An adaptive tracking problem for a family of retarded time-delay plants

Most of the existing switching control techniques are developed specifically for finite-dimensional linear time-invariant (LTI) systems. In many practical applications, however, it is essential to take time delay into consideration in the modelling as the control system can be highly sensitive to delay. In this paper, a multi-model switching control algorithm is proposed for retarded time-delay systems. It is assumed that the plant is represented by a family of known multi-input multi-output, observable, LTI models with multiple delays in the states, and that corresponding to each model in the known family, there exists a high-performance finite-dimensional LTI controller. In addition, it is supposed that a bound on the magnitude of the external inputs and disturbances is available. It is then shown that the proposed switching controller can stabilize the uncertain system, and that under some mild conditions, output tracking can be achieved in the given problem setting. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Education-driven research in CAD

We argue for a new research category, named education-driven research (EDR), which fills the gap between traditional field-specific research that is not concerned with educational objectives and research in education that focuses on fundamental teaching and learning principles and possibly on their customization to broad areas (such as mathematics or physics), but not to specific disciplines (such as CAD). The objective of EDR is to simplify the formulation of the underlying theoretical foundations and of specific tools and solutions in a specialized domain, so as to make them easy to understand and internalize. As such, EDR is a difficult and genuine research activity, which requires a deep understanding of the specific field and can rarely be carried out by generalists with primary expertise in broad education principles. We illustrate the concept of EDR with three examples in CAD: (1) the Split and Tweak subdivisions of a polygon and its use for generating curves, surfaces, and animations; (2) the construction of a topological partition of a plane induced by an arbitrary arrangement of edges; and (3) a romantic definition of the minimal and Hausdorff distances. These examples demonstrate the value of using analogies, of introducing evocative terminology, and of synthesizing the simplest fundamental building blocks. The intuitive understanding provided by EDR enables the students (and even the instructor) to better appreciate the limitations of a particular solution and to explore alternatives. In particular, in these examples, EDR has allowed the author to: (1) reduce the cost of evaluating a cubic B-spline curve; (2) develop a new subdivision curve that is better approximated by its control polygon than either a cubic B-spline or an interpolating 4-point subdivision curve; (3) discover how a circuit inclusion tree may be used for identifying the faces in an arrangement; and (4) rectify a common misconception about the computation of the Hausdorff error between triangle meshes. We invite the scientific community to encourage the development of EDR by publishing its results as genuine research contributions in peer-reviewed professional journals.     

Estimation for the number of components in a mixture model using stepwise split-and-merge EM algorithm

The main difficulty with EM algorithm for mixture model concerns the number of components, say g. This is the question of model selection, and the EM algorithm itself could not estimate g. On the contrary, the algorithm requires g to be specified before the remaining parameters can be estimated. To solve this problem, a new algorithm, which is called stepwise split-and-merge EM (SSMEM) algorithm, is proposed. The SSMEM algorithm alternately splits and merges components, estimating g and other parameters of components simultaneously. Also, two novel criteria are introduced to efficiently select the components for split or merge. Experimental results on simulated and real data demonstrate the effectivity of the proposed algorithm.     

A simple approximation algorithm for the weighted matching problem

We present a linear time approximation algorithm with a performance ratio of 1/2 for finding a maximum weight matching in an arbitrary graph. Such a result is already known and is due to Preis [STACS'99, Lecture Notes in Comput. Sci., Vol. 1563, 1999, pp. 259-269]. Our algorithm uses a new approach which is much simpler than the one given by Preis and needs no amortized analysis for its running time.     

Improved Matrix-Filler Adhesion

Enhanced matrix-filler adhesion is realized after filler treatment with a surface treatment process. The hydrosol/coupling agent treatment was applied to a wide range of inorganic and organic fillers, and adhesion to a variety of matrix resins was improved. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) was used to determine the locus of failure in the filled systems. The locus of failure shows the relative degree of adhesion between the filler and the polymer matrix. Significant improvement in adhesion in humid environments is also observed.     

Schwingfestigkeit von Schraube‐Mutter‐Verbindungen

High cycle fatigue of bolted connections Extensive tests regarding the influences on the fatigue of bolt‐nut‐connections of preloading with torsion, of preloading with yielding, of loading with superimposed bending and of the tested lot are processed. These influences are not yet known according to VDI 2230. New testing devices were designed for these tests, which allow a far less expensive operation and may easily be used for bolts of diameters up to M100 and testing frequencies up to 1000 Hz. The validity of fatigue resistance according to VDI 2230 is specified with respect to the test results. The determined influence of the tested lots is unexpectedly high. The manufacturing process of bolts should be improved to minimize this influence.     

Gold Medal Award for Life Achievement in the Practice of Psychology.

Announces the 2007 recipient of the Gold Medal Award for Life Achievement in the Practice of Psychology: Patricia M. Bricklin. A brief biography, highlighting areas of special focus in Bricklin's work, is provided. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

压电量测系统漏电影响分析

本文通过对压电量测系统等效电路图的逐步简化,得出矩形脉冲信号的漏电方程;并对系统在各种情况下的时间常数,漏电相对误差进行了计算,最后就系统在校准和现场测试中经常碰到的几种情况,进行了定量估算,从而解决了压电量测系统在使用中的一些具体问题。     

多级网络多处理机系统的性能评估

本文建立了多级网络(δ-网)多处理机系统的马尔柯夫模型,为系统结构参数和任务粒度的选择提供了依据。文中分析了处理机数目、网络结构参数和任务粒度对系统性能的影响,并对模型计算结果和仿真结果作了比较。     

神经网络分类器的快速构造算法

使用ＢＰ算法训练多层网络的速度很慢而且事先难于确定隐节点和隐层的适当数目。本文提出一个有效的算法，先构造决策树，然后将构造的决策树转换为神经网。文中使用一个全局准则函数控制决策树的增长，它较好地匹配了树的复杂性和训练样本量及错分率界。实验结果，本文的算法比用ＢＰ算法训练多层网络要快，而其分类精度不低于用ＢＰ算法训练的多层神经网。