The New Jersey Institute of Technology's
Electronic Theses & Dissertations Project

Title:	Decentralized optimal control with application to dynamic routing in computer communication networks
Author:	Wang, Ning
View Online:	njit-etd1984-016 (iii, 80 pages ~ 2.8 MB pdf)
Department:	Department of Electrical Engineering
Degree:	Doctor of Engineering Science
Program:	Electrical Engineering
Document Type:	Dissertation
Advisory Committee:	Kuo, Marshall Chuan Yung (Committee chair) De Lucia, Robert (Committee member) Reisman, Stanley S. (Committee member) Plastock, Roy A. (Committee member)
Date:	1983
Keywords:	Computer networks. Control theory.
Availability:	Unrestricted
Abstract:	This research considers the dynamic routing problem of computer communication networks in the framework of decentralized control theory. The routing dynamics are modeled in terms of a state equation with multiple controllers. Routing, or control of message flow, is formulated as an optimal control problem with multiple decision makers. Each decision maker may have access to different set of information and work cooperatively to optimize a common system performance index. Necessary and sufficient conditions for optimality are derived for a system with a deterministic and a stochastic traffic patterns under a linear information structure and a quadratic performance index. The resultant control strategies are examined with two extreme information cases: (1) complete information where all state information are available to every local controller through measurement or perfect communication, and (2) partial information where there is no communication among controllers. A three node network is used as a numerical example to interpret the results.