Low-complexity approximations of PWA functions: A case study on Adaptive Cruise Control

This paper applies recently developed techniques for the PieceWise-Affine (PWA) approximation of explicit Model Predictive Control (MPC) to an Adaptive Cruise Control system. The optimal MPC law is approximated by using a particular class of PWA functions defined over a domain partitioned into simplices, referred to as PieceWise-Affine Simplicial functions. This approximation technique allows a very fast circuit implementation of the control function, thereby enabling the usage of MPC in embedded systems with extremely small sampling periods.