A Model of a Decentralized Cyber-Physical System Resiliently Functioning in a Changing Environment

Abstract

The article discusses the issues of decentralization and dynamic redistribution of roles in cyber-physical systems (CPS) designed for working in changing environments and especially open spaces, where there are increased risks of module failures and communication loss. In particular, decentralized methods for controlling the CPS behavior and ensuring the redundancy of their components and connections are investigated. A number of requirements for such systems are identified and it is noted what limitations in existing approaches impede the implementation of systems that satisfy these requirements at the physical, network and application layers. For different layers, behavior models are proposed, which provide autonomous role distribution between components. This made it possible to synthesize a structural-parametric model of an autonomous mobile CPS, focused on functioning in open areas and solving applied problems performed through the coordinated interaction of groups of mobile agents. The model takes into account aspects of system stability and its response to destructive influences. The advantages of the proposed models include task decentralization, absence of central, critical nodes and bottlenecks, no line of sight requirements or small distance between devices, ability to work in unexplored environments. The solutions can be applied primarily in the field of business and are suitable for use in industrial plants equipped with mobile robotic devices with cameras, for example, for agricultural tasks, or territorial exploration. The proposed approach makes possible to study the terrain more accurately, including unexplored areas with limited accessibility to humans. Also, the results obtained can be applied during rescue operations.