A hierarchical approach to data-driven LPV control design of constrained systems

Modeling is recognized to be one of the toughest and most time-consuming tasks in modern nonlinear control engineering applications. Linear parameter-varying (LPV) models deal with such complex problems in an effective way, by exploiting wellestablished tools for linear systems while, at the same time, being able to accurately describe highly nonlinear and time-varying plants. When LPV models are derived from experimental data, it is difficult to estimate a priori how modeling errors will affect the closed-loop performance. In this work, a method is proposed to directly map data onto LPV controllers. Specifically, a hierarchical structure is proposed both to maximize the system performance and to handle signal constraints. The effectiveness of the approach is illustrated via suitable simulation tests.