Collaborative Research: CPS: Medium: Enabling Autonomous, Persistent, and Adaptive Mobile Observational Networks Through Energy-Aware Dynamic Coverage

合作研究：CPS：中：通过能量感知动态覆盖实现自主、持久和自适应移动观测网络

• 批准号: 2223844
• 负责人: Ruoying He
• 金额: $ 84.92万
• 依托单位: North Carolina State University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2022
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2022-10-01 至 2025-09-30
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2223844&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; CPS; Medium; Enabling

This research will create and validate new approaches for optimally managing mobile observational networks consisting of a renewably powered “host” agent and “satellite” agents that are deployed from and recharged by the host. Such networks can enable autonomous, long-term measurements for meteorological, climate change, reconnaissance, and surveillance applications, which are of significant national interest. While the hardware exists for such networks, the vast majority of existing mission planning and control approaches treat energy as a finite resource and focus on finite-duration missions. This research will represent a paradigm shift, wherein the energy resource available to the network is renewable, but the instantaneously available power is limited. This demands strategies that continuously trade off energy harvesting and scientific information gathering. This research will establish a comprehensive framework for managing the aforementioned tradeoffs, with both simulation-based and experimental demonstrations. The specific observational framework considered in this work will involve a fleet of solar-powered autonomous surface vessels, unoccupied aerial vehicles, and undersea gliders to for characterizing atmospheric and oceanic interactions between the deep-ocean and near-shore waters adjacent to North Carolina’s Outer Banks. The research will be complemented with targeted internship activities, K-12 outreach activities at The Engineering Place at NC State, and outreach activities with the Detroit Area Pre-College Engineering Program.Fusing autonomy, persistence, and adaptation in observational networks demands a formal characterization and tradeoff between the cyber quantity of information and physical quantity of energy. Specifically, with a renewably powered host agent, energy no longer serves as a hard constraint; instead, there exists a perpetual tradeoff between the acquisition of information and the use of available on-board energy in a stochastic environment. To address this, the research team will create: (i) a scientifically tailored dynamic coverage model for information characterization, (ii) a statistical energy resource/consumption model, and (iii) a multi-level predictive controller that adapts the mission profile based on the information/energy tradeoff. The host controller will maximize a two-part objective function consisting of a finite-horizon coverage summation and terminal incentive based on a novel quantity termed the “information value of energy.” This host controller will be complemented by a series of satellite energy-aware coverage controllers that maximize coverage subject to a safe rendezvous requirement in a stochastic resource. The research will be validated across three platforms of increasing complexity – an unoccupied aerial vehicle (UAV) network (experimental), a combined solar-powered autonomous surface vessel (ASV)/UAV network (experimental), and a combined ASV/USV/undersea glider network (simulation-driven).This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

这项研究将创建并验证最佳管理移动观测网络的新方法，该网络由可再生能源“主机”代理和从主机部署并由主机充电的“卫星”代理组成，此类网络可以实现自主的长期气象测量。 、气候变化、侦察和监视应用，这些都具有重大的国家利益，虽然此类网络的硬件已经存在，但绝大多数现有的任务规划和控制方法将能源视为有限的资源，并专注于有限持续时间的任务。研究将代表范式转变，网络可用的能源是可再生的，但即时可用的电力是有限的，这需要不断权衡能量收集和科学信息收集的策略，本研究将建立一个综合框架来管理上述权衡。这项工作中考虑的具体观测框架将涉及一组太阳能自主水面舰艇、无人飞行器和海底滑翔机，以表征深海和近岸之间的大气和海洋相互作用。该研究将通过有针对性的实习活动、北卡罗来纳州工程中心的 K-12 外展活动以及底特律地区大学预科工程项目的外展活动来补充。观测网络的适应需要在信息的网络数量和能量的物理数量之间进行正式的表征和权衡。的信息和为了解决这个问题，研究团队将创建：（i）科学定制的动态覆盖模型，用于信息表征，（ii）统计能源资源/消耗模型，以及（iii）。 ）一个多级预测控制器，根据信息/能量权衡调整任务概况，主控制器将最大化由有限范围覆盖求和和基于称为“新量”的终端激励组成的两部分目标函数。的信息价值该主机控制器将得到一系列卫星能量感知覆盖控制器的补充，这些控制器可根据随机资源中的安全交会要求最大化覆盖范围。该研究将在三个日益复杂的平台上进行验证——无人飞行器（无人机）网络（实验性）、太阳能自主水面舰艇（ASV）/无人机组合网络（实验性）以及 ASV/USV/海底滑翔机组合网络（模拟驱动）。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。