Partial controllability of network dynamical systems with unilateral inputs

TL;DR

This paper investigates how to control network systems with unilateral inputs on some nodes, providing conditions for controllability and a heuristic for optimal node selection, addressing constraints in control actions.

Contribution

It establishes the equivalence of unilateral reachability and controllability for nodes and offers a practical method for node selection under input constraints.

Findings

Unilateral controllability conditions for network nodes.

A heuristic for selecting nodes for unilateral control.

Theoretical results simplify control design under constraints.

Abstract

Our ability to control network dynamical systems is often hindered by constraints on the number and nature of the available control actions, which make controlling the whole network unfeasible. In this manuscript, we focus on the case where unilateral inputs are exerted on a subset of the network nodes. Leveraging the observation that, different from the case of subsystems, unilateral node reachability and controllability are equivalent, we provide conditions for a given node subset to be unilaterally controllable. The theoretical findings are then employed to develop a computationally efficient heuristic to select the nodes where the unilateral inputs should be injected