LABNS2 - CO-SIMULATION, CO-EMULATION, AND REAL-TIME CONTROL TOOLKIT FOR INVESTIGATION OF NETWORK INDUCED TIME DELAYS AND PACKET LOSS IN NETWORKED CONTROL SYSTEMS

摘要

In this paper, a new co-simulation, co-emulation, and real-time control toolkit for the investigation of the influence of network induced time delays and packet loss in a typical Networked Control System (NCS) is introduced. The architecture and functionality of the developed toolkit are described. The name of the toolkit is LabNS2 which is derived from co-simulation and co-emulation capabilities based on Lab VIEW™ and Network Simulator version 2 (NS-2). The toolkit is developed based on Windows Operating System environment; however, NS-2 is developed based on UNIX environment and as a result Cygwin software is used to emulate UNIX environment within the Windows environment. Hardware and Software parts of the toolkit are described and discussed. Finally, to demonstrate the functionality of the toolkit a DC motor control system as used in the Radio Astronomy dish telescopes and satellite systems is considered in the conditions of a communication network. The tookilt is used to measure and analyze the network induced delay. The toolkit is a simple, scalable and effective for investigation of network induced time delay and packet loss in NCSs using LabVIEW™ and NS-2. The toolkit is useful for educational and research purposes and can be applied in NCSs for control of distributed plants.