Research ArticleFinite-time stabilization for a class of nonholonomic feedforward systems subject to inputs saturation

- A general model of nonlinear feedforward systems subject to nonholonomic constraints is introduced in this paper.
- A weaker sufficient condition on characterizing the nonlinear growth of the nonholonomic systems for its saturated finite-time stabilization is derived.
- A new systematic saturated state feedback control design procedure is proposed to solve the finite-time stabilization problem for all plants in the considered class.
- An application example for vertical wheel on rotating table is modeled and solved by the proposed method.

This paper studies the problem of finite-time stabilization by state feedback for a class of uncertain nonholonomic systems in feedforward-like form subject to inputs saturation. Under the weaker homogeneous condition on systems growth, a saturated finite-time control scheme is developed by exploiting the adding a power integrator method, the homogeneous domination approach and the nested saturation technique. Together with a novel switching control strategy, the designed saturated controller guarantees that the states of closed-loop system are regulated to zero in a finite time without violation of the constraint. As an application of the proposed theoretical results, the problem of saturated finite-time control for vertical wheel on rotating table is solved. Simulation results are given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.