Networked Control Systems (NCSs) are spatially distributed systems for which the communication between sensors, actuators and controllers is realized by a shared (wired or wireless) communication network. NCSs offer several advantages, such as reduced installation and maintenance costs, as well as greater flexibility, over conventional control systems in which parts of control loops exchange information via dedicated point-to-point connections. The principal goal of this book is to present a coherent and versatile framework applicable to various settings investigated by the authors over the last several years. This framework is applicable to nonlinear time-varying dynamic plants and controllers with delayed dynamics; a large class of static, dynamic, probabilistic and priority-oriented scheduling protocols; delayed, noisy, lossy and intermittent information exchange; decentralized control problems of heterogeneous agents with time-varying directed (not necessarily balanced) communication topologies; state- and output-feedback; off-line and on-line intermittent feedback; optimal intermittent feedback through Approximate Dynamic Programming (ADP) and Reinforcement Learning (RL); and control systems with exogenous disturbances and modeling uncertainties.

Networked Control Systems (NCSs) are spatially distributed systems for which the communication between sensors, actuators and controllers is realized by a shared (wired or wireless) communication network. NCSs offer several advantages, such as reduced installation and maintenance costs, as well as greater flexibility, over conventional control systems in which parts of control loops exchange information via dedicated point-to-point connections. The principal goal of this book is to present a coherent and versatile framework applicable to various settings investigated by the authors over the last several years. This framework is applicable to nonlinear time-varying dynamic plants and controllers with delayed dynamics; a large class of static, dynamic, probabilistic and priority-oriented scheduling protocols; delayed, noisy, lossy and intermittent information exchange; decentralized control problems of heterogeneous agents with time-varying directed (not necessarily balanced) communication topologies; state- and output-feedback; off-line and on-line intermittent feedback; optimal intermittent feedback through Approximate Dynamic Programming (ADP) and Reinforcement Learning (RL); and control systems with exogenous disturbances and modeling uncertainties.

This monograph introduces a class of networked control systems (NCS) called model-based networked control systems (MB-NCS) and presents various architectures and control strategies designed to improve the performance of NCS. The overall performance of NCS considers the appropriate use of network resources, particularly network bandwidth, in conjunction with the desired response of the system being controlled. The book begins with a detailed description of the basic MB-NCS architecture that provides stability conditions in terms of state feedback updates. It also covers typical problems in NCS such as network delays, network scheduling, and data quantization, as well as more general control problems such as output feedback control, nonlinear systems stabilization, and tracking control. Key features and topics include: Time-triggered and event-triggered feedback updates Stabilization of uncertain systems subject to time delays, quantization, and extended absence of feedback Optimal control analysis and design of model-based networked systems Parameter identification and adaptive stabilization of systems controlled over networks The MB-NCS approach to decentralized control of distributed systems Model-Based Control of Networked Systems will appeal to researchers, practitioners, and graduate students interested in the control of networked systems, distributed systems, and systems with limited feedback.

This monograph focuses on characterizing the stability and performance consequences of inserting limited-capacity communication networks within a control loop. The text shows how integration of the ideas of control and estimation with those of communication and information theory can be used to provide important insights concerning several fundamental problems such as: · minimum data rate for stabilization of linear systems over noisy channels; · minimum network requirement for stabilization of linear systems over fading channels; and · stability of Kalman filtering with intermittent observations. A fundamental link is revealed between the topological entropy of linear dynamical systems and the capacities of communication channels. The design of a logarithmic quantizer for the stabilization of linear systems under various network environments is also extensively discussed and solutions to many problems of Kalman filtering with intermittent observations are demonstrated. Analysis and Design of Networked Control Systems will interest control theorists and engineers working with networked systems and may also be used as a resource for graduate students with backgrounds in applied mathematics, communications or control who are studying such systems.

This book sheds light on networked control systems; it describes different techniques for asynchronous control, moving away from the periodic actions of classical control, replacing them with state-based decisions and reducing the frequency with which communication between subsystems is required. The text focuses specially on event-based control. Split into two parts, Asynchronous Control for Networked Systems begins by addressing the problems of single-loop networked control systems, laying out various solutions which include two alternative model-based control schemes (anticipatory and predictive) and the use of H2/H∞ robust control to deal with network delays and packet losses. Results on self-triggering and send-on-delta sampling are presented to reduce the need for feedback in the loop. In Part II, the authors present solutions for distributed estimation and control. They deal first with reliable networks and then extend their results to scenarios in which delays and packet losses may occur. The novel results presented in Asynchronous Control for Networked Systems are transmitted in a concise and clear style supported by simulation and experimental examples. Some applications are also provided. Academic researchers and graduate students investigating control theory, control engineering and computer communications systems can use this monograph to learn how asynchronous control helps tackle the problems of networked systems in centralized and distributed schemes. Control practitioners at work in power systems, vehicle coordination and traffic networks will also find this book helpful in improving the performance of their systems.

This book introduces a unique, packet-based co-design control framework for networked control systems. It begins by providing a comprehensive survey of state-of-the-art research on networked control systems, giving readers a general overview of the field. It then verifies the proposed control framework both theoretically and experimentally – the former using multiple control methodologies, and the latter using a unique online test rig for networked control systems. The framework investigates in detail the most common, communication constraints, including network-induced delays, data packet dropout, data packet disorders, and network access constraints, as well as multiple controller design and system analysis tools such as model predictive control, linear matrix inequalities and optimal control. This unique and complete co-design framework greatly benefits researchers, graduate students and engineers in the fields of control theory and engineering.

This book nds its origin in the WIDE PhD School on Networked Control Systems, which we organized in July 2009 in Siena, Italy. Having gathered experts on all the aspects of networked control systems, it was a small step to go from the summer school to the book, certainly given the enthusiasm of the lecturers at the school. We felt that a book collecting overviewson the important developmentsand open pr- lems in the eld of networked control systems could stimulate and support future research in this appealing area. Given the tremendouscurrentinterests in distributed control exploiting wired and wireless communication networks, the time seemed to be right for the book that lies now in front of you. The goal of the book is to set out the core techniques and tools that are ava- able for the modeling, analysis and design of networked control systems. Roughly speaking, the book consists of three parts. The rst part presents architectures for distributed control systems and models of wired and wireless communication n- works. In particular, in the rst chapter important technological and architectural aspects on distributed control systems are discussed. The second chapter provides insight in the behavior of communication channels in terms of delays, packet loss and information constraints leading to suitable modeling paradigms for commu- cation networks.