Transmission rate allocation in multi-sensor target tracking

In a multi-sensor target tracking application running on a shared network, at what bit-rates should the sensors send their measurements to the tracking fusion center? Clearly, the sensors cannot use arbitrary rates in a shared network, and a standard network rate control algorithm may not provide rates amenable to effective target tracking. For Kalman filter-based multi-sensor target tracking, we derive a utility function that captures the tracking quality of service as a function of bit-rate. We incorporate this utility function into a network rate resource allocation framework, deriving a distributed rate control algorithm for a shared network that does not require network re-design. In simulation studies, the new rate-control algorithm engenders much better tracking performance than a standard rate-control method.