RFID together with multi-agent systems to control global value chains

Nowadays, the cooperative intelligent transport systems are part of a largest system. Transportations are modal operations integrated in logistics and, logistics is the main process of the supply chain management. The supply chain strategic management as a simultaneous local and global value chain is a collaborative/cooperative organization of stakeholders, many times in co-opetition, to perform a service to the customers respecting the time, place, price and quality levels. The transportation, like other logistics operations must add value, which is achieved in this case through compression lead times and order fulfillments. The complex supplier's network and the distribution channels must be efficient and the integral visibility (monitoring and tracing) of supply chain is a significant source of competitive advantage. Nowadays, the competition is not discussed between companies but among supply chains. This paper aims to evidence the current and emerging manufacturing and logistics system challenges as a new field of opportunities for the automation and control systems research community. Furthermore, the paper forecasts the use of radio frequency identification (RFID) technologies integrated into an information and communication technologies (ICT) framework based on distributed artificial intelligence (DAI) supported by a multi-agent system (MAS), as the most value advantage of supply chain management (SCM) in a cooperative intelligent logistics systems. Logistical platforms (production or distribution) as nodes of added value of supplying and distribution networks are proposed as critical points of the visibility of the inventory, where these technological needs are more evident.     

The LookingGlass distributed shared workspace

This paper describes a shared workspace system known as the LookingGlass. The system allows pairs of geographically distributed designers to work together in real-time via a computer-based shared drawing surface, a video link and an audio link. The system integrates many of the features found in previous shared drawing surface systems and additionally provides eye-to-eye contact between the users; awareness of onea's partner's direction of gaze in relation to oneself and the worksurface; and the ability to communicate using gestures in relation to the worksurface.These features are achieved in the LookingGlass system using a technique referred to as video-overlay which combines a full screen video image of a remote partner with a full screen shared drawing surface. Various configurations of video-overlay have been explored and the results of these studies are presented. The results of trials into the suitability of the LookingGlass for various types of design work are also presented and described.     

无线多中继系统中判决门限辅助的快速Z转发协作

针对Z向转发(ZF)协作所有中继节点均参与协作转发导致的能耗利用不合理问题, 该文提出了一种适用于多中继场景下的门限辅助判决快速Z转发(DT-FZF)协作.当中继节点处接收信号对数似然比(LLR)的绝对值小于门限时,中继节点不参与协作转发;否则中继节点协作转发经截断后的对数似然比(LLR).放大转发(AF)、译码转发(DF)、分段转发(PF)和ZF协作可看作DT-FZF协作的特殊情况.在三中继系统,误比特率(BER)为10–3时,相比ZF协作,所提协作可获得约0.8 dB的性能增益.     

Analogue VLSI primitives for perceptual tasks in machine vision

A variety of computational tasks in early vision can be formulated through lattice networks. The cooperative action of these networks depends upon the topology of interconnections, both feedforward and recurrent ones. The Gabor-like impulse response of a 2nd-order lattice network (i.e. with nearest and next-to-nearest interconnections) is analysed in detail, pointing out how a near-optimal filtering behaviour in space and frequency domains can be achieved through excitatory/inhibitory interactions without impairing the stability of the system. These architectures can be mapped, very efficiently at transistor level, on VLSI structures operating as analogue perceptual engines. The hardware implementation of early vision tasks can, indeed, be tackled by combining these perceptual agents through suitable weighted sums. Various implementation strategies have been pursued with reference to: (i) the algorithm-circuit mapping (current-mode and transconductor approaches); (ii) the degree of programmability (fixed, selectable and tunable); and (iii) the implementation technology (2 and 0.8 gate lengths). Applications of the perceptual engine to machine vision algorithms are discussed.     

Combination framework of rendezvous algorithm for multi‐agent systems with limited sensing ranges

In this paper, we present a novel rendezvous algorithm framework ‐ the combination framework, which is named after the term convex combination in computational geometry. The convergence of the proposed algorithms is proved based on the novel tools from the recent results in graph theory and consensus study. It has been observed that the circumcenter algorithm can be considered as a special case of the combination framework. Moreover, the relevant analysis provides us a novel viewpoint on designing and the rendezvous rate of rendezvous algorithms for networked multi‐agent systems with limited sensing ranges. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley and Sons Asia Pte Ltd and Chinese Automatic Control Society     

Bandwidth-efficient cooperative MIMO relaying schemes

Coded cooperative MIMO relaying schemes in which all successfully decoded signals from multiple sources are simultaneously forwarded by a multi-antenna relay to a common multi-antenna destination to increase bandwidth efficiency are proposed in this paper. These schemes facilitate the various retransmission strategies at relay and single-user and multi-user iterative decoding techniques at destination, suitable for trade-offs between performance, latency, and complexity. When channel state information (CSI) is available, pre-coding and power allocation at the relay can be exploited to enhance the information transmission reliability over the relay-destination channel, thus improving the overall system performance. Simulation result shows their superiority to direct transmission under the same transmit power and bandwidth efficiency.     

基于RBS 的合作通信网络公平合作策略

针对合作通信网络中基于纳什议价解(NBS)的合作策略存在用户效用分配不公平的问题,同时考虑用户的最大与最小效用,提出了基于Raiffa-Kalai-Smorodinsk议价解(RBS)的合作策略,并建立了用户合作的条件.仿真结果表明,基于RBS的合作策略在保证网络总效用不变的前提下,具有更好的公平性.     

提高牵引供电电能质量技术的研究

在分析输电线路中TCSC与SVC的设计所存在的相互矛盾的基础上,针对牵引供电系统中动态并联补偿装置与串联补偿装置的协调控制问题进行研究.在节能的前提下,得出了各补偿装置补偿容量的优化控制策略,并提出了一种动态并联补偿装置的定性定量控制技术.该控制系统有效地提高了补偿的速度和精度,并具有良好的跟踪负载变化的性能,对我国电气化铁路的改造具有重要意义.     

基于Cross-EKF定位的多机器人协作围捕策略研究

针对目前多机器人协作围捕过程中收敛速度慢、稳定性差、定位精度低的问题,提出一种新的围捕策略.设计出Cross-EKF定位算法,对目标位置的后验估计协方差进行交叉计算,以取得最小协方差区域.以区域边缘点到均值中心最大距离为半径,构建收敛圆,将对动态点的收敛扩展为对动态面的收敛.实验结果表明,系统能快速平稳地收敛该圆,从而实现对目标的精确围捕,该方法具有较高的实用价值.     

Software architecture awareness in long-term software product evolution

Software architecture has been established in software engineering for almost 40 years. When developing and evolving software products, architecture is expected to be even more relevant compared to contract development. However, the research results seem not to have influenced the development practice around software products very much. The architecture often only exists implicitly in discussions that accompany the development. Nonetheless many of the software products have been used for over 10, or even 20 years. How do development teams manage to accommodate changing needs and at the same time maintain the quality of the product? In order to answer this question, grounded theory study based on 15 semi-structured interviews was conducted in order to find out about the wide spectrum of architecture practices in software product developing organisations. Our results indicate that a chief architect or central developer acts as a ‘walking architecture’ devising changes and discussing local designs while at the same time updating his own knowledge about problematic aspects that need to be addressed. Architecture documentation and representations might not be used, especially if they replace the feedback from on-going developments into the ‘architecturing’ practices. Referring to results from Computer Supported Cooperative Work, we discuss how explicating the existing architecture needs to be complemented by social protocols to support the communication and knowledge sharing processes of the ‘walking architecture’.