State estimation with remote sensors and intermittent transmissions

This paper deals with the problem of estimating the state of a discrete-time linear stochastic dynamical system on the basis of data collected from multiple sensors subject to a limitation on the communication rate from the remote sensor units. The optimal probabilistic measurement-independent strategy for deciding when to transmit estimates from each sensor is derived. Simulation results show that the derived strategy yields certain advantages in terms of worst-case time-averaged performance with respect to periodic strategies when coordination among sensors is not possible.