This book reflects the latest developments in variable structure systems (VSS) and sliding mode control (SMC), highlighting advances in various branches of the VSS/SMC field, e.g., from conventional SMC to high-order SMC, from the continuous-time domain to the discrete-time domain, from theories to applications, etc. The book consists of three parts and 16 chapters: in the first part, new VSS/SMC algorithms are proposed and their properties are analyzed, while the second focuses on the use of VSS/SMC techniques to solve a variety of control problems; the third part examines the applications of VSS/SMC to real-time systems. The book introduces postgraduates and researchers to the state-of-the-art in VSS/SMC field, including the theory, methodology, and applications. Relative academic disciplines include Automation, Mathematics, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Instrument Science and Engineering, Electronic Engineering, Computer Science and Technology, Transportation Engineering, Energy and Power Engineering, etc.

Featuring original research from well-known experts in the field of sliding mode control, this book presents new design schemes for a useful and practical optimal control with very few impractical assumptions. The results presented allow optimal control theory to grow in its applicability to real-world systems. On the cutting-edge of optimal control research, this book is an excellent resource for both graduate students and researchers in engineering, mathematics, and optimal control.

The book covers the latest theoretical results and sophisticated applications in the field of variable-structure systems and sliding-mode control. This book is divided into four parts. Part I discusses new higher-order sliding-mode algorithms, including new homogeneous controllers and differentiators. Part II then explores properties of continuous sliding-mode algorithms, such as saturated feedback control, reaching time, and orbital stability. Part III is focused on the usage of variable-structure systems (VSS) controllers for solving other control problems, for example unmatched disturbances. Finally, Part IV discusses applications of VSS; these include applications within power electronics and vehicle platooning. Variable-structure Systems and Sliding-Mode Control will be of interest to academic researchers, students and practising engineers.

This monograph presents a simple and efficient two-relay control algorithm for generation of self-excited oscillations of a desired amplitude and frequency in dynamic systems. Developed by the authors, the two-relay controller consists of two relays switched by the feedback received from a linear or nonlinear system, and represents a new approach to the self-generation of periodic motions in underactuated mechanical systems. The first part of the book explains the design procedures for two-relay control using three different methodologies - the describing-function method, Poincare maps, and the locus-of-a perturbed-relay-system method - and concludes with stability analysis of designed periodic oscillations. Two methods to ensure the robustness of two-relay control algorithms are explored in the second part, one based on the combination of the high-order sliding mode controller and backstepping, and the other on higher-order sliding-modes-based reconstruction of uncertainties and their compensation where Lyapunov-based stability analysis of tracking error is used. Finally, the third part illustrates applications of self-oscillation generation by a two-relay control with a Furuta pendulum, wheel pendulum, 3-DOF underactuated robot, 3-DOF laboratory helicopter, and fixed-phase electronic circuits. Self-Oscillations in Dynamic Systems will appeal to engineers, researchers, and graduate students working on the tracking and self-generation of periodic motion of electromechanical systems, including non-minimum-phase systems. It will also be of interest to mathematicians working on analysis of periodic solutions.

The book covers the latest theoretical results and sophisticated applications in the field of variable-structure systems and sliding-mode control. This book is divided into four parts. Part I discusses new higher-order sliding-mode algorithms, including new homogeneous controllers and differentiators. Part II then explores properties of continuous sliding-mode algorithms, such as saturated feedback control, reaching time, and orbital stability. Part III is focused on the usage of variable-structure systems (VSS) controllers for solving other control problems, for example unmatched disturbances. Finally, Part IV discusses applications of VSS; these include applications within power electronics and vehicle platooning. Variable-structure Systems and Sliding-Mode Control will be of interest to academic researchers, students and practising engineers.

This book reflects the latest developments in variable structure systems (VSS) and sliding mode control (SMC), highlighting advances in various branches of the VSS/SMC field, e.g., from conventional SMC to high-order SMC, from the continuous-time domain to the discrete-time domain, from theories to applications, etc. The book consists of three parts and 16 chapters: in the first part, new VSS/SMC algorithms are proposed and their properties are analyzed, while the second focuses on the use of VSS/SMC techniques to solve a variety of control problems; the third part examines the applications of VSS/SMC to real-time systems. The book introduces postgraduates and researchers to the state-of-the-art in VSS/SMC field, including the theory, methodology, and applications. Relative academic disciplines include Automation, Mathematics, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Instrument Science and Engineering, Electronic Engineering, Computer Science and Technology, Transportation Engineering, Energy and Power Engineering, etc.

This monograph presents a simple and efficient two-relay control algorithm for generation of self-excited oscillations of a desired amplitude and frequency in dynamic systems. Developed by the authors, the two-relay controller consists of two relays switched by the feedback received from a linear or nonlinear system, and represents a new approach to the self-generation of periodic motions in underactuated mechanical systems. The first part of the book explains the design procedures for two-relay control using three different methodologies - the describing-function method, Poincare maps, and the locus-of-a perturbed-relay-system method - and concludes with stability analysis of designed periodic oscillations. Two methods to ensure the robustness of two-relay control algorithms are explored in the second part, one based on the combination of the high-order sliding mode controller and backstepping, and the other on higher-order sliding-modes-based reconstruction of uncertainties and their compensation where Lyapunov-based stability analysis of tracking error is used. Finally, the third part illustrates applications of self-oscillation generation by a two-relay control with a Furuta pendulum, wheel pendulum, 3-DOF underactuated robot, 3-DOF laboratory helicopter, and fixed-phase electronic circuits. Self-Oscillations in Dynamic Systems will appeal to engineers, researchers, and graduate students working on the tracking and self-generation of periodic motion of electromechanical systems, including non-minimum-phase systems. It will also be of interest to mathematicians working on analysis of periodic solutions.

Featuring original research from well-known experts in the field of sliding mode control, this book presents new design schemes for a useful and practical optimal control with very few impractical assumptions. The results presented allow optimal control theory to grow in its applicability to real-world systems. On the cutting-edge of optimal control research, this book is an excellent resource for both graduate students and researchers in engineering, mathematics, and optimal control.

Many of the chapters in this book are based on expansions of selected presentations from the 8th IEEE International Workshop on Variable Structure Systems VSS'04, which was held in Barcelona, Spain in September 2004. The editors have tried to identify the key contributions from this workshop, which define the state-of-the-art, represent new directions building on existing work, and highlight new emerging application areas.

This book is a collection of invited chapters covering several areas of modern sliding mode control theory. Preparing this book we tried to identify key c- tributions de?ning the theoretical and applicative state of the art of the sliding mode control theory and the most promising trends of the ongoing research activities. The contributions is divided in four main parts: Part I: Basic Theory. Part II: Design Methods Part III: Observers and Fault Detection Part IV: Applications The ?rst part of the book (Part I: Basic Theory) is devoted to a collection of sixmostlytheoreticalchaptersaddressingbasictheoreticalissuesofsliding-mode based control systems. The ?rst Chapter, by Giorgio Bartolini, Elisabetta Punta, and Tullio Zolezzi, presents new de?nitions of approximability for nonlinear second order sliding mode control systems including the comparison with the related known pr- erties for ?rst order sliding mode control methods. Su?cient conditions are - tainedfor second-orderregularization, a sliding motionerrorestimate is derived, and some relevant examples are discussed. Chapter 2, by Igor Boiko, Leonid Fridman, Alessandro Pisano, and Elio Usai, developsasystematicapproachtothechatteringanalysisinsystemswithsecond order sliding modes. Su?cient conditions for the existence of orbitally stable periodic motions are found in terms of the properties of corresponding Poincar e maps. For linear systems driven by the second-order SMC "Generalized Sub- Optimal" algorithm, analysis tools based on the frequency-domain methods are developed. Examples of analysis, worked examples, and simulation results are given throughout the Chapter."

Vehicles are complex mechanical systems with strong nonlinear characteristics and which can present some uncertainties due to their dynamic parameters such as masses, inertias, suspension springs, tires side slip coefficients, etc.

A vehicle is composed of many parts, namely the unsprung mass, the sprung mass, the suspension which makes the link between these two masses and therefore ensures passenger comfort, and also the pneumatic which absorbs the energy coming from the road and ensures contact between the vehicle and the road. In addition to its complexity and the presence of many nonlinearities and uncertainties, the presence of some external perturbations, such as the wind and the road inputs with its own characteristics (radius of curvature, longitudinal and lateral slop, road profile and skid resistance) can cause risks not only to the vehicle but also to passengers and other road users.

Many methods have been developed in order to understand the behavior of a vehicle ( light and heavy vehicle), control it and assist the driver in order to avoid possible lane departures, rollover or jackknifing risks, to ensure a better passenger comfort by means of a suspension control and/or to estimate a safety speed and trajectory.

In control theory, sliding mode control, or SMC, is a nonlinear control method that alters the dynamics of a nonlinear system by application of a discontinuous control signal that forces the system to 'slide' along a cross-section of the system's normal behaviour. This book describes recent advances in the theory, properties, methods and applications of SMC. The book is organised into four parts. The first part is devoted to the design of higher-order sliding-mode controllers, with specific designs presented in the context of disturbance rejection by means of observation and identification. The second part offers a set of tools for establishing different dynamic properties of systems with discontinuous right-hand sides. Time discretization is addressed in the third part. First-order sliding modes are discretized using an implicit scheme - higher-order sliding-mode differentiators, typically used in output-feedback schemes, are discretized in such a way that the optimal accuracy of their continuous-time counterparts is restored. The last part is dedicated to applications. In the context of energy conversion, sliding-mode control is applied to variable-speed wind turbines, fuel cell coupled to a power converter, rugged DC series motors and rectifiers with unity power factor, and electropneumatic actuator. Finally, an event-triggered sliding-mode scheme is proposed for networked control systems subject to packet loss, jitter and delayed transmissions.