Hamiltonian Optimal Control of Distributed Lagrangian Systems

This paper presents a distributed Hamiltonian optimal control method method for a class of distributed Lagrangian infinite-dimensional systems coupled to nonlinear finite-dimensional systems. A virtual control concept in conjunction with an optimal control allocation strategy is employed using the Hamilton’s principle to provide a distributed Hamiltonian control solution that spans an infinite-dimensional eigenfunction space. The distributed optimal control theory is formulated using a semi-group abstraction resulting in an integro-differential Riccati equation. An aircraft flight control application is presented to illustrate the theory.