OPTEC - K.U.Leuven Center of Excellence: Optimization in Engineering

"Observer design for non-linear systems with an energy preserving non-linearity."

Andrew Wynn, Imperial College London

Abstract
In this talk we will consider observer design for non-linear systems which have a particular energy preserving, or conservative, structure. Examples of systems possessing this property are the Navier-Stokes equations for fluid flow, and the non-linear PDE describing the deflections of a very flexible beam.
Two approaches towards observer design will be discussed. First, it will be shown that Semidefinite Programming may be used to effectively search for an offline observer, with can possess either local or global convergence properties. Second, Moving Horizon Estimation is discussed with respect to the non-linear systems under consideration, and is shown to exhibit improved convergence properties than the former offline observer design technique.