Designing Real-time Embedded Controllers using the Anytime Computing Paradigm

Andrea Quagli, Daniele Fontanelli, Luca Greco, Luigi Palopoli, Antonio Bicchi

Abstract: In this paper we present a methodology for designing embedded controllers with a variable accuracy. The adopted paradigm is the so called any-time control, which derives from the computing paradigm known as "imprecise computation". The most relevant contributions of the paper are a procedure for designing an incremental control law, whose different pieces cater for increasingly aggressive control requirements, and a modelling technique for the execution platform that allows us to design provably correct switching policies for the controllers. The methodology is validated by both simulations and experimental results.