Motion control of drift-free, left-invariant systems on Lie groups

In this paper we address the constructive controllability problem for drift-free, left-invariant systems on finite-dimensional Lie groups with fewer controls than state dimension. We consider small (ε) amplitude, low-frequency, periodically time-varying controls and derive average solutions for system behavior. We show how the pth-order average formula can be used to construct open-loop controls for point-to-point maneuvering of systems which require up to (p-1) iterations of Lie brackets to satisfy the Lie algebra controllability rank condition. In the cases p=2,3, we give algorithms for constructing these controls as a function of structure constants that define the control authority, i.e., the actuator capability, of the system. The algorithms are based on a geometric interpretation of the average formulas and produce sinusoidal controls that solve the constructive controllability problem with O(ε^P) accuracy in general (exactly if the Lie algebra is nilpotent). The methodology is applicable to a variety of control problems and is illustrated for the motion control problem of an autonomous underwater vehicle with as few as three control inputs