Distributed Control Methods

Brian Tung Leonard Kleinrock Computer Science Department Computer Science Deparment University of California, Los Angeles University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA 90024 Los Angeles, CA 90024 Abstract The distributed system is becoming increasingly popular, and this produces the need for more sophisticated distributed control techniques. In this paper, we present a method for distributed control using simple nite state automata. Each of the distributed entities is \controlled" by its associated automaton, in the sense that the entity examines the state of the automaton to determine its behavior. The result of the collective behavior of all of the entities is fed back to the automata, which change their state as a result of this feedback. We give a new method of analysis which derives the steady state behavior of this system as a whole, by decomposing it into two parts: describing and solving an imbedded auxiliary Markov chain, and analyzing the behavior of the system within each of the states of this auxiliary chain.