A novel control strategy for autonomous cars

The autonomous vehicle is one of the greatest challenges in modern vehicle design. This paper proposes a new method of control named FLOP, Feedback Local Optimality Principle, recently proposed by the authors. The method, starting from the Pontryagin's theory, introduces a new optimality principle that minimizes a sequence of individual functionals with the chance of a direct feedback control. The theory is applied to the steering and traction control of a two-wheeled vehicle, showing the ability of tracking a given trajectory and obstacles avoidance in a rather complex environment.