Sight and touch are two elementary, but highly complementary senses - for humans as well as for robots. This monograph develops an integrated vision/force control approach for robotics, combining the advantages of both types of sensors while overcoming their individual drawbacks. It shows how integrated vision/force control improves the task quality in the sense of increased accuracy and execution velocity and widens the range of feasible tasks. The unique feature of this work lies in its comprehensive treatment of the problem from the theoretical development of the various schemes down to the real-time implementation of interaction control algorithms on an industrial robot. The presented approach and its potential impact on the performance of the next generation of robots is starting to be recognized by major manufacturers worldwide.

These proceedings showcase the best papers selected from more than 500 submissions, introducing readers to the top research topics and the latest developmental trends in the theory and application of Man-Machine-Environment System Engineering (MMESE). This research topic was first established in China by Professor Shengzhao Long in 1981, with direct support from one of the greatest modern Chinese scientists, Xuesen Qian. In a letter to Shengzhao Long from October 22nd, 1993, Xuesen Qian wrote: "You have created a very important modern science and technology in China!" MMESE primarily focuses on the relationship between Man, Machine and Environment, studying the optimum combination of related Man-Machine-Environment systems. In this paradigm, "Man" refers to working people as the subject at the workplace (e.g. operators, decision-makers); "Machine" is the general name for any object controlled by Man (including tools, machinery, computers, systems and technologies), and "Environment" describes the specific working conditions under which Man and Machine interact (e.g. temperature, noise, vibration, hazardous gases etc.). In turn, the three goals of optimization are to ensure safety, efficiency and economy in this context. These proceedings present interdisciplinary studies on the concepts and methods of physiology, psychology, system engineering, computer science, environmental science, management, education, and other related disciplines. They offer a valuable resource for all researchers and professionals whose work involves interdisciplinary areas touching on MMESE subjects.

Geared primarily to an audience consisting of mathematically advanced undergraduate or beginning graduate students, this text may additionally be used by engineering students interested in a rigorous, proof-oriented systems course that goes beyond the classical frequency-domain material and more applied courses. The minimal mathematical background required is a working knowledge of linear algebra and differential equations. The book covers what constitutes the common core of control theory and is unique in its emphasis on foundational aspects. While covering a wide range of topics written in a standard theorem/proof style, it also develops the necessary techniques from scratch. In this second edition, new chapters and sections have been added, dealing with time optimal control of linear systems, variational and numerical approaches to nonlinear control, nonlinear controllability via Lie-algebraic methods, and controllability of recurrent nets and of linear systems with bounded controls.

This book is an up-to-date compendium on spacecraft attitude and orbit control (AOC) that offers a systematic and complete treatment of the subject with the aim of imparting the theoretical and practical knowledge that is required by designers, engineers, and researchers. After an introduction on the kinematics of the flexible and agile space vehicles, the modern architecture and functions of an AOC system are described and the main AOC modes reviewed with possible design solutions and examples. The dynamics of the flexible body in space are then considered using an original Lagrangian approach suitable for the control applications of large space flexible structures. Subsequent chapters address optimal control theory, attitude control methods, and orbit control applications, including the optimal orbital transfer with finite and infinite thrust. The theory is integrated with a description of current propulsion systems, with the focus especially on the new electric propulsion systems and state of the art sensors and actuators.

The key attribute of a Fault Tolerant Control (FTC) system is its ability to maintain overall system stability and acceptable performance in the face of faults and failures within the feedback system. In this book Integral Sliding Mode (ISM) Control Allocation (CA) schemes for FTC are described, which have the potential to maintain close to nominal fault-free performance (for the entire system response), in the face of actuator faults and even complete failures of certain actuators. Broadly an ISM controller based around a model of the plant with the aim of creating a nonlinear fault tolerant feedback controller whose closed-loop performance is established during the design process. The second approach involves retro-fitting an ISM scheme to an existing feedback controller to introduce fault tolerance. This may be advantageous from an industrial perspective, because fault tolerance can be introduced without changing the existing control loops. A high fidelity benchmark model of a large transport aircraft is used to demonstrate the efficacy of the FTC schemes. In particular a scheme based on an LPV representation has been implemented and tested on a motion flight simulator.

In this book a general topological construction of extension is proposed for problems of attainability in topological spaces under perturbation of a system of constraints. This construction is realized in a special class of generalized elements defined as finitely additive measures. A version of the method of programmed iterations is constructed. This version realizes multi-valued control quasistrategies, which guarantees the solution of the control problem that consists in guidance to a given set under observation of phase constraints.

Audience: The book will be of interest to researchers, and graduate students in the field of optimal control, mathematical systems theory, measure and integration, functional analysis, and general topology.

Time-Varying Systems and Computations is a unique book providing a detailed and consistent exposition of a powerful unifying framework (developed by the authors) for the study of time-variant systems and the computational aspects and problems that arise in this context. While complex function theory and linear algebra provide much of the fundamental mathematics needed by engineers engaged in numerical computations, signal processing and/or control, there has long been a large, abstruse gap between the two fields. This book shows the reader how the gap between analysis and linear algebra can be bridged. In a fascinating monograph, the authors explore, discover and exploit many interesting links that exist between classical linear algebraic concepts and complex analysis. Time-Varying Systems and Computations opens for the reader new and exciting perspectives on linear algebra from the analysis point of view. It clearly explains a framework that allows the extension of classical results, from complex function theory to the case of time-variant operators and even finite-dimensional matrices. These results allow the user to obtain computationally feasible schemes and models for complex and large-scale systems. Time-Varying Systems and Computations will be of interest to a broad spectrum of researchers and professionals, including applied mathematicians, control theorists, systems theorists and numerical analysts. It can also be used as a graduate course in linear time-varying system theory.

The advance in robotics has boosted the application of autonomous vehicles to perform tedious and risky tasks or to be cost-effective substitutes for their - man counterparts. Based on their working environment, a rough classi cation of the autonomous vehicles would include unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), - manned ground vehicles (UGVs), autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), and autonomous surface vehicles (ASVs). UAVs, UGVs, AUVs, and ASVs are called UVs (unmanned vehicles) nowadays. In recent decades, the development of - manned autonomous vehicles have been of great interest, and different kinds of autonomous vehicles have been studied and developed all over the world. In part- ular, UAVs have many applications in emergency situations; humans often cannot come close to a dangerous natural disaster such as an earthquake, a ood, an active volcano, or a nuclear disaster. Since the development of the rst UAVs, research efforts have been focused on military applications. Recently, however, demand has arisen for UAVs such as aero-robotsand ying robotsthat can be used in emergency situations and in industrial applications. Among the wide variety of UAVs that have been developed, small-scale HUAVs (helicopter-based UAVs) have the ability to take off and land vertically as well as the ability to cruise in ight, but their most importantcapability is hovering. Hoveringat a point enables us to make more eff- tive observations of a target. Furthermore, small-scale HUAVs offer the advantages of low cost and easy operation.

Fractional order calculus is finding increasing interest in the control system community. Hardware realizations of fractional order controllers have sparked off a renewed zeal into the investigations of control system design in the light of fractional calculus. As such many notions of integer order LTI systems are being modified and extended to incorporate these new concepts. Computational Intelligence (CI) techniques have been applied to engineering problems to find solutions to many hitherto intractable conundrums and is a useful tool for dealing with problems of higher computational complexity. This book borders on the interface between CI techniques and fractional calculus, and looks at ways in which fractional order control systems may be designed or enhanced using CI based paradigms. To the best of the author's knowledge this is the first book of its kind exclusively dedicated to the application of computational intelligence techniques in fractional order systems and control. The book tries to assimilate various existing concepts in this nascent field of fractional order intelligent control and is aimed at researchers and post graduate students working in this field.

This volume is devoted to presentation of new results of research on systems of non-integer order, called also fractional systems. Their analysis and practical implementation have been the object of spontaneous development for a few last decades. The fractional order models can depict a physical plant better than the classical integer order ones. This covers different research fields such as insulator properties, visco-elastic materials, electrodynamic, electrothermal, electrochemical, economic processes modelling etc. On the other hand fractional controllers often outperform their integer order counterparts. This volume contains new ideas and examples of implementation, theoretical and pure practical aspects of using a non-integer order calculus. It is divided into four parts covering: mathematical fundamentals, modeling and approximations, controllability, observability and stability problems and practical applications of fractional control systems. The first part expands the base of tools and methods of the mathematical basis for non-integer order calculus. Part two focuses on new methods and developments in process modeling and fractional derivatives approximations. In the third part a bunch of papers which raise problems of controllability, observability and stability of non-integer order systems is provided. Part four is devoted to presentation of different fractional order control applications. This book was created thanks to many experts in the field of fractional calculus: authors, anonymous referees whose comments allowed us to improve the final form of the papers and active and inspiring discussion of the participants of RRNR'2015, the 7th Conference on Non-Integer Order Calculus and Its Applications that was organized by the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, West Pomeranian University of Technology, Szczecin, Poland.

The book is the first book on complex matrix equations including the conjugate of unknown matrices. The study of these conjugate matrix equations is motivated by the investigations on stabilization and model reference tracking control for discrete-time antilinear systems, which are a particular kind of complex system with structure constraints. It proposes useful approaches to obtain iterative solutions or explicit solutions for several types of complex conjugate matrix equation. It observes that there are some significant differences between the real/complex matrix equations and the complex conjugate matrix equations. For example, the solvability of a real Sylvester matrix equation can be characterized by matrix similarity; however, the solvability of the con-Sylvester matrix equation in complex conjugate form is related to the concept of con-similarity. In addition, the new concept of conjugate product for complex polynomial matrices is also proposed in order to establish a unified approach for solving a type of complex matrix equation.

ISRR, the "International Symposium on Robotics Research", is one of robotics pioneering Symposia, which has established over the past two decades some of the field's most fundamental and lasting contributions. This book presents the results of the seventeenth edition of "Robotics Research" ISRR15, offering a collection of a broad range of topics in robotics. The content of the contributions provides a wide coverage of the current state of robotics research.: the advances and challenges in its theoretical foundation and technology basis, and the developments in its traditional and new emerging areas of applications. The diversity, novelty, and span of the work unfolding in these areas reveal the field's increased maturity and expanded scope and define the state of the art of robotics and its future direction.

This book demonstrates how to apply modern approaches to complex system control in practical applications involving knowledge-based systems. The dimensions of knowledge-based systems are extended by incorporating new perspectives from control theory, multimodal systems and simulation methods. The book is divided into three parts: theory, production system and information system applications. One of its main focuses is on an agent-based approach to complex system analysis. Moreover, specialised forms of knowledge-based systems (like e-learning, social network, and production systems) are introduced with a new formal approach to knowledge system modelling. The book, which offers a valuable resource for researchers engaged in complex system analysis, is the result of a unique cooperation between scientists from applied computer science (mainly from Poland) and leading system control theory researchers from the Russian Academy of Sciences' Trapeznikov Institute of Control Sciences.

Praise for the Series:
"This book will be a useful reference to control engineers and researchers. The papers contained cover well the recent advances in the field of modern control theory."
--IEEE Group Correspondence
"This book will help all those researchers who valiantly try to keep abreast of what is new in the theory and practice of optimal control."
--Control

This book presents recent advances in optimization and control methods with applications to industrial engineering and construction management. It consists of 15 chapters authored by recognized experts in a variety of fields including control and operation research, industrial engineering and project management. Topics include numerical methods in unconstrained optimization, robust optimal control problems, set splitting problems, optimum confidence interval analysis, a monitoring networks optimization survey, distributed fault detection, nonferrous industrial optimization approaches, neural networks in traffic flows, economic scheduling of CCHP systems, a project scheduling optimization survey, lean and agile construction project management, practical construction projects in Hong Kong, dynamic project management, production control in PC4P and target contracts optimization.

The book offers a valuable reference work for scientists, engineers, researchers and practitioners in industrial engineering and construction management.

Design and Use of Assistive Technology assesses major hurdles in the design and use of assistive technologies, while also providing guidelines and recommendations to improve these technologies. This volume takes an interdisciplinary approach to solving the major issues surrounding designing and using assistive technologies for the physically impaired by blending engineering, computer science and medicine. The most difficult problems in assistive technologies, such as privacy concerns in data gathering and analysis, inherent heterogeneity of the user population, knowledge transfer of novel technologies and incorporation of the user perspective into the design process are all addressed. The book also: -Presents theories on assistive technology through the lens of fields ranging from engineering and computer science to occupational therapy and neurology -Discusses assistive technologies in a broad scope that presents designs and theories that are universally applicable Design and Use of Assistive Technology features contributions from experts in their subject areas who discuss specific methods and mechanisms to integrate the user's experience into design and clinical evaluation in order to both create academic outreach through practical service models and improve knowledge transfer.

The Dynamics of Control provides a carefully integrated development of the mathematical connections between nonlinear control, dynamical systems, and time-varying perturbed systems for scientists and engineers. The central theme is the notion of control flow with its global dynamics and linearization presented in detail.

The book's scope is comprehensive and includes global theory of dynamical systems under time-varying perturbations, global and local dynamics of control systems, connections between control systems and dynamical systems and the relevant numerical methods for global dynamics, linearization, and stability. Topics are developed with a diverse and extensive selection of applied problems from control and dynamical systems.

Topics and Features:

* complete coverage of unified theory of control flows

* wide array of motivating problems from control and dynamical systems to appeal to mathematicians, scientists, and engineers

* relevant motivation and a listing of important definitions and results at the beginning of each chapter

* a compilation of essential background information in four appendices: nonlinear geometric control, topological theory of dynamical systems, computations of reachable sets, and numerical solution of Hamiltona "Jacobia "Belman equations

* discussion of numerical methods

This new text and self-study reference guide is an excellent resource for the foundations and applications of control theory and nonlinear dynamics. All graduates, practitioners, and professionals in control theory, dynamical systems, perturbation theory, engineering, physics, and nonlinear dynamics will find the book a rich source of ideas, methods, andapplications.

Dynamic modelling is the fundamental building block for mechanism analysis, design, control and performance evaluation. One class of mechanism, legged machines, have multiple closed-chains established through intermittent ground contacts. Further, walking on natural terrain introduces nonlinear system compliance in the forms of foot sinkage and slippage. Closed-chains constrain the possible motions of a mechanism while compliances affect the redistrubution of forces throughout the system. "A General Model of Legged Locomotion on Natural Terain" develops a dynamic mechanism model that characterizes indeterminate interactions of a closed-chain robot with its environment. The approach is applicable to any closed-chain mechanism with sufficient contact compliance, although legged locomotion on natural terrain is chosen to illustrate the methodology. The modelling and solution procedures are general to all walking machine configurations, including bipeds, quadrupeds, beam-walkers and hopping machines. The book develops a functional model of legged locomotion that incorporates non-conservative foot-soil interactions in a nonlinear dynamic formulation. The model was applied to a prototype walking machine and simulations generated significant insights into walking machine performance on natural terrain. The simulations are original and essential contributions to the design, evaluation and control of these complex robot systems. While posed in the context of walking machines, the approach has wider applicability to rolling locomotors, co-operating manipulators, multi-fingered hands and prehensile agents.

How and why to write a movement? Who is the writer? Who is the reader? They may be choreographers working with dancers. They may be roboticists programming robots. They may be artists designing cartoons in computer animation. In all such fields the purpose is to express an intention about a dance, a specific motion or an action to perform, in terms of intelligible sequences of elementary movements, as a music score that would be devoted to motion representation. Unfortunately there is no universal language to write a motion. Motion languages live together in a Babel tower populated by biomechanists, dance notators, neuroscientists, computer scientists, choreographers, roboticists. Each community handles its own concepts and speaks its own language. The book accounts for this diversity. Its origin is a unique workshop held at LAAS-CNRS in Toulouse in 2014. Worldwide representatives of various communities met there. Their challenge was to reach a mutual understanding allowing a choreographer to access robotics concepts, or a computer scientist to understand the subtleties of dance notation. The liveliness of this multidisciplinary meeting is reflected by the book thank to the willingness of authors to share their own experiences with others.

This book presents theory and latest application work in Bond Graph methodology with a focus on: * Hybrid dynamical system models, * Model-based fault diagnosis, model-based fault tolerant control, fault prognosis * and also addresses * Open thermodynamic systems with compressible fluid flow, * Distributed parameter models of mechanical subsystems. In addition, the book covers various applications of current interest ranging from motorised wheelchairs, in-vivo surgery robots, walking machines to wind-turbines.The up-to-date presentation has been made possible by experts who are active members of the worldwide bond graph modelling community. This book is the completely revised 2nd edition of the 2011 Springer compilation text titled Bond Graph Modelling of Engineering Systems - Theory, Applications and Software Support. It extends the presentation of theory and applications of graph methodology by new developments and latest research results. Like the first edition, this book addresses readers in academia as well as practitioners in industry and invites experts in related fields to consider the potential and the state-of-the-art of bond graph modelling.

The hand is an agency of the brain; it reflects activities of the brain and thereby can be seen as a mirror to the mind. The dexterity of the hand has been investigated widely in developmental psychology and in anthropology. Since robotics launched in the mid-1970s, numerous multi-fingered hands mimicking the human hand have been designed and made in a number of universities and research institutes, in addition to sophisticated prosthetic hands with plural fingers.

Control Theory of Multi-fingered Hands presents a comprehensive insight into the intelligence and dexterity of robotic multi-fingered hands from both the physical and control- theoretic viewpoints. The book:

• focuses on the problem of how to control dexterous movements of fingers interacting with an object in the execution of everyday tasks;
• clarifies what kinds of sensory-motor coordinated signals are necessary and sufficient for realising stable grasping and/or object manipulation, in particular, the synergistic choices of control gains in co-activation signals for finger muscles and tendons crucial in realising secure pinching motions;
• derives a mathematical model of the dynamics of a complicated mechanism of multiple fingers with multiple joints physically interacting; and,
• considers the problem of how to recreate the function of "blind grasping."

Control Theory of Multi-fingered Hands will be a useful reference for postgraduate students and researchers in this field, as well as engineers and roboticists.

Covers advances in the field of computer techniques and algorithms in digital signal processing.

This significantly revised edition presents a broad introduction to Control Systems and balances new, modern methods with the more classical. It is an excellent text for use as a first course in Control Systems by undergraduate students in all branches of engineering and applied mathematics. The book contains: A comprehensive coverage of automatic control, integrating digital and computer control techniques and their implementations, the practical issues and problems in Control System design; the three-term PID controller, the most widely used controller in industry today; numerous in-chapter worked examples and end-of-chapter exercises. This second edition also includes an introductory guide to some more recent developments, namely fuzzy logic control and neural networks.

This revised and extended second edition covers problems concerning the design and realization of digital control algorithms for power electronics circuits using digital signal processing (DSP) methods. This book discusses signal processing, starting from analog signal acquisition, through conversion to digital form, methods of filtration and separation, and ending with pulse control of output power transistors. The book is focused on two applications for the considered methods of digital signal processing, a three-phase shunt active power filter and a digital class-D audio power amplifier. The book bridges the gap between power electronics and digital signal processing. Many control algorithms and circuits for power electronics in the current literature are described using analog transmittances. This may not always be acceptable, especially if half of the sampling frequencies and half of the power transistor switching frequencies are close to the band of interest. Therefore in this book, a digital circuit is treated as a digital circuit with its own peculiar characteristics, rather than an analog circuit. This helps to avoid errors and instability. This edition includes a new chapter dealing with selected problems of simulation of power electronics systems together with digital control circuits. The book includes numerous examples using MATLAB and PSIM programs.

This 2nd edition textbook has been expanded to include of 175 additional pages of additional content, created in response to readers feedback, as well as to new hardware and software releases. The book presents foundational robotics concepts using the ROBOTIS BIOLOID and OpenCM-904 robotic systems, and is suitable as a curriculum for a first course in robotics for undergraduate students or a self-learner. It covers wheel-based robots, as well as walking robots. Although it uses the standard "Sense, Think, Act" approach, communications (bot-to-bot and PC-to-bot) programming concepts are treated in more depth (wired and wireless ZigBee/BlueTooth). Algorithms are developed and described via ROBOTIS' proprietary RoboPlus IDE, as well as the more open Arduino-based Embedded C environments. Additionally, a vast array of web-based multimedia materials are used for illustrating robotics concepts, code implementations and videos of actual resulting robot behaviors. Advanced sensor interfacing for gyroscope, inertial measuring unit, foot pressure sensor and color camera are also demonstrated.