LAUSR

In this article, two methods for constructing continuous and piecewise affine (CPA) feedback stabilizers for nonlinear systems are presented. First, a construction based on a piecewise affine interpolation of Sontag's “universal” formula is developed. Stability of the corresponding closed-loop system is verified a posteriori by means of a CPA control Lyapunov function and subsequently solving a feasibility problem. Second, we develop a procedure for computing CPA feedback stabilizers via linear programming, which allows for the optimization of a control-oriented criterion in the synthesis procedure. Stability conditions are a priori specified in the linear program, which removes the necessity for a posteriori verification of closed-loop stability. We illustrate the developed methods via two application-inspired examples considering the stabilization of an inverted pendulum and the stabilization of a healthy equilibrium of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis.