Profiling primitives of networked embedded automation

Abstract

Recent advances in wireless technologies allow us to deeply embed novel sensors, actuators, computation, and communication devices to enhance automation systems. It is important to understand predictability and safety issues that are inherent in these enhanced systems. We propose a set of primitives that are suitable for developing composable automation systems that are regulated by embedded devices interacting over wireless links. We present an architecture and design that helps to realize these primitives. Using a robust platform called FireFly, we profile the performance of these primitives. Preliminary experimental results demonstrate that the latency and jitter associated with these primitives are promising and useful for a class of automation systems. In the future, this work can be extended to larger scale systems with tighter temporal constraints.