SGER: Event-triggered control over sensor/actuator wireless networks

目标：这项提议代表了一项研究努力，旨在整合无线网络上的感知、计算和驱动。虽然目前无线网络研究的趋势集中在感知上，但自然而然的下一步是考虑激励，从而超越无线网络的“被动”角色，转向在网络中收集、处理和消费信息的“主动”角色。在无线网络上执行激励时面临的主要困难之一是需要恒定速率的数据从传感器流向执行器。由于通信能源昂贵，而网络节点的电池很小，这种恒定的数据速率会迅速耗尽现有能源，严重限制应用程序的寿命。智能优点：该项目探索了一种通过无线网络执行激励的不同范例。与过去30年控制工程中所做的那样，读取传感器、计算反馈控制律和定期更新执行器不同，只有在必要时才传输信息和更新执行器。这种被称为事件触发控制的新范例，在保证期望的控制性能水平的同时，大幅减少了通信并因此减少了能源利用。广泛的影响：所提出的事件触发范例通过减少通讯而极大地延长了应用程序的寿命。因此，该项目将使目前因网络节点能量储备较少而受到阻碍的几种不同类型的应用，如机械化农业灌溉、可重构的工厂自动化、未来的暖通空调系统等。该项目还旨在让本科生参与拟议技术的验证，从而有助于增加国内攻读理工科研究生学位的人数。

Objectives:This proposal represents a research effort towards the integration of sensing, computation and actuation over wireless networks. Although current trends in wireless network research focus on sensing, the natural next step is to consider actuation, thereby transcending the ``passive'' role of wireless networks towards an ``active'' role where information is collected, processed and consumed within the network. One of the major difficulties faced when performing actuation over wireless networks is that a constant rate of data needs to flow from sensors to actuators. As communication is energy expensive and network nodes have small batteries, this constant rate of data quickly depletes the existing energy resources and severely limits the life span of applications.Intellectual Merit:This project explores a different paradigm to perform actuation over wireless networks. Instead of reading the sensors, computing feedback control laws and updating the actuators in a periodic fashion, as it has been done in the past 30 years in control engineering, information is transmitted and actuators are updated only when necessary. This new paradigm, termed event-triggered control, guarantees desired levels of control performance while drastically reducing communication and thus energy utilization.Broader Impact:The proposed event-triggered paradigm greatly increases the life span of applications by reducing communication. Therefore, this project will enable several different kinds of applications, currently hampered by small energy reserves of network nodes, such as mechanized agricultural irrigation, reconfigurable factory automation, future HVAC systems, etc. The project also aims at involving undergraduate students in the validation of the proposed techniques thus contributing to increase the number of domestic students pursuing graduate degrees in science and engineering.