Incremental Controller Networks: a comparative study between two self-organising non-linear controllers

Two self-organising controller networks are presented in this study. The \Clustered Controller Network" (CCN) uses a spatial clustering approach to select the controllers at each instant. In the other gated controller network, the \Models-Controller Network" (MCN), it is the performance of the model attached to each controller which is used to achieve the controller selection. An algorithm to automaticly conctrust the architecture of both networks is described. It makes the two schemes self-organising. Diierent examples of control of non-linear systems are considered in order to illustrate the behaviour of the ICCN and the IMCN. It makes clear that both these schemes are performing much better than a single adaptive controller. The two main advantages of the ICCN over the IMCN concern the possibilities to use any controller as a building block of its network architecture and to apply the ICCN for modelling purpose. However the ICCN appears to have serious problems to cope with non-linear systems having more than a single variable implying a non-linear behaviour. The IMCN does not suuer from this trouble. This high sensitivity to the clustering space order is the main drawback limiting the use of the ICCN and therefore makes the IMCN a much more suitable approach to control a wide range of non-linear systems.