Rate Modulation Strategy for Behaviors of a Mobile Robot

In this paper, task control architecture is proposed for a mobile robot with behaviors based on cognition theory to endow the robot intelligence. In the task control architecture, task manager is introduced especially for the management of computational resource. The management is based on classical RMS (Rate Monotonic Strategy), but with online rate modulation strategy. The rate modulation is performed using the value variances of behavior execution for the task. Because the values are based on natively uncertain sensor information, they are modeled using PDF (probability Density Function). As a rate modulation process, the range of the rate modulation is defined firstly by real-time constraints of RMS and discrete control stability of behaviors. With the allowable range, rate modulations are performed considering harmonic bases to maintain utilization bound without decrease. To evaluate the efficiency of the proposed rate modulation strategy, a simulation test is performed to compare the efficiency between the control architecture with the proposed strategy and previous one. A performance index with the formalization of propensity of resource allocation is proposed and utilized for the simulation test. To evaluate the appropriateness of the performance index, the performance index is compared with practical one through a practical simulation test.