# Robust Tracking with Model Mismatch for Fast and Safe Planning: an SOS Optimization Approach

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/1808.00649 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/1808.00649/

## Key facts

- Cited by 8 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 2 Aug 2018.

## Built on by (most cited first, 8 of 8)

- [The Safety Filter: A Unified View of Safety-Critical Control in Autonomous Systems](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2309.05837/) (2023)
- [Safety Beyond the Training Data: Robust Out-of-Distribution MPC via Conformalized System Level Synthesis](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2602.12047/) (2026)
- [Safe Large-Scale Robust Nonlinear MPC in Milliseconds via Reachability-Constrained System Level Synthesis on the GPU](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2604.07644/) (2026)
- [Infinite-Horizon Reach-Avoid Zero-Sum Games via Deep Reinforcement Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2203.10142/) (2022)
- [VISION-SLS: Safe Perception-Based Control from Learned Visual Representations via System Level Synthesis](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2604.24894/) (2026)
- [Neural Abstraction-Based Controller Synthesis and Deployment](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2307.03783/) (2023)
- [Parallel Differentiable Reachability for Learning and Planning with Certified Neural Dynamics and Controllers](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2605.25346/) (2026)
- [Scalable Data-Driven Reachability Analysis and Control via Koopman Operators with Conformal Coverage Guarantees](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2601.01076/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

In the pursuit of real-time motion planning, a commonly adopted practice is to compute a trajectory by running a planning algorithm on a simplified, low-dimensional dynamical model, and then employ a feedback tracking controller that tracks such a trajectory by accounting for the full, high-dimensional system dynamics. While this strategy of planning with model mismatch generally yields fast computation times, there are no guarantees of dynamic feasibility, which hampers application to safety-critical systems. Building upon recent work that addressed this problem through the lens of Hamilton-Jacobi (HJ) reachability, we devise an algorithmic framework whereby one computes, offline, for a pair of "planner" (i.e., low-dimensional) and "tracking" (i.e., high-dimensional) models, a feedback tracking controller and associated tracking bound. This bound is then used as a safety margin when generating motion plans via the low-dimensional model. Specifically, we harness the computational tool of sum-of-squares (SOS) programming to design a bilinear optimization algorithm for the computation of the feedback tracking controller and associated tracking bound. The algorithm is demonstrated via numerical experiments, with an emphasis on investigating the trade-off between the increased computational scalability afforded by SOS and its intrinsic conservativeness. Collectively, our results enable scaling the appealing strategy of planning with model mismatch to systems that are beyond the reach of HJ analysis, while maintaining safety guarantees.