Synergistic Hybrid Feedback for Global Rigid-Body Attitude Tracking on <formula formulatype="inline"><tex Notation="TeX">$\hbox{ SO }(3)^{\ast}$</tex></formula> <formula formulatype="inline"><tex Notation="TeX">${\ssr {SO}}(3)^{\ast}$</tex></formula>

In this paper, we propose two hybrid feedbacks based on “synergistic” potential functions to achieve robust global asymptotic tracking of rigid-body attitude, a task that is impossible by classical state feedback-be it smooth, nonsmooth, or periodic-due to the topological structure of the special orthogonal group. Both hybrid feedbacks are based upon a proportional-derivative structure where the proportional term is generated from a finite family of control-induced artificial potential energies and the derivative term is due to a damping injection. In a patient-yet-greedy fashion, the hybrid feedback hysteretically switches to the minimum control-induced artificial potential energy in a finite family. The synergy property-which requires that for each undesirable critical point of each potential energy, there exists a lower potential energy in the family-guarantees the globality of robust asymptotic tracking. The first hybrid feedback is the natural extension of existing PD controllers and results in discontinuous jumps in the control signal due to a direct switch the potential energy. Using a backstepping procedure, we design a second hybrid feedback that smooths the jumps in the control torque by dynamically interpolating between the switching potential-energy terms. We show that while the class of “modified trace functions” is not wide enough to generate a “centrally synergistic” potential function, relaxing the centrality assumption allows one to construct a synergistic family and we provide explicit guidelines for doing so.