The Bountiful Intersection of Differential Geometry, Mechanics, and Control Theory

Abstract

The areas of mechanics and control theory have a rich and productive history of interaction with the broad mathematical subject of differential geometry. This article provides an overview of these sorts of interplay in the areas of Riemannian and affine differential geometry and the geometry of vector distributions. It emphasizes areas where differential geometric methods have played a crucial role in solving problems whose solutions are difficult to achieve without access to these methods. It also emphasizes a concise and elegant presentation of the approach, rather than a detailed and concrete presentation. The results overviewed, while forming a coherent and elegant body of work, are limited in scope. The review closes with a discussion of why the approach is limited and a brief consideration of issues that must be resolved before the results of the type presented here can be extended.