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新方法，以最佳管理由主机部署和充电的重新供电的“主机”代理和“卫星”代理组成的移动观察网络。此类网络可以实现对气象，气候变化，侦察和监视应用的自主，长期测量，这具有重大的国家利益。尽管存在此类网络的硬件，但绝大多数现有的任务计划和控制方法将能源视为有限资源，并专注于有限的持续任务。这项研究将代表范式转移，其中可用的网络能源资源可续签，但是即时可用的功率是有限的。这需要策略不断地交易能源收集和科学信息收集。这项研究将建立一个全面的框架来管理优先考虑的权衡，并通过基于模拟和实验演示。这项工作中考虑的特定观察框架将涉及一组太阳能自主的表面容器，未占用的航空车和海底滑翔机，以表征与北卡罗来纳州北卡罗来纳州外部银行相邻的深海域和近岸水之间的大气和海洋相互作用。这项研究将通过有针对性的实习活动，北卡罗来纳州工程场所的K-112外展活动以及与底特律领域预科工程预科工程计划进行外展活动。建立自主权，持久性和观察网络中的适应性，要求正式的表征和能量限制的能源限量，而不是在能源范围内进行既有限量的范围，又有既定能力的既有启动。取而代之的是，在获取信息与在随机环境中使用可用的机上能量之间存在一个永久的权衡。为了解决这个问题，研究团队将创建：（i）一个科学量身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）一个多层次的预测控制器，该控制器根据信息/能源的权衡来适应任务配置文件。主机控制器将最大限度地提高两部分的目标函数，该目标函数由有限的覆盖范围求和和基于新数量的终端激励措施组成，称为“能量的信息值”。该主机控制器将通过一系列卫星能量吸引的覆盖范围控制器来完成，该控制器最大化覆盖范围，但在随机资源中受到安全的集合需求。这项研究将在增加复杂性的三个平台上进行验证：一个无人驾驶的飞机（UAV）网络（实验），一个合并的太阳能自主表面容器（ASV）/UAV网络（实验性），ASV/USV/USV/USV/UNDERASEA GLIDER GLIDER GLIDER GLIDER网络（Simulation-Simulation-drive）。优点和更广泛的影响审查标准。