlinear gradient system. We obtain linearization results that precisely correspond to the notion of a cross Gramian for symmetric linear systems. Furthermore, first steps towards relations with the singular value functions of the nonlinear Hankel operator are studied and yield promising results.

Passivity-based harmonic control through series/parallel damping of an H-bridge rectifier

Nowadays the H-bridge is one of the preferred solutions to connect DC loads or distributed sources to the single-phase grid. The control aims are: sinusoidal grid current with unity power factor and optimal DC voltage regulation capability. These objectives should be satisfied, regardless the conditions of the grid, the DC load/source and the converter nonlinearities. In this paper a passivity-based approach is thoroughly investigated proposing a damping-based solution for the error dynamics. Practical experiments with a real converter validate the analysis.

Structure Preserving Spatial Discretization of a 1-D Piezoelectric Timoshenko Beam

In this paper we show how to spatially discretize a distributed model of a piezoelectric beam representing the dynamics of an inflatable space reflector in port-Hamiltonian (pH) form. This model can then be used to design a controller for the shape of the inflatable structure. Inflatable structures have very nice properties, suitable for aerospace applications, e.g., inflatable space reflectors. With this technology we can build inflatable reflectors which are about 100 times bigger than solid ones. But to be useful for telescopes we have to achieve the desired surface accuracy by actively controlling the surface of the inflatable. The starting point of the control design is modeling for control. In this paper we choose lumped pH modeling since these models offer a clear structure for control design. To be able to design a finite dimensional controller for the infinite dimensional system we need a finite dimensional approximation of the infinite dimensional system which inherits all the structural properties of the infinite dimensional system, e.g., passivity. To achieve this goal first divide the one-dimensional (1-D) Timoshenko beam with piezoelectric actuation into several finite elements. Next we discretize the dynamics of the beam on the finite element in a structure preserving way. These finite elements are then interconnected in a physical motivated way. The interconnected system is then a finite dimensional approximation of the beam dynamics in the pH framework. Hence, it has inherited all the physical properties of the infinite dimensional system. To show the validity of the finite dimensional system we will present simulation results. In future work we will also focus on two-dimensional (2-D) models.