Mode‐dependent switching control of bilateral teleoperation against random denial‐of‐service attacks

Abstract

Abstract As communication networks are implemented for information exchange between the master and slave sides of bilateral teleoperation systems, they are exposed to cyber‐attack threats. This paper aims to analyse the performance of bilateral teleoperation systems in the presence of random denial‐of‐service (DoS) attacks and constant transmission delays and propose a mode‐dependent switching controller to mitigate the influence of DoS attacks. The characteristics of DoS attacks and networks are thoroughly incorporated in the design; also considered is the case of both communication directions behaving independently. Specifically, the model of a teleoperation system under a DoS attack is integrated as a stochastic jump system. A mode‐dependent control approach is proposed for a teleoperation system to mitigate the influence of random DoS attacks. In case studies, vulnerability analysis and time‐domain simulation results show that teleoperation system performance can be degraded under continuous random DoS attacks. When the proposed mode‐based switching controllers are installed, the trajectory tracking performance and authenticity of interaction force feedback are significantly improved during the attacking period.

Keywords

• delays
• control engineering computing
• telerobotics
• stochastic systems
• computer network security
• tracking