Increased availability of low-cost electronics has created a new breed of control system components; so called "smart" components, which can perform control responsibilities in the actuator and sensor components as well as in the controller. "Smart" components can communicate bi-directionally in networked control systems. We identify opportunities for improving control system performance and design due to the decentralized, yet more connected, nature of these systems. Current research on

more »

... ed control systems primarily focuses on communication loss and delay of information transfer. This paper investigates the potential benefits of bi-directional communication in a feedback control loop for improving component swapping modularity of the feedback control system. The problem formulation is presented, for the first time, and also illustrated using a driveshaft speed control example.