A robust variable-structure LQI controller for under-actuated systems via flexible online adaptation of performance-index weights

This article presents flexible online adaptation strategies for the performance-index weights to constitute a variable structure Linear-Quadratic-Integral (LQI) controller for an under-actuated rotary pendulum system. The proposed control procedure undertakes to improve the controller’s adaptability, allowing it to flexibly manipulate the control stiffness which aids in efficiently rejecting the bounded exogenous disturbances while preserving the system’s closed-loop stability and economizing the overall control energy expenditure. The proposed scheme is realized by augmenting the ubiquitous LQI controller with an innovative online weight adaptation law that adaptively modulates the state-weighting factors of the internal performance index. The weight adaptation law is formulated as a pre-calibrated function of dissipative terms, anti-dissipative terms, and model-reference tracking terms to achieve the desired flexibility in the controller design. The adjusted state weighting factors are used by the Riccati equation to yield the time-varying state-compensator gains.