Global finite-time stabilization for a class of high-order nonlinear systems with multiple unknown control directions

This paper considers the problem of the global finite-time stabilization for the high-order nonlinear systems with unknown control directions. Due to the uncertainty of control directions, the paper analyzes all possible conditions of the directions. The Lyapunov-based logic switching rule ensures that we can find the correct control directions. The adaptive switching controller with a switching parameter which is to be tuned online guarantees that the derivative of Lyapunov function is less than a negative definite function and the closed-loop system is globally finite-time stable. The effectiveness of the proposed method is illustrated by an example.