Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
On the Age of Information in Wireless Networks Using Rateless Codes

The information freshness, quantified by the emerging idea of Age of Information (AoI), has recently received widespread attentions from both academia and industry. However, most prior works on AoI considered a single source-destination pair and provided the performance analysis merely through queueing-theoretic models, which do not lend themselves to the analysis of large-scale wireless networks. This paper focuses on the AoI analysis in a large-scale setting using random spatial models in stochastic geometry. Specifically, we first adopt rateless coding for packet delivery to improve the transmission reliability while reducing the transmission delay. Then, to quantify the enhancement of the information freshness by rateless coding, we derive the average peak age of information (PAoI) in Poisson bipolar and cellular networks, which characterizes the maximum value of AoI immediately before an update packet is received accounting for the spatial variation of network nodes and temporal dynamics of service packets. With these results, we further give the conditions that make the average PAoI to be finite in each type of the network. Numerical results show the significant benefits of rateless codes relative to the commonly used fixed-rate codes in terms of the PAoI and the feasible region of system parameters such as the traffic arrival rate, transmit probability, etc., in Poisson bipolar and cellular networks.
Minimization of Control Signals at Stabilizing Spatial Motion of a Maneuverable Aircraft

This study deals with the problem of stabilizing spatial motion of a maneuverable aircraft with three controls and nine state parameters. In the task it is required to provide specified dynamic properties of the controlled plant at minimal control actions. For numeric matrices describing one of flight modes of a typical maneuverable aircraft the parameterized set of controllers by state vector is synthesized basing on the generalized Bass – Gura formula. This formula allows analytically calculating modal control for multi-input objects and simplifies parameterization of this control. The task of row-by-row minimization of gain matrix quadratic norm at fixed poles values is solved analytically by choosing the values of supplementary parameters which do not change the closed-loop control system spectrum. A technique for parameterization of two rows of three is proposed. In parameterized rows the minima are obtained at the condition of forced zeroing the coefficients corresponding to linear velocity. Based on simulation results the poles are chosen at which along with optimal supplementary parameters one may synthesize a controller allowing for specified range of initial conditions to obtain the most rapid transient with required dynamics and minimal control actions.
Wire-Suspended Device Control Based on Wireless Communication With Multirotor for Long Reach-Aerial Manipulation

In this study, we propose a long-reach aerial manipulation system with a wire-suspended device that allows the airframe to maintain its position at the desired distance away from the target. We implemented a feedback communication between the multirotor and wire-suspended device to maintain the position of the wire-suspended device directly below the multirotor while maintaining a constant distance from the target. The multirotor communicates its velocity and relative position to the wire-suspended device to control the ducted fans, whereas the wire-suspended device transmits the attitude and distance from the ground to the multirotor to control the winch. The designed controller for the ducted fans allows the wire-suspended device to behave like a long rigid robotic arm. The performance of the designed controller was verified by navigating the multirotor over stepped surfaces while the wire-suspended device was being lowered.
Towards Optimal System Deployment for Edge Computing: A Preliminary Study

In this preliminary study, we consider the server allocation problem for edge computing system deployment. Our goal is to minimize the average turnaround time of application requests/tasks, generated by all mobile devices/users in a geographical region. We consider two approaches for edge cloud deployment: the flat deployment, where all edge clouds co-locate with the base stations, and the hierarchical deployment, where edge clouds can also co-locate with other system components besides the base stations. In the flat deployment, we demonstrate that the allocation of edge cloud servers should be balanced across all the base stations, if the application request arrival rates at the base stations are equal to each other. We also show that the hierarchical deployment approach has great potentials in minimizing the system's average turnaround time. We conduct various simulation studies using the CloudSim Plus platform to verify our theoretical results. The collective findings trough theoretical analysis and simulation results will provide useful guidance in practical edge computing system deployment.
Fast Numerical Power Loss Calculation for High-Frequency Litz Wires

This article presents a fast numerical calculation method of realistic power losses for high-frequency litz wires. Explicitly, the imperfect structure of litz wires is considered when calculating losses due to an excitation current (skin losses) and external magnetic fields (proximity losses). Calculations of litz wires with more than 1000 strands were performed on a personal computer and have been validated by measurements up to 10 MHz. In the calculation, the impact of the bundle structure on skin and proximity losses is examined. The method allows to select a suitable litz wire for a specific application or to design a litz wire considering realistic twisting structures.
Multiple-choice Classification of Radio Navigation Systems Technical State

The article is devoted to the multiple choice classification of the technical state of the radionavigation system. At present it is necessary to develop a mathematical model of control in the case of multi-alternative classification of these systems technical state, introduces the control process in the form of a joint action of the set of elementary operation transformation of the controlled parameter. This approach allow to solve the problem of probability of correct decisions making as a result of technical state classification quantitatively estimation.
Model Predictive Control With Vector Selection Method for Switching Loss Reduction and Neutral Voltage Balancing in Three-Level Inverter

In order to decrease the common mode voltage (CMV) and balance the neutral-point voltage, a method is presented. In the algorithms, no longer utilizing some vectors. So the CMV can be limited within ± Vdc/6. In addition, select the suitable switching vectors to balance the neutral-point. Furthermore, the current ripple and switching times make up a cost function. Apply the cost function to choose the optimized switching vector. And a weighing factor is proposed for ensuring the low current’s THD and the high current’s efficiency.
Towards Reliable Message Dissemination for Multiple Cooperative Drivings: A Hybrid Approach

A group of connected and autonomous vehicles (CAVs) with common interests can drive in a cooperative manner, namely cooperative driving, which has been verified to significantly improve road safety, traffic efficiency and environmental sustainability. A more general scenario that various types of cooperative driving applications such as truck platooning and vehicle clustering, will coexist on roads in the foreseeable future. To support such multiple cooperative drivings, it is critical to design an efficient message dissemination scheduling in a shared communication channel. Most ongoing research suggests using the time-division multiple access (TDMA) method on top of IEEE 802.11p as a potential remedy. However, TDMA requires time synchronization and is not flexible, especially in the multiple cooperative drivings scenario where the beacon frequency needs to be updated and the number of cooperative drivings changes to meet the time-varying traffic conditions. In this paper, we focus on the study of the message dissemination protocol for platooning, a typical and well-known cooperative driving pattern. Specifically, we proposed a hybrid message dissemination protocol which aims at guaranteeing the reliable delivery of beacon messages for a multi-platooning system. We first adopt a TDMA-based medium access method for intra-platoon communication to improve the reliability and efficiency of beacon dissemination. We then present a token-passing medium access method for inter-platoon communication, which maps platoons into a token ring to schedule their beacon transmission time. We conduct extensive numerical experiments to validate the effectiveness of our protocol.
Reversible Palm Vein Authenticator Design With Quantum Dot Cellular Automata for Information Security in Nanocommunication Network

Palm vein pattern recognition is one of the most promising and rapidly developing fields of study in biometrics, which makes it an important solution for identity security in biometrics-based user identification systems. Quantum-dot Cellular Automata (QCA) is a developing field of nanotechnology which facilitates the creation of nano-scale logical circuits. Irreversible technology has faced some difficulties, such as higher heat energy dissipation. Reversible logic is therefore essential where heat dissipation is almost insignificant. This article proposes QCA design of a reversible circuit for palm vein authentication utilizing the Feynman gate. Fully reversible Feynman gate is designed. Using this newly designed Feynman gate the palm vein authenticator circuit is designed. The theoretical values and the results of the simulation correspond to the reliability of the planned circuit. Circuit complexity and circuit cost are explored. Validation of authenticated users by the proposed authenticator explores its design accuracy as per theoretical values. Energy dissipation of the proposed designs shows that it remains within Lauderer’s limit (0.06meV). This proves that the circuits designed are fully reversible in nature and dissipates very less amount of energy. Comparison with recent QCA state of the art architectures explores its characteristics.
Efficient Bit-Parallel Multiplier for All Trinomials Based on n-Term Karatsuba Algorithm

Recently, hybrid multiplication schemes over the binary extension field <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$GF(2^{m})$ </tex-math></inline-formula> based on <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$n$ </tex-math></inline-formula>-term Karatsuba algorithm (KA) have been proposed for irreducible trinomials. Their complexities depend on a decomposition of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$m$ </tex-math></inline-formula> and the choice of a generation polynomial. However, these multipliers have some limitations on a decomposition of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$m$ </tex-math></inline-formula> or generation polynomial <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$x^{m}+x^{k}+1$ </tex-math></inline-formula> such that <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$m\geq 2k$ </tex-math></inline-formula>. In this paper, we loosen such limited conditions. We present a new hybrid bit-parallel multiplier based on <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$n$ </tex-math></inline-formula>-term KA for any irreducible trinomial <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$x^{m}+x^{k}+1\,\,(0< k< m)$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, where <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$m$ </tex-math></inline-formula> is decomposed as <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$m=nm_{0}+r$ </tex-math></inline-formula> with <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$0< r< m_{0}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> and <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$1< n$ </tex-math></inline-formula>. (Here, various values for <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$n,m_{0}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> and <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$r$ </tex-math></inline-formula> may be chosen.) To this end, we generalize the previously proposed multiplication scheme for <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$x^{nm_{0}+1}+x^{k}+1$ </tex-math></inline-formula> into <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$x^{nm_{0}+r}+x^{k}+1$ </tex-math></inline-formula>. We evaluate the explicit complexity of the proposed multiplier. Specific comparisons show that the proposed multiplier achieves the lowest space complexity with the same or lower time complexity among hybrid multipliers. Compared to the fastest multipliers, the time complexity of the proposed multiplier costs only <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$T_{X}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> higher while its space complexity is much lower (it has roughly 40% reduced space complexity), where <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$T_{X}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> is the delay of one 2-input XOR gate.
An Effective Control Scheme for Multimodal SSR Suppression via VSC-Based Controller

Multimodal sub-synchronous resonance (SSR) induced by the interactions between the generator shafts and the fixed series capacitors has become a serious threat for the power system. To overcome this, a voltage source converter (VSC) based controller for multimodal SSR suppression, named sub-synchronous resonance dynamic suppressor (SSRDS), is presented and analyzed in this paper. The controller is placed at the point of common coupling (PCC) of the power plant for multi-generator SSR suppression purpose so that the investment costs can be minimized while making sure the requirements of the SSR damping. To quantify the contribution of SSRDS to the SSR damping, the damping torque analysis is carried out, which can reveal the influences of the operating conditions and the correlated control parameters on the damping performance. Furthermore, to avoid the negative affects between the different TMs in close range as well as maximize the damping ability of SSRDS, the parameters tuning method of the mode filters and the gain and phase shifters are proposed. A detailed nonlinear simulation model is established in PSCAD/EMTDC based on the Jinjie series compensated transmission system located in China. The damping torque analysis, the eigenvalues analysis and the simulation results have fully demonstrated the effectiveness and the robustness of the proposed SSRDS for multi-generator and multimodal SSR suppression under both small and large disturbances in various operating conditions.
Triboelectric Self-Powered Three-Dimensional Tactile Sensor

Three-dimensional tactile sensing in smart devices is witnessing an increasing demand. In this study, a three-dimensional tactile sensor is proposed according to the principle of triboelectricity by using polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and polyethylene oxide (PEO) films. Use of PDMS-ZnO composite films increases the output voltage of the electrodes. The sensor is designed with a cross beam-shaped pressure head to enable sensing normal forces in five directions. The working mechanism of the sensor is analyzed using the finite element method. The calculation results indicate a linear relationship between the output voltage and the force. The simulation results also demonstrate that the output voltage is linearly correlated with the applied force in the range of 1–30 N. Test results show that the sensor can sense the magnitude, frequency, and direction of the force as well as measure the duration of the force. The hardness of the object has a significant effect on the output voltage. Finally, the sensor is tested on a manipulator grasping an object to demonstrate its ability to sense the contact and sliding of the object.
Metamaterial-Inspired Antenna Array for Application in Microwave Breast Imaging Systems for Tumor Detection

This paper presents a study of a planar antenna-array inspired by the metamaterial concept where the resonant elements have sub-wavelength dimensions for application in microwave medical imaging systems for detecting tumors in biological tissues. The proposed antenna consists of square-shaped concentric-rings which are connected to a central patch through a common feedline. The array structure comprises several antennas that are arranged to surround the sample breast model. One antenna at a time in the array is used in transmission-mode while others are in receive-mode. The antenna array operates over 2–12 GHz amply covering the frequency range of existing microwave imaging systems. Measured results show that compared to a standard patch antenna array the proposed array with identical dimensions exhibits an average radiation gain and efficiency improvement of 4.8 dBi and 18%, respectively. The average reflection-coefficient of the array over its operating range is better than S11 ≤ −20 dB making it highly receptive to weak signals and minimizing the distortion encountered with the transmission of short duration pulse-trains. Moreover, the proposed antenna-array exhibits high-isolation on average of 30dB between radiators. This means that antennas in the array (i) can be closely spaced to accommodate more radiators to achieve higher-resolution imaging scans, and (ii) the imagining scans can be done over a wider frequency range to ascertain better contrast in electrical parameters between malignant tumor-tissue and the surrounding normal breast-tissue to facilitate the detection of breast-tumor. It is found that short wavelength gives better resolution. In this experimental study a standard biomedical breast model that mimics a real-human breast in terms of dielectric and optical properties was used to demonstrate the viability of the proposed antenna over a standard patch antenna in the detection and the localization of tumor. These results are encouraging for clinical trials and further refinement of the antenna-array.
Agent vs. Avatar: Comparing Embodied Conversational Agents Concerning Characteristics of the Uncanny Valley

Visual appearance is an important aspect influencing the perception and consequent acceptance of Embodied Conversational Agents (ECA). To this end, the Uncanny Valley theory contradicts the common assumption that increased humanization of characters leads to better acceptance. Rather, it shows that anthropomorphic behavior may trigger feelings of eeriness and rejection in people. The work presented in this paper explores whether four different autonomous ECAs, specifically build for a European research project, are affected by this effect, and how they compare to two slightly more realistically looking human-controlled, i.e. face-tracked, ECAs with respect to perceived humanness, eeriness, and attractiveness. Short videos of the ECAs in combination with a validated questionnaire were used to investigate potential differences. Results support existing theories highlighting that increased perceived humanness correlates with increased perceived eeriness. Furthermore, it was found, that neither the gender of survey participants, their age, nor the sex of the ECA influences this effect, and that female ECAs are perceived to be significantly more attractive than their male counterparts.
T18: an ambiguous keyboard layout for smartwatches

We present a new ambiguous keyboard layout for smartwatches named ${T18}$. As the name implies, it is composed of 18 keys, and for this reason a key may correspond to more than one character. In those cases, the system chooses one of the characters based on a dictionary. The ${T18}$ keyboard layout is inspired by ${T9}$, with the main differences being that ${T18}$ has a greater number of keys and they are arranged in a QWERTY layout. The method was compared to Optimal-T9, an improvement of the original ${T9}$ for smartwatches. The experiment showed a 39% advantage in text entry speed in favor of ${T18}$. In particular, participants typed at 15.7 wpm with ${T18}$ and at 11.3 wpm with Optimal-T9.
Context-Aware Cyber-Physical Assistance Systems in Industrial Systems: A Human Activity Recognition Approach

The increasing demand for product customisation is leading to higher complexities within manufacturing. This imposes new challenges for the workforce. One way to support operators’ productivity may be context-aware, human-centred cyber-physical assistance systems. Human Activity Recognition (HAR) is a promising approach to enable context-awareness. However, standardised approaches to integrate HAR into existing manufacturing environments are rare. Particularly, there is a lack of available datasets of manufacturing activities. Moreover, comparative studies of inertial and visual HAR approaches are still rare. This work therefore proposes Methods-Time Measurement (MTM) as a standardised foundation for creating a manufacturing activity dataset. Subsequently, five different machine learning algorithms are tested for their recognition performance based on the dataset captured with an inertial sensor suit and an RGB-D sensor. A proof-of-concept is delivered for both sensor categories applied to the scope of 18 MTM-1 activities, whereas inertial data outperformed depth data. K-Nearest Neighbour and Bagged Tree algorithms revealed the best classification accuracy results in this context.
Transferable Health Indicator for Rolling Bearings: A New Solution of Cross-Working Condition Monitoring of Degradation Process

In recent years, deep learning techniques have been successfully applied to constructing health indicator (HI) of rotating machinery. However, training a deep neural network usually requires a large number of samples. Once the amount of training data is insufficient, the resulting model is prone to overfitting. If the data of degradation process collected under different operating conditions is directly used for auxiliary training, the model bias will be caused due to the violation of independent and identical distribution (i.i.d.) preconditions. To solve this problem, a new HI construction method, named transferable HI, is proposed by applying transfer learning. This method works on the following assumption: two bearings with same model could get similar degradation processes if running under similar operating conditions. Specifically, this method uses the available degradation data under different operating conditions to train a transfer learning model. Then a common feature representation is obtained for the data from auxiliary operating condition and target condition. Finally, the degradation features of the target bearing can be extracted and a new HI is construced via feature reduction. The comparative experiments are conducted on the IEEE PHM Challenge 2012 bearing dataset. The results show that compared to the method using no-transferable deep neural network, the transferable HI has much better monotonicity and correlation characteristics, which verifies the rationality of borrowing degradation information from auxiliary bearings.
Adaptive Distributionally Robust Unit Commitment Based on Non-parametric Statisticas

Aiming at the large-scale random power supply being integrated into the power grid, this paper builds an adaptive distributionally robust unit commitment model (ADRUC) to solve the optimal scheduling problem of the power system under uncertain operating conditions. First, the ambiguity set is built based on confidence bands for cumulative distribution function (CDF) from non-parametric statistics, and the interval of acceptable wind power output is obtained, then a polyhedral uncertainty set is constructed considering both the range and temporal domains. Then, in view of the flexibility and economy of fully adjustable robust optimization (FARO), the primal problem is divided into day-ahead UC master problem and the sub-problem of economic dispatch under the worst-case scenario. The strong duality theorem and the Big-M method are employed to transform the sub-problem into a MILP problem, the column and constraint generation (C & CG) algorithm is iterated repeatedly to obtain the target solution. Finally, the ADUC model is analyzed and validated by a ten-machine system.