Traditionally, control and communication systems have been designed separately, oftenresulting in inefficiencies and suboptimal control performance. In such decoupled systems, communication resources and control processes may compete for bandwidth or processing power, leading to delays, increased latency, and even instabilities. As systems become more complex and interdependent, particularly with the advent of autonomous vehicles, smart grids, and robotics, the separation between control and communication becomes less feasible.

In essence, co-design helps eliminate the inefficiencies inherent in traditional decoupled approaches and ensures that both control and communication work together seamlessly, enabling faster decision-making, increased reliability, and better scalability.

One recent contribution of our group in the co-design of control and communication is the development of an event-triggered nonlinear model predictive controller (ET-MPC) over a 6G research platform [1]. This approach integrates advanced control algorithms with the high-performance communication capabilities of6G networks, enabling dynamic and efficient control decisions in real-time applications. By using event-triggered mechanisms, the system can reduce unnecessary communication while maintaining control performance, thus making more efficient use of available resources in a 6G network context.