  Orthogonal coding schemes, known to asymptotically achieve the capacity per
unit cost (CPUC) for single-user ergodic memoryless channels with a zero-cost
input symbol, are investigated for single-user compound memoryless channels,
which exhibit uncertainties in their input-output statistical relationships. A
minimax formulation is adopted to attain robustness. First, a class of
achievable rates per unit cost (ARPUC) is derived, and its utility is
demonstrated through several representative case studies. Second, when the
uncertainty set of channel transition statistics satisfies a convexity
property, optimization is performed over the class of ARPUC through utilizing
results of minimax robustness. The resulting CPUC lower bound indicates the
ultimate performance of the orthogonal coding scheme, and coincides with the
CPUC under certain restrictive conditions. Finally, still under the convexity
property, it is shown that the CPUC can generally be achieved, through
utilizing a so-called mixed strategy in which an orthogonal code contains an
appropriate composition of different nonzero-cost input symbols.
