Prognostics and Control Integration With Dynamic Reconfigurable Agents

There is a proliferation of “smart” devices for industrial and commercial systems employing embedded processor, sensors, logic, and communications. Along with benefits provided such as enhanced control and diagnostics, there is a commensurate increase in system complexity and the need to effectively manage real time dynamic system components. A framework for managing complex, dynamic, coupled entities based on autonomous cooperating agents has been shown to be effective in managing a chilled water system representative of shipboard systems. This same model may be readily extended to manage power generation and distribution such as found in a shipboard environment. Additional capabilities are provided by integrating the distributed intelligent power system control architecture with the corresponding model for other ship services such as chilled water. The use of autonomous cooperating agents for individual critical ship subsystems and their collaboration across ship services to realize mission-level objectives are the basis for an integrated suite of intelligent devices that can provide superior performance, reliability, survivability, and lifecycle cost. Key-Words – Intelligent agents, autonomous systems, reconfigurable systems