Source coding for decentralized estimation systems

Parameter estimation in decentralized systems with distributed processors is considered. The authors restrict the local processors to be quantizers and consider the optimal design of the system to minimize the estimation error. They derive the necessary conditions of the optimal system based on different distortion functions. In particular, they show that using Fisher´s information as a distortion function can simplify the design of quantizers. An expression for the asymptotic quantization error of scalar quantizers is also derived. Numerical results show that using Fisher´s information can simplify the design and achieve good performance