Stabilization of nested systems with uncertain subsystem communication channels

This paper addresses the design of stabilizing controllers for a nested control system where the controller is realized in a distributed manner, considering uncertainty not only in the controller-to-plant and plant-to-controller channels but also in the nest-to-nest, subcontroller-to-subcontroller communication. An input-output approach is taken. Two appropriate controller architectures that stabilize the entire system with the various components subject to uncertainty and noise are addressed. We present controller synthesis procedures to address deterministic uncertainty and stochastic uncertainty, that model packet-loss in the Internet.