Timer-based distributed channel access for control over unknown unreliable time-varying communication channels

Abstract

We consider the resource allocation problem for a system consisting of multiple control subsystems that share an unknown unreliable time-varying wireless channel. We propose a novel method for granting channel access deterministically without requiring information exchange between subsystems, based on local timers for prioritizing channel access with respect to a local cost that takes into account the (initially unknown) channel conditions. We propose a novel setup which has the capability of learning the parameters of imperfect communication links while ensuring distributed collision-free implementation. More specifically, we adopt learning algorithms for estimating the channel quality and, hence, define the local cost as a function of this estimation and control performance. The efficacy of this mechanism is evaluated via simulations.