On input‐to‐state stability‐based design for leader/follower formation control with measurement delays

This paper addresses the design of low‐level controllers for leader–follower formations of nonholonomic vehicles in the presence of bounded measurement delays. The concept of input‐to‐state stability is extended to encompass the effect of bounded delays and restrictions on the input. A method is proposed to integrate a Smith predictor in a backstepping design on the basis of nested saturations and nonlinear small‐gain assignment, which allows for time delays in the feedback loop. Robustness analysis under uncertain bounded time delays is provided, and design tradeoffs resulting from the use of bounded controls are discussed. Illustrative simulations are shown to validate the design and robustness analysis in the context of a simple leader–follower trailing control problem. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Measurement feedback control for a class of feedforward nonlinear systems

We propose a measurement feedback controller for a class of feedforward nonlinear systems under sensor noise. The sensor noise has unknown magnitude, frequency, and phase. Our proposed controller is coupled with a low‐pass filter in such a way that the sensor noise is attenuated. We show that the controlled system results in bounded states whose ultimate bounds are inversely proportional to the minimum frequency of the sensor noise. Our result is further generalized to work in a case where the sensor noise is only required to have a Fourier transform with finite energy. Moreover, if the sensor noise enters only at partial states, depending on the location of the sensor noise, the ultimate bounds of the particular states can be made arbitrarily small via the gain factor of the controller. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Instability of light illumination stress on amorphous In–Ga–Zn–O thin‐film transistors

Amorphous In–Ga–Zn–O thin‐film transistors (TFTs) have attracted increasing attention due to their electrical performance and their potential for use in transparent and flexible devices. Because TFTs are exposed to illumination through red, green, and blue color filters, wavelength‐varied light illumination tests are required to ensure stable TFT characteristics. In this paper, the effects of different light wavelengths under both positive and negative V_GS stresses on amorphous In–Ga–Zn–O TFTs are investigated. The TFT instability that is dependent on optical and electrical stresses can be explained by the charge trapping mechanism and interface modification.     

An introduction to the Information Display Measurement Standard 1, the first display measurement standard from the International Committee for Display Metrology

On June 1, 2012, the Information Display Measurement Standard version 1 was released. This is the first standard from the worldwide standard group, the International Committee for Display Metrology, a standards committee within SID, and it culminates several years worth of development from many contributors at various levels. It has 26 top‐level chapters and a total over 450 sections of all parts, including over 200 measurement sections and 8 appendices that cover 133 topics of display metrology, tutorials, technical discussions, and references. Herein is an overview of the Information Display Measurement Standard version 1, including the structure of the document, tips, tricks, and hidden features, how it is maintained, support material, a breakdown of its contents, and finally, a sampling of four of the over 200 measurements. The standard is available as a free download and can be found on the International Committee for Display Metrology home page — http://www.icdm‐sid.org .     

Thermal management of edge‐lit wide color gamut backlight for LCD using red laser diodes and cyan LEDs

The color gamut is one of the critical parameters that dictate the image quality of displays. The liquid crystal displays using white color light‐emitting diodes (LEDs) as the backlight, though having been widely employed recently, are not very satisfactory in terms of their color gamut because of the broad spectrum inherent to white LEDs. This prompted the authors to develop improved liquid crystal displays using an edge‐lit wide color gamut backlight that used red laser diodes and cyan LEDs. Generating laser beams with high color purity, the laser diodes are light sources with a significant effect on expanding the color gamut. However, laser diodes, red ones in particular, have unfavorable thermal characteristics. To cope with this shortcoming, the authors clearly defined the restrictive criteria for laying out two kinds of light source on the edge‐lit backlight and made a prototype 55‐type laser backlight for performance evaluation.     

Memes in a Digital World: Reconciling with a Conceptual Troublemaker

This paper re‐examines the concept of “meme” in the context of digital culture. Defined as cultural units that spread from person to person, memes were debated long before the digital era. Yet the Internet turned the spread of memes into a highly visible practice, and the term has become an integral part of the netizen vernacular. After evaluating the promises and pitfalls of memes for understanding digital culture, I address the problem of defining memes by charting a communication‐oriented typology of 3 memetic dimensions: content, form, and stance. To illustrate the utility of the typology, I apply it to analyze the video meme “Leave Britney Alone.” Finally, I chart possible paths for further meme‐oriented analysis of digital content.     

Perception of Hand Force in Power Grip for Females

Borg's rating of perceived exertion (RPE) and category ratio (CR‐10) scales are commonly used to quantify perceived muscular exertion for body segments. Twenty females participated in an experiment to study the power grip force at four perceived exertion levels using either dominant or nondominant hand under two posture conditions. It was found that the subjects tended to apply a higher power grip force (100% of perceived maximum voluntary contraction) than the levels they were requested to apply. The power grip forces between dominant and nondominant hands at low hand exertion levels were negligible. The grip forces between the two hands were significantly different when the exertion level was nearly maximal. Linear regression models were established for the subjects to link the relationship between the perceived hand exertion and measured grip force, hand used, and hand/arm posture. All the models were statistically significant (p < 0.0001) with R² values 0.97 or higher. These models provided better estimates in perceived hand exertion for dominant hand than for nondominant hand. A follow‐up experiment was conducted to measure the subjective rating of both the CR‐10 and RPE when a 98 N grip force was applied. It was found that the subjects reported higher exertion levels when they were using the CR‐10 scale than when they were using the RPE scale. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Genetic algorithm‐based neural‐network modeling approach applied to AlGaN/GaN devices

An accurate equivalent circuit large‐signal model (ECLSM) for AlGaN‐GaN high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) is presented. The model is derived from a distributed small‐signal model that efficiently describes the physics of the device. A genetic neural‐network‐based model for the gate and drain currents and charges is presented along with its parameters extraction procedure. This model is embedded in the ECLSM, which is then implemented in CAD software and validated by pulsed and continuous large‐signal measurements of on‐wafer 8 × 125‐μm GaN on SiC substrate HEMT. Pulsed IV simulations show that the model can efficiently describe the bias dependency of trapping and self‐heating effects. Single‐ and two‐tone simulation results show that the model can accurately predict the output power and its harmonics and the associated intermodulation distortion (IMD) under different input‐power and bias conditions. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J RF and Microwave CAE, 2013.     

Novel slotted stepped‐impedance resonator and its application to compact and high performance bandpass filter and diplexer design

By etching slots in the low‐impedance section of the conventional stepped‐impedance resonator, a novel slotted stepped‐impedance resonator (SSIR) is proposed. As two examples, a fourth‐order bandpass filter (BPF) operating at 1 GHz with a size of 0.078 λ_g × 0.062 λ_g and a miniaturized diplexer operating at 0.9/1.57 GHz with a size of 0.054 λ₀ × 0.086 λ₀ are designed based on the proposed SSIR. The fabricated BPF exhibits a high selectivity and a wide ?30 dB rejection upper stopband from 1.13 f₀ to 6.52 f₀, while the fabricated diplexer has up to ?60 dB output isolation. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J RF and Microwave CAE, 2013.     

Understanding post‐adoption IS usage stages: an empirical assessment of self‐service information systems

Organisations have invested in self‐service information systems (IS) to provide a direct interface for service delivery. Enriching the usage of these systems can provide organisations with immense benefits. However, limited research has been directed towards understanding post‐adoption IS usage behaviour in general and specifically in the context of self‐service IS. This study proposes post‐adoption IS usage behaviour as a broader concept constituting feature level usage of IS, integration of IS in the work system and exploration of new uses of IS. We evaluate how the new conceptualisation can be used to classify users at different stages of self‐service IS usage. Further, we examine user perceptions that differentiate among the users situated at different self‐service IS usage stages. Data were collected in the context of a self‐service Web‐based IS to validate the post‐adoption IS usage constructs and to examine the proposed thesis. The newly developed conceptual structure and measures for post‐adoption IS usage behaviour exhibit strong psychometric properties. The analysis shows three distinct post‐adoption IS usage stages and highlights that usefulness, user‐initiated learning, ease of use, satisfaction and voluntariness of use differentiate users at the different stages of post‐adoption IS usage. The results show that these variables aggregate into value confirmation and learning orientation as two higher‐level concepts. Further, we evaluate the predictive efficacy of the research model in classifying users into different post‐adoption self‐service IS usage stages. Implications are drawn for future research.