An architecture to support cooperating mobile embedded systems

Abstract

There is a sustained trend to embed computer systems in all kinds of intelligent products. Increasing emphasis is given to enhance the functionality of such systems beyond the provision of easy-of-use and comfort to more safety-critical tasks where they exert direct control over the intelligent product. Examples of such systems can be exploited in many domains like team robotics, factory automation, transport systems, and intelligent traffic control. To master the inherent complexity, we present a layered system architecture that partly integrates already existing components. It has to cope with two major challenges imposed by the considered type of applications. First, the architecture has to resolve the conflict between the autonomy of the individual systems and the demand to cooperate. We think that coordination is the key to the required effective cooperation. Coordination means that the individual systems can take actions under local control, based on a sufficiently consistent view of the common system environment and on the application of a set of common rules. To enable this, the proposed architecture provides the necessary communication services. Secondly, system control must be prepared to cope with a dynamic and unpredictable system environment. Still guaranteeing QoS properties, especially real-time behavior, necessitates innovative solution concepts. Our approach is to exploit system -- and application -- inherent redundancies across different layers of the architecture.