Path‐Tracking Control of a Riderless Bicycle Via Road Preview and Speed Adaptation

In this study, a genetic‐fuzzy control system is used to control a riderless bicycle where control parameters can adapt to the speed change of the bicycle. The equations of motion are developed for a bicycle with constraints of rolling‐without‐slipping contact condition between the wheels and ground. This controller consists of two loops: the inner is a roll‐angle‐tracking controller which generates steering torque to control the roll angle while guaranteeing the stability, and the outer is a path‐tracking controller which generates the reference roll angle for the inner loop. The inner loop is a sliding‐mode controller (SMC) designed on the basis of a linear model obtained from a system identification process. By defining a stable sliding surface of error dynamics and an appropriate Lyapunov function, the bicycle can reach the roll‐angle reference in a finite time and follow that reference without chattering. The outer loop determines the proper reference roll‐angle by using a fuzzy‐logic controller (FLC) in which previewing and tracking errors are taken into consideration. The robustness of the proposed controller against speed change and external disturbances is verified by simulations.     

Continuous Action Generation of Q‐Learning in Multi‐Agent Cooperation

Conventional Q‐learning requires pre‐defined quantized state space and action space. It is not practical for real robot applications since discrete and finite numbers of action sets cannot precisely identify the variances in the different positions on the same state element on which the robot is located. In this paper, a Q‐Learning composed continuous action generator, called the fuzzy cerebellar model articulation controller (FCMAC) method, is presented to solve the problem. The FCMAC displays continuous action generation by linear combination of the weighting distribution of the state space where the optimal policy of each state is derived from Q‐learning. This provides better resolution of the weighting distribution for the state space where the robot is located. The algorithm not only solves the single‐agent problem but also solves the multi‐agent problem by extension. An experiment is implemented in a task where two robots are taking action independently and both are connected with a straight bar. Their goal is to cooperate with each other to pass through a gate in the middle of a grid environment.     

Sliding Mode Control for Swing‐Up and Stabilization of the Cart‐Pole Underactuated System

This paper uses sliding mode control to accomplish the objectives of swing‐up and stabilization of the cart‐pole underactuated system. The features of underactuated systems prohibit direct application of conventional sliding mode control for fully‐actuated systems. In this paper, we design a novel sliding mode control for the cart‐pole underactuated system so that the control goals can be achieved. In addition, by simply changing the parameters of the sliding surface, we use only one sliding mode control scheme to swing up and to stabilize the cart‐pole system. Using the sliding mode dynamics and the internal dynamics, we show that the proposed sliding mode control can swing up the cart‐pole system from the stable equilibrium and can stabilize the system to the unstable equilibrium. Our simulation results on a cart‐pole system demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed sliding mode control. The proposed control schemes, the stability analysis, and the numerical simulation provide a useful guideline for designing the sliding mode control for the cart‐pole underactuated system.     

Variable Structure Control with Chattering Reduction of a Generalized T‐S Model

In this paper, a fuzzy logic controller (FLC) based variable structure control (VSC) is presented. The main objective is to obtain an improved performance of highly non‐linear unstable systems. New functions for chattering reduction and error convergence without sacrificing invariant properties are proposed. The main feature of the proposed method is that the switching function is added as an additional fuzzy variable and will be introduced in the premise part of the fuzzy rules; together with the state variables. In this work, a tuning of the well known weighting parameters approach is proposed to optimize local and global approximation and modelling capability of the Takagi‐Sugeno (T‐S) fuzzy model to improve the choice of the performance index and minimize it. The main problem encountered is that the T‐S identification method can not be applied when the membership functions are overlapped by pairs. This in turn restricts the application of the T‐S method because this type of membership function has been widely used in control applications. The approach developed here can be considered as a generalized version of the T‐S method. An inverted pendulum mounted on a cart is chosen to evaluate the robustness, effectiveness, accuracy and remarkable performance of the proposed estimation approach in comparison with the original T‐S model. Simulation results indicate the potential, simplicity and generality of the estimation method and the robustness of the chattering reduction algorithm. In this paper, we prove that the proposed estimation algorithm converge the very fast, thereby making it very practical to use. The application of the proposed FLC‐VSC shows that both alleviation of chattering and robust performance are achieved.     

Robust Fault‐Tolerant Control of Launch Vehicle Via GPI Observer and Integral Sliding Mode Control

A robust fault‐tolerant attitude control scheme is proposed for a launch vehicle (LV) in the presence of unknown external disturbances, mismodeling dynamics, actuator faults, and actuator's constraints. The input‐output representation is employed to describe the rotational dynamics of LV rendering three independently decoupled second order single‐input‐single‐output (SISO) systems. In the differential algebraic framework, general proportional integral (GPI) observers are used for the estimations of the states and of the generalized disturbances, which include internal perturbations, external disturbances, and unknown actuator failures. In order to avoid the defects of the conventional sliding surface, a new nonlinear integral sliding manifold is introduced for the robust fault‐tolerant sliding mode controller design. The stability of the GPI observer and that of the closed‐loop system are guaranteed by Lyapunov's indirect and direct methods, respectively. The convincing numerical simulation results demonstrate the proposed control scheme is with high attitude tracking performance in the presence of various disturbances, actuator faults, and actuator constraints.     

带缺陷膨润土防水毯的渗透试验

分别以自来水和0.05 mol/L的CaCl2溶液作为渗滤溶液研究带缺陷膨润土防水毯(GCL)的渗透性能。试验结果表明:自来水渗滤时,GCL的渗透系数随着缺陷直径的增大而增大,缺陷直径达11 mm时缺陷不能完全愈合,致使渗透系数超过1×10-9m/s。CaCl2溶液渗滤时,随着离子交换作用的进行,渗透系数随孔隙体积流量的增大有增大的趋势;缺陷直径小于5 mm时GCL具有一定的自愈能力,但增至7mm时缺陷不能愈合,溶液和缺陷的共同作用使得GCL的防渗性能很差。     

The Sanaga discharge at the Edea Catchment outlet (Cameroon): An example of hydrologic responses of a tropical rain‐fed river system to changes in precipitation and groundwater inputs and to flow regulation

The Sanaga River is one of Sub‐Saharan Africa's largest and greatly regulated rivers. Available flow data for this hydrosystem largely cover the pre‐ and post‐regulation periods. From comparisons between unregulated (hypothetical) and observed scenarios, it has been possible to separate and to quantify hydro‐climatic (groundwater + rainfall) change effects from anthropogenic impacts (especially dam‐related alterations). To appreciate shifts in the river regime, discontinuity detection tests and the IHA model were applied to discharge data series reflecting average and extreme flow conditions, respectively. Results obtained principally from the Hubert segmentation method reveal that a major discontinuity occurred in 1970–1971 separating a surplus phase between 1945–1946 and 1969–1970, and a deficient and much contrasted one, from 1971/1972. This implies that the Sanaga catchment is dominantly affected by hydro‐climatic changes. However, wide land cover/land use changes experienced here since 1988 have resulted in an increase in surface runoff. Additional quickflows linked to these changes may have partly compensated for the substantial decline in the dry season rainfall and groundwater inputs observed from this date. Although at the monthly scale, dam‐related impacts on average flows increase with stage of regulation, the seasonal variability of the river regime remains generally unaffected. A comparison of the IHA statistics, calculated from unregulated and observed streamflow data, show that hydrologic shifts occurring in maximum and minimum discharges are mostly significant from 1971/1972 and are mainly due to the action of dams. Minimum flows appear, however, widely impacted, thus reflecting the prime objective assigned to the existing reservoirs, constructed to supplement flows for hydroelectricity production during the dry season. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Mathematical model to identify nitrogen variability in large rivers

The river Swale in Yorkshire, northern England has been the subject of many studies concerning water quality. This paper builds on existing data resources and previous 1D river water quality modelling applications at daily resolution (using QUESTOR) to provide a different perspective on understanding pollution, through simulation of the short‐term dynamics of nutrient transport along the river. The two main objectives are (1) building, calibration and evaluation of a detailed mathematical model (Advection‐Dispersion Model: ADModel), for nutrient transport under unsteady flow conditions and (2) the development of methods for estimating key parameters characterizing pollutant transport (velocity, dispersion coefficient and transformation rates) as functions of hydrological parameters and/or seasonality. The study of ammonium and nitrate has highlighted temporal variability in processes, with maximum nitrification and denitrification rates during autumn. Results show that ADModel is able to predict the main trend of measured concentration with reasonable accuracy and accounts for temporal changes in water flow and pollutant load along the river. Prediction accuracy could be improved through more detailed modelling of transformation processes by taking into account the variability of factors for which existing data were insufficient to allow representation. For example, modelling indicates that interactions with bed sediment may provide an additional source of nutrients during high spring flows. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Impoverishment of YOY‐fish assemblages by intense commercial navigation in a large Lowland river

Navigation‐induced physical forces have been suggested to modify the structure of riverine fish assemblages by impeding especially the recruitment of littoral bound species. To investigate the effect of vessel frequency on fish, we compared the composition and seasonal succession of young‐of‐the‐year (YOY) fish assemblages in three similarly degraded river reaches differing in average vessel passages (2, 6 and 41 per day). Fish were caught by electrofishing biweekly between May and September. Multivariate tests were used to analyse differences between YOY‐fish assemblages and hurdle regression models applied to determine abiotic factors predicting fish occurrence and abundance. Roach (Rutilus rutilus) and perch (Perca fluviatilis) densities were compared. Roach larvae remain in the littoral zone while perch larvae shift to the pelagic zone immediately after hatch. YOY‐fish assemblage structure substantially changed along the traffic intensity gradient. In the high traffic intensity reach, species number and total fish density were markedly reduced compared to the other reaches. Roach densities were lowest in the high traffic intensity reach whereas perch densities did not decline along the gradient. Hurdle regressions confirmed a stronger effect of commercial navigation traffic intensity on roach than on perch. The total zooplankton biomass was highest in the high traffic intensity reach. Our results provide empirical evidence that intensive commercial navigation impoverishes fish assemblages in width‐restricted waterways. They underlined that in particular those species that have their first nursery habitats in shoreline areas were more affected by intensive commercial navigation than species whose larvae live predominantly pelagic. The results indicate that the negative effect of intensive navigation on riverine fish results primarily from the navigation‐induced hydraulic disturbances along the banks. Therefore, mitigation of navigation‐induced hydraulic forces is required to prevent degradation of fish communities in waterways. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

一种针对特定密度检测的快速FBP算法

提出了一种针对特定密度检测的快速FBP算法。首先进行不完全数据投影重建,然后依据对密度的先验知识对初步重建图像进行聚类分割,最后找出感兴趣区域来精确重建。文末对该方法进行了实验,并将实验结果和传统FBP算法、几何参数表法做出主观、客观上的比较评价。结果表明,该算法不但能在很大程度上提高传统FBP算法的速度,而且对于感兴趣区域的重建质量上没有影响。