Coupled Controllers

SLE
Objective

• Suppose two controllers, call them red and blue, operate on the same
information stream.
• The only observable output is the sum of the effects of the red and blue
controllers
• How does this affect the control laws?
 Setup
Only y is observable
Controller output 𝑦𝑦𝑏𝑏 (𝑡𝑡) is “noise” for
controller C
Opposite is true for controller B 𝑦𝑦𝑏𝑏 (𝑡𝑡)
𝑓𝑓𝑏𝑏
Suppose desired signal for C is 𝑐𝑐(𝑡𝑡) 𝑥𝑥 (t) 𝑦𝑦(𝑡𝑡)
Desired signal for B is 𝑏𝑏(𝑡𝑡)
+
Suppose both controllers are linear
transverse filters, input is sampled,
covariance matrix of sampled signal
𝑓𝑓𝑐𝑐
is 𝑅𝑅𝑥𝑥 , cross-correlation of 𝑥𝑥 and 𝑏𝑏(𝑡𝑡)
𝑦𝑦𝑐𝑐 (𝑡𝑡)
is 𝑟𝑟𝑥𝑥𝑥𝑥 and similar for x and 𝑐𝑐(𝑡𝑡)
Controller solutions

• Formal optimization gives

𝑤𝑤𝑏𝑏 + 𝑤𝑤𝑐𝑐 = 𝑅𝑅𝑥𝑥−1 𝑟𝑟𝑥𝑥𝑥𝑥
•
𝑤𝑤𝑏𝑏 + 𝑤𝑤𝑐𝑐 = 𝑅𝑅𝑥𝑥−1 𝑟𝑟𝑥𝑥𝑥𝑥
• So optimum LMS weights cannot be achieved unless 𝑏𝑏 𝑡𝑡 = 𝑐𝑐(𝑡𝑡)

• Write in more revealing way: 𝑤𝑤𝑏𝑏 = 𝑅𝑅𝑥𝑥−1 𝑟𝑟𝑥𝑥𝑥𝑥 − 𝑤𝑤𝑐𝑐

• 𝑤𝑤𝑐𝑐 isn’t directly observable, but if 𝑤𝑤𝑏𝑏 = 0, it can be unambiguously estimated
• So, scheme for B advantage: set 𝑤𝑤𝑏𝑏 = 0, listen/estimate, then form 𝑤𝑤𝑏𝑏
• Note the B weight component −𝑤𝑤𝑐𝑐 essentially subtracts out the effect of the C controller!
• C no longer has any impact on the output!
• “C moves first, then B adapts”
• Are there other, more interesting schemes?
Another interpretation

• One controller can attack the other

• Just use the malicious controller to inject noise or false signal
• For the example, make B the bad guy and A the good guy
• Example: lms adaptive estimation
• Input: 1 + low-pass noise
• A is trying to estimate the signal (‘1’)
• B is doing a variety of things
1. Nothing: the weights of B are zero. A, the good guy, gets to process without
interruption
2. B attacks with large fixed weights to generate noise
Example: lms controller

• LMS controller is a simple adaptive feedback loop

• Adaptive length-16 transverse filter
• Try to estimate a constant signal (1) in a lot of noise
• Measure of performance: mean squared error, estimated over time
• Second measure of performance: A controller adaptive weight vector magnitude
(anything of magnitude > 0 dB is bad)
• 3 examples:
1. 𝑤𝑤𝑏𝑏 = 0. Here the A controller operates normally. B is “turned off”
2. 𝑤𝑤𝑏𝑏 =large. Here the B controller is deliberately injecting a lot of noise
3. Same as 2 except the A controller listens for 80 samples, estimates the B controller weights
and subtracts out their impact
Results

1. A operates normally 2. B malicious, attacks A 3. A listens to malicious B, adapts

MSE ~ -3 dB

MSE < -3 dB MSE > 20 dB

A controller improves MSE B attack results in A A defeats B attack by listening

~ 8 dB controller degrading MSE by to first 80 samples and
10s of dB adapting