Taylor, JD (Carnegie Mellon University), Messner, William (Tufts University)

Controller Design for Nonlinear Multi-Input/Multi-Output Systems Using the Contoured Robust Controller Bode Plot

Scheduled for presentation during the Contributed session "Nonlinear Control" (MoBT7), Monday, October 21, 2013, 15:10−15:30, Room 138

6th Annual Dynamic Systems and Control Conference, October 21-23, 2020, Stanford University, Munger Center, Palo Alto, CA

This information is tentative and subject to change. Compiled on October 26, 2025

Abstract

In this paper, a novel approach to controller design for nonlinear multi-input/multi-output (MIMO) systems is presented based on the Contoured Robust Controller Bode (CRCBode) plot. CRCBode plots show level-sets of a robust metric and identify certain ``forbidden regions'' on the controller Bode magnitude and phase plots such that intersections of the controller frequency response with these forbidden regions indicate that a robust stability and performance criterion is violated. Nonlinear system dynamics are included as a structured uncertainty set consisting of linearizations about several operating points. To demonstrate this approach, we design a controller for a MIMO high-speed, low-tension magnetic tape drive memory system. A preliminary approximate inverse step is described, followed by several loop-shaping design iterations to eliminate all intersections with the forbidden regions on the CRCBode diagrams. Finally, the CRCBode compensator is compared to one generated using an automated H-infinity synthesis algorithm.