Emergence, Mitigation, and Exploitation of Complex Behavior in Networked Control Systems

0901846-Elia

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).

Objective: The objective of the proposed research is to study and explore mechanisms for the emergence of complex behavior in networked control systems based on the effects of limited information exchange on the collective dynamics, to propose ways to mitigate and control the effects of such behaviors, and to apply the findings to cooperative networked control applications.

Intellectual Merit

The proposal deals with the development of new analytical and computational tools for understanding and analyzing how uncertainty is generated, propagates, and can be managed in the system, based on the recent advancements in the integrated theory information and control. The novelty of our research, and its most transformative aspect, is that we focus on networked systems to develop new foundations for complex systems. As networked systems are the cradle for many complex behaviors, and will become even more central in the future society, and the explicit presence of communication links simplifies the analysis of the interplay between information and uncertainty propagation in the system.

Broader Impacts

The proposed research is in the network sciences. The education of a new generation of students and industry leaders, and society at large, as complex interconnected systems are becoming more widespread and dominant in today society. The mix of motivating applications and new theoretical problems offers a unique educational opportunity to the students that will be involved in the program, and will provide material that will be introduced in the existing undergraduate and graduate courses and labs. The proposed further development of a networked control systems laboratory will have a central role in completing the educational program of students involved in the project, as well as it will provide a hub for outreach and student retention activities.