The coordination of large populations of highly constrained devices, such as micro- and nanoscale agents in biomedical applications, poses fundamental challenges to classical communication paradigms. In scenarios such as targeted drug delivery, devices operate under severe limitations in energy, size, and communication capabilities, while requiring precise and selective activation within spatially localized regions. In this work, we propose the framework of Joint Detection and Identification (JDAI) as a system-level approach for scalable control under such constraints. The key idea is to shift from reliable message transmission to a control-oriented paradigm, in which devices locally decide whether a broadcast signal is relevant. This enables implicit addressing and subset activation without the need for explicit per-device communication. We demonstrate how message identification can be combined with sensing. This enables the realization of a closed-loop system that integrates detection, communication, and actuation. Using the example of targeted nanorobot therapy, we analyze the interplay between sensing resolution, communication constraints, and system dynamics. In particular, we show that while identification exhibits favorable asymptotic scaling, practical implementations are governed by finite blocklength effects, noise, and latency. The proposed framework complements existing physical-layer communication approaches, including molecular, electromagnetic, and acoustic techniques, by providing a control-layer abstraction for scalable subset selection. Overall, JDAI connects identification-theoretic principles with system-level design to control large, resource-limited environments.

翻译：大规模高度受限设备（如生物医学应用中的微纳尺度代理）的协调对经典通信范式提出了根本性挑战。在靶向药物递送等场景中，设备在能量、尺寸和通信能力严重受限的条件下运行，同时需在空间局部区域内实现精准选择性激活。本文提出联合检测与识别（JDAI）框架，作为此类约束下可扩展控制的系统级方法。其核心理念在于从可靠消息传输转向面向控制的范式，使设备能本地判定广播信号的相关性，从而在无需显式逐设备通信的情况下实现隐式寻址与子集激活。我们展示了如何将消息识别与感知相结合，实现了集成检测、通信与驱动的闭环系统。以靶向纳米机器人治疗为例，我们分析了感知分辨率、通信约束与系统动力学之间的相互影响。研究表明，尽管识别具有渐近优势，但实际实现受有限码长效应、噪声和时延主导。该框架通过提供面向可扩展子集选择的控制层抽象，补充了包括分子、电磁与声学技术在内的现有物理层通信方法。总体而言，JDAI将识别理论原理与系统级设计相连接，以控制大规模资源受限环境。