A topological method for finding invariant sets of continuous systems

A usual way to find positive invariant sets of ordinary differential equations is to restrict the search to predefined finitely generated shapes, such as linear templates, or ellipsoids as in classical quadratic Lyapunov function based approaches. One then looks for generators or parameters for which the corresponding shape has the property that the flow of the ODE goes inwards on its border. But for non-linear systems, where the structure of invariant sets may be very complicated, such simple predefined shapes are generally not well suited. The present work proposes a more general approach based on a topological property, namely Ważewski’s property. Even for complicated non-linear dynamics, it is possible to successfully restrict the search for isolating blocks of simple shapes, that are bound to contain non-empty invariant sets. This approach generalizes the Lyapunov-like approaches, by allowing for inwards and outwards flow on the boundary of these shapes, with extra topological conditions. We developed and implemented an algorithm based on Ważewski’s property, SOS optimization and some extra combinatorial and algebraic properties, that shows very nice results on a number of classical polynomial dynamical systems.