Identification of linear continuous-time multivariable systems using linear multistep methods

It is shown that linear multistep methods, commonly used to integrate ordinary differential equations numerically, can be used for the identification of linear continuous-time multivariable systems from samples of input/output data. An example problem is given to illustrate the use of multistep methods in system identification, and the results are compared with those obtained by the use of a discrete-time model.