Decentralized Environmental Modeling by Mobile Sensor Networks

Author

Lynch, Kevin M. ; Schwartz, Ira B. ; Yang, Peng ; Freeman, Randy A.

Author_Institution

Dept. of Mech. Eng., Northwestern Univ., Evanston, IL

Volume

24

Issue

3

fYear

2008

fDate

6/1/2008 12:00:00 AM

Firstpage

710

Lastpage

724

Abstract

Cooperating mobile sensors can be used to model environmental functions such as the temperature or salinity of a region of ocean. In this paper, we adopt an optimal filtering approach to fusing local sensor data into a global model of the environment. Our approach is based on the use of proportional-integral (PI) average consensus estimators, whereby information from each mobile sensor diffuses through the communication network. As a result, this approach is scalable and fully decentralized, and allows changing network topologies and anonymous agents to be added and subtracted at any time. We also derive control laws for mobile sensors to move to maximize their sensory information relative to current uncertainties in the model. The approach is demonstrated by simulations including modeling ocean temperature.

Keywords

estimation theory; filtering theory; mobile communication; telecommunication network topology; communication network; decentralized environmental modeling; estimator; local sensor data; mobile sensor network; network topology; ocean temperature modeling; optimal filtering; proportional-integral average consensus; Communication networks; Communication system control; Density measurement; Distributed control; Filtering; Multiagent systems; Network topology; Ocean temperature; Sensor systems; Temperature sensors; Average consensus estimation; decentralized control; distributed control; mobile sensor networks; multiagent systems; ocean modeling;

fLanguage

English

Journal_Title

Robotics, IEEE Transactions on

Publisher

ieee

ISSN

1552-3098

Type

jour

DOI

10.1109/TRO.2008.921567

Filename

4542870