Network communication in edge-colored graphs: gossiping

A mechanism for scheduling communications in a network in which individuals exchange information periodically according to a fixed schedule is presented. A proper k edge-coloring of the network is considered to be a schedule of allowed communications such that an edge of color i can be used only at times i modulo k. Within this communication scheduling mechanism, the information exchange problem known as gossiping is considered. It is proved that there is a proper k edge-coloring such that gossip can be completed in a path of n edges in a certain time for n⩾k⩾1. Gossip can not be completed in such a path any earlier under any proper k edge-coloring. In any tree of bounded degree Δ and diameter d, gossip can be completed under a proper Δ edge-coloring in time (Δ-1)d +1. In a k edge-colored cycle of n vertices, other time requirements of gossip are determined     

Stabilization by reduced-order controllers

A recent result by A. Linnemann (Syst. Contr. Lett., vol.11, p.27-32, 1988) gives conditions under which a continuous-time single-loop plant of order n can be stabilized by a reduced-order controller. Specifically, if the Euclidean algorithm is applied to the numerator and denominator polynomials of the transfer function and one of the remainders is a kth-order Hurwitz polynomial, then a stabilizing controller of order n-k-1 exists. The author provides an alternative proof of this result     

Two-dimensional convolution on a pyramid computer

An algorithm for convolving a k×k window of weighting coefficients with an n×n image matrix on a pyramid computer of O(n²) processors in time O(logn+k²), excluding the time to load the image matrix, is presented. If k=Ω (√log n), which is typical in practice, the algorithm has a processor-time product O(n ² k²) which is optimal with respect to the usual sequential algorithm. A feature of the algorithm is that the mechanism for controlling the transmission and distribution of data in each processor is finite state, independent of the values of n and k. Thus, for convolving two {0, 1}-valued matrices using Boolean operations rather than the typical sum and product operations, the processors of the pyramid computer are finite-state     

Fast image labeling using local operators on mesh-connectedcomputers

A new parallel algorithm is proposed for fat image labeling using local operators on image pixels. The algorithm can be implemented on an n×n mesh-connected computer such that, for any integer k in the range [1, log (2n)], the algorithm requires Θ(kn¹k/) bits of local memory per processor and takes Θ(kn) time. Bit-serial processors and communication links can be used without affecting the asymptotic time complexity of the algorithm. The time complexity of the algorithm has very small leading constant factors, which makes it superior to previous mesh computer labeling algorithms for most practical image sizes (e.g. up to 4096×4096 images). Furthermore, the algorithm is based on using stacks that can be realized using very fast shift registers within each processing element     

On time mapping of uniform dependence algorithms into lowerdimensional processor arrays

Most existing methods of mapping algorithms into processor arrays are restricted to the case where n-dimensional algorithms, or algorithms with n nested loops, are mapped into (n-1)-dimensional arrays. However, in practice, it is interesting to map n-dimensional algorithms into (k-1)-dimensional arrays where k<n. A computational conflict occurs if two or more computations of an algorithm are mapped into the same execution time. Based on the Hermite normal form of the mapping matrix, necessary and sufficient conditions are derived to identify mapping without computational conflicts. These conditions are used to find time mappings of n-dimensional algorithms into (k-1)-dimensional arrays, k<n , without computational conflicts. For some applications, the mapping is time-optimal     

Fault-tolerant embedding of complete binary trees in hypercubes

The focus is on the following graph-theoretic question associated with the simulation of complete binary trees by faulty hypercubes: if a certain number of nodes or links are removed from an n-cube, will an (n-1)-tree still exists as a subgraph? While the general problem of determining whether a k-tree, k< n, still exists when an arbitrary number of nodes/links are removed from the n-cube is found to be NP-complete, an upper bound is found on how many nodes/links can be removed and an (n-1)-tree still be guaranteed to exist. In fact, as a corollary of this, it is found that if no more than n-3 nodes/links are removed from an (n-1)-subcube of the n-cube, an (n-1)-tree is also guaranteed to exist     

A probabilistic limit on the virtual size of replicated disksystems

Recently, there has been considerable interest in parallel disk drive systems, in which full or partial replication of the stored data is used for both fault tolerance and enhanced performance. The performance-enhancement derives both from the ability to do parallel reads, and from the reduction of seek time which results from being able to assign a read to whichever drive will produce the shortest seek. Although earlier work implied that for a k-drive system, mean seek distance for read converges to 0 as k→α, a refined analysis is presented which shows that this limit is actually nonzero. It is further shown that the system behaves probabilistically as if k were small, no matter how large the physical value of k is     

A linear programming approach for the weighted graph matchingproblem

A linear programming (LP) approach is proposed for the weighted graph matching problem. A linear program is obtained by formulating the graph matching problem in L₁ norm and then transforming the resulting quadratic optimization problem to a linear one. The linear program is solved using a simplex-based algorithm. Then, approximate 0-1 integer solutions are obtained by applying the Hungarian method on the real solutions of the linear program. The complexity of the proposed algorithm is polynomial time, and it is O(n ⁶L) for matching graphs of size n. The developed algorithm is compared to two other algorithms. One is based on an eigendecomposition approach and the other on a symmetric polynomial transform. Experimental results showed that the LP approach is superior in matching graphs than both other methods     

Parallel median splitting and k-splitting with applicationto merging and sorting

Multiple-instruction multiple-data (MIMD) algorithms that use multiple processors to do median splitting, k-splitting and parallel splitting into t equal sections are presented. Both concurrent read, exclusive write (CREW) and exclusive read, exclusive write (EREW) versions of the algorithms are given. It is shown that a k-splitting problem can be easily converted into a median-splitting problem. Methods for finding multiple split points quickly and application of k-splitting to merging and sorting are discussed     

The minimal dimension of stable faces required to guaranteestability of a matrix polytope

Considers the problem of determining whether each point in a polytope n×n matrices is stable. The approach is to check stability of certain faces of the polytope. For n⩾3, the authors show that stability of each point in every (2n-4)-dimensional face guarantees stability of the entire polytope. Furthermore, they prove that, for any k⩽n², there exists a k-dimensional polytope containing a strictly unstable point and such that all its subpolytopes of dimension min {k-1,2n-5} are stable     

Observers for discrete singular systems

The author considers the design of observers for the discrete singular system Ex(k+1)=Ax(k)+Bu (k), y(k)=Cx(k), placing special emphasis on the problems of state reconstruction and minimal-time state reconstruction. It is shown that for a singular system, finite poles can be moved to infinity by state feedback and the state can be reconstructed by causal observers     

Rotator graphs: an efficient topology for point-to-pointmultiprocessor networks

Rotator graphs, a set of directed permutation graphs, are proposed as an alternative to star and pancake graphs. Rotator graphs are defined in a way similar to the recently proposed Faber-Moore graphs. They have smaller diameter, n-1 in a graph with n factorial vertices, than either the star or pancake graphs or the k-ary n-cubes. A simple optimal routing algorithm is presented for rotator graphs. The n-rotator graphs are defined as a subset of all rotator graphs. The distribution of distances of vertices in the n-rotator graphs is presented, and the average distance between vertices is found. The n-rotator graphs are shown to be optimally fault tolerant and maximally one-step fault diagnosable. The n-rotator graphs are shown to be Hamiltonian, and an algorithm for finding a Hamiltonian circuit in the graphs is given     

The stability of a family of polynomials can be deduced from afinite number 0(k3) of frequency checks

Let φ(s,a)=φ₀(s,a)+ a₁φ₁(s)+a₂ φ₂(s)+ . . .+a_kφ _k(s)=φ₀(s)-q(s, a) be a family of real polynomials in s, with coefficients that depend linearly on parameters a_i which are confined in a k-dimensional hypercube Ω_a . Let φ₀(s) be stable of degree n and the φ_i(s) polynomials (i⩾1) of degree less than n. A Nyquist argument shows that the family φ(s) is stable if and only if the complex number φ₀(jω) lies outside the set of complex points -q(jω,Ω_a) for every real ω. In a previous paper (Automat. Contr. Conf., Atlanta, GA, 1988) the authors have shown that -q(jω,Ω_a ), the so-called `-q locus', is a 2k convex parpolygon. The regularity of this figure simplifies the stability test. In the present paper they again exploit this shape and show that to test for stability only a finite number of frequency checks need to be done; this number is polynomial in k, 0(k³), and these critical frequencies correspond to the real nonnegative roots of some polynomials     

Handling timing errors in distributed programs

The authors describe a tool called TAP, which is defined to aid the programmer in discovering the causes of timing errors in running programs. TAP is similar to a postmortem debugger, using the history of interprocess communication to construct a timing graph, a directed graph where an edge joins node x to node y if event x directly precedes event y in time. The programmer can then use TAP to look at the graph to find the events that occurred in an unacceptable order. Because of the nondeterministic nature of distributed programs, the authors feel a history-keeping mechanism but always be active so that bugs can be dealt with as they occur. The goal is to collect enough information at run time to construct the timing graph if needed. Since it is always active, this mechanism must be efficient. The authors also describe experiments run using TAP and report the impact that TAP's history-keeping mechanism has on the running time of various distributed programs     

On the gap between the structural controllability of time-varyingand time-invariant systems

Structural controllability of time-invariant and time-varying systems when the input control sequences have a restricted length k is compared. The dimensions of controllable space coincide in the following three special cases: the input sequences have length k=2; the input sequences have k=n, where n is the size of the system (i.e., the ultimate controllability is the same in both cases); and for every length of input sequences provided that the system has a single input only. It is proved that there may appear a gap for every input length k such that 2< k⩽n/2. The case when n/2<k<n is left open     

Optimal distributed t-resilient election in completenetworks

The problem of distributed leader election in an asynchronous complete network, in the presence of faults that occurred prior to the execution of the election algorithm, is discussed. Failures of this type are encountered, for example, during a recovery from a crash in the network. For a network with n processors, k of which start the algorithm that uses at most O(n log k +n+kt) messages is presented and shown to be optimal. An optimal algorithm for the case where the identities of the neighbors are known is also presented. It is noted that the order of the message complexity of a t-resilient algorithm is not always higher than that of a nonresilient one. The t-resilient algorithm is a systematic modification of an existing algorithm for a fault-free network     

Balanced parallel sort on hypercube multiprocessors

A parallel sorting algorithm for sorting n elements evenly distributed over 2^d p nodes of a d-dimensional hypercube is presented. The average running time of the algorithm is O((n log n)/p+p log 2n). The algorithm maintains a perfect load balance in the nodes by determining the (kn/p)th elements (k1,. . ., (p-1)) of the final sorted list in advance. These p-1 keys are used to partition the sorted sublists in each node to redistribute data to the nodes to be merged in parallel. The nodes finish the sort with an equal number of elements (n/ p) regardless of the data distribution. A parallel selection algorithm for determining the balanced partition keys in O(p log2n) time is presented. The speed of the sorting algorithm is further enhanced by the distance-d communication capability of the iPSC/2 hypercube computer and a novel conflict-free routing algorithm. Experimental results on a 16-node hypercube computer show that the sorting algorithm is competitive with the previous algorithms and faster for skewed data distributions     

Control of interconnected nonlinear dynamical systems: the platoonproblem

The problem to be solved involves a highway automation project. The overall system consists of N vehicles (the platoon). Each vehicle is driven by the same input u and the state of the kth vehicle affects the dynamics of the (k+1)th vehicle. Furthermore, the dynamics of each vehicle is affected by its (local) state-feedback controller. Under very general conditions, it is shown that for sufficiently slowly varying inputs, decentralized controllers can be designed so that the platoon maintains its cohesion     

An efficient digital search algorithm by using a double-arraystructure

An efficient digital search algorithm that is based on an internal array structure called a double array, which combines the fast access of a matrix form with the compactness of a list form, is presented. Each arc of a digital search tree, called a DS-tree, can be computed from the double array in 0(1) time; that is to say, the worst-case time complexity for retrieving a key becomes 0(k) for the length k of that key. The double array is modified to make the size compact while maintaining fast access, and algorithms for retrieval, insertion, and deletion are presented. If the size of the double array is n+cm, where n is the number of nodes of the DS-tree, m is the number of input symbols, and c is a constant particular to each double array, then it is theoretically proved that the worst-case times of deletion and insertion are proportional to cm and cm², respectively, and are independent of n. Experimental results of building the double array incrementally for various sets of keys show that c has an extremely small value, ranging from 0.17 to 1.13     

Robustness margin calculation with dynamic and real parametricuncertainty

The problem of robust stability in feedback control systems with real uncertain parameters and unmodeled dynamics is considered. A robust margin r_m is defined, and an algorithm to calculate r_m and the closely related multivariable stability margin k_m is developed. How robust performance for real parametric uncertainty can be handled in this framework is also shown. The result essentially provides a method to check whether or not the infinity norm of a closed-loop transfer matrix is less than a specified level over a bounded set of real parametric variations