Enhancing State Estimator Performance in Networked Control Systems with Sequential Packet Drops via Adaptive Power Control and Error Correction Coding: An Experimental Evaluation

Networked control systems mark a significant advancement in modern control technology, enabling control loops to be closed via communication networks. These systems are designed to be modular and scalable by distributing various functional blocks across different physical locations, interconnected through wireless channels. A major limitation of such systems lies in the inherent imperfection of wireless channels, which can significantly degrade system performance. These effects can be intensified by impairments like fading, which introduce time-varying attenuation and phase shifts, leading to delays and sequential packet losses. To address the issue of sequential data drops, an adaptive power control strategy was investigated to significantly reduce sequential packet drops, complemented by an error correction coding scheme to minimize the error rate. A modified state estimation algorithm has been developed, with its effectiveness validated through numerical simulations and further supported by experimental evaluation using a dedicated testbed built with software-defined radio systems.