Robust Safety Filtering for Input-Constrained Underactuated Linear Systems

Abstract

We present a robust safety-filtering framework for input-constrained underactuated linear systems subject to unknown disturbances. A baseline H-$\infty$ input is derived from a zero-sum differential game, while a disturbance observer supplies an estimate and a transient error bound. The baseline input is adjusted using the disturbance estimate, while the estimate and its error bound are used to define robust high-order control barrier function constraints; forward invariance holds as long as the admissible-input set remains nonempty. For scalar-input systems, pointwise feasibility is determined from an exact input interval, and the interval width defines the feasibility margin. A finite-horizon H-$\infty$ performance balance accounts for the accumulated deviation of the applied input from the baseline H-$\infty$ policy. Simulations on a linearized two-wheeled balancing robot show how position and body-pitch constraints compete for the same bounded wheel-torque input.