Circuit for use in connection with signals representative of fuzzy information

Abstract: A circuit is disclosed for deriving an output which is indicative of the centre of gravity of electric signals representative of fuzzy information distributed over a plurality of lines. In one embodiment the circuit comprises a weighted summing circuit which forms a sum from the signals after multiplying each signal by a respective value corresponding to the grade of its said line, and a simple summing integration circuit which executes summing integration of the electric signals without any weighting. In an alternative embodiment the circuit comprises a weight summing integration circuit which executes summing integration of the signals after multiplying each such signal by a respective value corresponding to the grade of its line, and a simple summing circuit that simply sums the signals without weighting. In both embodiments a comparator then makes a comparison between the outputs of the two circuits.

Description: This invention relates to a circuit for use in connection with signals representative of fuzzy information. More specifically, it is concerned with circuits adapted to derive an output which is indicative of the centre-of-gravity of electric signals representative of fuzzy information distributed over a plurality of lines. As we shall explain below, circuits constructed in accordance with the present invention are adapted to generate pulses representative of a manipulated variable required to control an actuator or the like by using the results of fuzzy reasoning. Fuzzy information obtained as a result of fuzzy reasoning appears in the form of electric signals distributed over a plurality of lines. Accordingly, it is necessary in order to control an actuator or the like by using these signals to convert them into a manipulated variable. A converting mechanism designed for this purpose is called defuzzifier. In general, the conversion is performed by arithmetically determining the center of gravity of fuzzy quantities (JP Appln No. 63-206007, 1988). The prior art will be explained below on the basis of the contents of the above-mentioned publication. One example of fuzzy information will be explained with reference to Fig. 6. Elements of fuzzy information are denoted by x, and it it assumed that there are discrete values x 1 , x 2 , ...x n-1 , x n . These elements are output onto a plurality of signal lines ℓ 1 , ℓ 2 , ...ℓ n , respectively, and grades (functional values corresponding to variables) µ 1 , µ 2 , ...µ n corresponding to these elements are represented by analog voltages or current signals appearing on the respective signal lines. In this case, the grades µ 1 , µ 2 , ...µ n are assumed to be represented by voltages. In Fig. 6, the center of gravity (position on the X axis) of fuzzy information is given by Accordingly, multiplication, addition and division are needed to obtain the center of gravity. Therefore, in order to obtain the center of gravity only by addition, Equation (1) is transformed into Equation (2), and the latter is adjusted so that the denominator in Equation (2) is 1: That is, if K is adjusted so that the denominator is 1, the center of gravity can be obtained from Equation (3): Referring to Fig. 7, which is a specific circuit diagram, voltages µ 1 , µ 2 , ...µ n representative of elements of fuzzy information are led out onto n signal lines ℓ 1 ,ℓ 2 , ...ℓ n and then multiplied by the coefficient K in a variable-grade reasoning engine 1. Fuzzy quantities Kµ 1 , Kµ 2 , ...Kµ n output from the reasoning engine 1 are input to both a weighted summing circuit 2 and a simple summing circuit 3. In the weighted summing circuit 2, calculation of the right-hand side of Equation (3) is executed to output a voltage signal representative of the center of gravity. In the meantime, the simple summing circuit 3 executes calculation of the denominator of Equation (2) and inputs the result of the calculation to a voltage adjusting circuit 4. The other input terminal of the voltage adjusting circuit 4 is supplied with a voltage corresponding to the grade 1. Accordingly, in response to the output signal from the voltage adjusting circuit 4, the coefficient K in the variable-grade reasoning engine 1 is adjusted so that the output from the simple summing circuit 3 is 1 at all times. According to the above-described prior art, the output signal from the simple summing circuit 3 for electric signals distributed over a plurality of lines is controlled so as to be equivalent to 1. In general, this type of control is executed by using a membership function circuit that is provided with a grade control means. In this case, no dividing circuit is needed, and the circuit configuration is simplified correspondingly, resulting in an increase in the operating speed, but on the other hand, the membership function circuit becomes complicated, and a control mechanism must be added. In a case where the manipulated variable is the width of a pulse (e.g., an injector drive control signal of a fuel injector device or an ignition timing pulse), the determined value is output in the form of a voltage, and it is therefore necessary to provide an interface for converting the output voltage into a pulse width. Japanese Patent Application 880319476 discloses a simple summing circuit and a weighted summing circuit each operating on signals representing fuzzy information distributed over a plurality of lines. The outputs pass to a divider in which the weighted sum is divided by the simple sum in order to derive a centre-of-gravity signal. The simple sum is also compared with a reference voltage in a comparator to derive a signal indicating an abnormality of the fuzzy processor. The present invention has arisen from our work in seeking to provide circuits of simpler configuration adapted to derive outputs indicative of the centre of gravity of such electric signals, and as explained below, our preferred embodiments of circuit are adapted to provide an output in the form of a pulse width indicative of the said centre of gravity. In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention, we provide a circuit adapted to derive an output which is indicative of the centre-of-gravity of fuzzy information represented by electric signals distributed over a plurality of lines each corresponding to a discrete value taken by an input variable, the signal on each line representing the grade of that discrete value, the circuit comprising: a weighted summing circuit adapted to output the result of a sum from said signals after multiplying each said signal by a respective weight value corresponding to the discrete value of the variable associated with its said line; a simple summing integration circuit adapted to execute and output the result of a summing integration of said electric signals without weighting; said circuit being characterised by a comparator adapted to provide said output in the form of a pulse whose width is indicative of said centre-of-gravity by making a comparison between outputs from said two summing circuits. In a second and alternative aspect of the present invention, there is provided a circuit adapted to derive an output which is indicative of the centre-of-gravity of fuzzy information represented by electric signals distributed over a plurality of lines each corresponding to a discrete value taken by an input variable, the signal on each line representing the grade of that discrete value, the circuit comprising a weighted summing integration circuit adapted to execute and output the result of a summing integration of said signals after multiplying each said signal by a respective weight value corresponding to the discrete value of the variable associated with its said line; a simple summing circuit adapted to output the result of a sum from said signals without weighting; said circuit being characterised by a comparator adapted to provide said output in the form of a pulse whose width is indicative of said centre of gravity by making a comparison between outputs from said two summing circuits. The invention is hereinafter more particularly described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:- Fig. 1 is a block diagram of one embodiment of the circuit constructed according to the present invention; Fig. 2 illustrates in detail the arrangement shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a time chart showing the operation of the arrangement shown in Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a block diagram of another embodiment of circuit also in accordance with the present invention; Fig. 5 illustrates in detail the arrangement shown in Fig. 4; Fig. 6 shows one example of fuzzy information; and Fig. 7 shows a conventional center-of-gravity determining circuit. Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Fig. 1 is a block diagram of one embodiment of the center-of-gravity determining circuit for pulse generation according to the present invention. Referrring to Fig. 1, fuzzy buses 7 are connected to a simple summing integration circuit 5, and branch lines from the fuzzy buses 7 are similarly connected to a weighted summing circuit 2. A comparator 6 is supplied with outputs from the simple summing integration circuit 5 and the weighted summing circuit 2. Reference numeral 8 denotes a trigger means (not shown) for resetting the integration circuit 5. The arrangement of the embodiment will be further explained with reference to the detail view of Fig. 2. The simple summing integration circuit 5 is connected to the fuzzy buses 7 through respective resistances R, and a capacitor 10 and a transistor 11 are connected in parallel between a minus terminal and output terminal of an operational amplifier 9 inside the simple summing integration circuit 5. The output terminal is connected to a minus terminal of the comparator 6. In the meantime, the weighted summing circuit 2 is connected to the fuzzy buses 7 through respective weighting resistances R 1 ...R N corresponding to the discrete value x i of a variable of which the values µ i are the grades, and a resistance R f is connected between a minus terminal and output terminal of an operational amplifier 12 inside the weighted summing circuit 2. The output terminal is connected to a plus terminal of the comparator 6. In addition, the plus terminal of each of the operational amplifiers 9 and 12 is grounded through a resistance R 0 . The operation will next be explained by using the time chart of Fig. 3. First, in the simple summing integration circuit 5 the capacitor 10 is opened by the trigger means 8 to reset the circuit 5. As a result, the output of the comparator 6 shifts to L level. Since the transistor 11 turns off instantaneously, the simple summing integration circuit 5 executes simple summation of the voltages on the fuzzy buses 7 and delivers an inverted integration output V 1 which is proportional to the time constant determined by the resistance R and the capacitance C of the capacitor 10: The weighted summing circuit 2 sums the voltages µ i ...µ n on the fuzzy buses 7 in accordance with the weighting resistances R 1 ...R n and delivers an inverted output V 2 in a predetermined ratio determined by the resistance R f : In this case, when the output V 1 of the simple summing integration circuit 5 becomes not higher than the output V 2 of the weighted summing circuit 2, the output of the comparator 6 shifts to H level. Therefore, the time T during which the comparator 6 is outputting the L-level signal is converted into a pulse width as a determined value. The time T at which V 1 =V 2 is reached is expressed by Equation (6), and it corresponds to the center of gravity of the fuzzy quantities on the fuzzy buses 7: It should be noted that the gradient of the waveform V 1 can be changed as desired by weighting. Fig. 4 is a block diagram of another embodiment of our circuit, and Fig. 5 is a detail block diagram. In this embodiment, the simple summing integration circuit 5 and the weighted summing circuit 2 shown in Fig. 1 are replaced with a weighted summing integration circuit 13 and a simple summing circuit 14, respectively. Accordingly, fuzzy information that is output onto the fuzzy buses 7 is input to both the weighted summing integration circuit 13 and the simple summing circuit 14, and an output V 1 from the weighted summing integration circuit 13 and an output V 2 from the simple summing circuit 14 are input to the comparator 6. Since the operation of the circuit can be analogized from the first embodiment, description thereof is omitted. In this embodiment, the determined value is output in the form of a reciprocal as follows: Assuming that when V 1 =V 2 , t=T, According to this embodiment, it is possible to obtain an output in the form of a pulse width which is equal to the reciprocal of the time T. Thus, in both of our described embodiments, the result of weighted summation of the elements of fuzzy information and the result of simple summation of them are compared in a comparator. Moreover, the comparator output itself can be delivered as a pulse width without requiring a converter, thus enabling direct control of the actuator.

Claims: A circuit adapted to derive an output which is indicative of the centre-of-gravity of fuzzy information represented by electric signals (µ i ) distributed over a plurality of lines (ℓ i ) each corresponding to a discrete value taken by an input variable (x i ), the signal (µ i ) on each line representing the grade of that discrete value, the circuit comprising: a weighted summing circuit (2) adapted to output the result (V 2 ) of a sum from said signals (µ i ) after multiplying each said signal by a respective weight value corresponding to the discrete value of the variable (x i ) associated with its said line (ℓ i ); a simple summing integration circuit (5) adapted to execute and output the result (V 1 ) of a summing integration of said electric signals (µ i ) without weighting; said circuit being characterised by a comparator (6) adapted to provide said output in the form of a pulse whose width (T) is indicative of said centre-of-gravity by making a comparison between outputs from said two summing circuits (2, 5). A circuit adapted to derive an output which is indicative of the centre-of-gravity of fuzzy information represented by electric signals (µ i ) distributed over a plurality of lines (ℓ i ) each corresponding to a discrete value taken by an input variable (x i ), the signal (µ i ) on each line representing the grade of that discrete value, the circuit comprising a weighted summing integration circuit (13) adapted to execute and output the result (V 1 ) of a summing integration of said signals after multiplying each said signal (µ i ) by a respective weight value corresponding to the discrete value of the variable (x i ) associated with its said line (ℓ i ); a simple summing circuit (14) adapted to output the result (V 2 ) of a sum from said signals (µ i ) without weighting; said circuit being characterised by a comparator (6) adapted to provide said output in the form of a pulse whose width (T) is indicative of said centre of gravity by making a comparison between outputs from said two summing circuits (13, 14). Use as a defuzzifier, in a control system for the control of an actuator or the like in response to fuzzy information obtained as a result of fuzzy reasoning, of a circuit according to any preceding claim.

Inventors: MURAJI TETSUO, MURAJI, TETSUO, Muraji, Tetsuo, c/o Mikuni Corporation
Applicants: MIKUNI KOGYO KK, MIKUNI CORPORATION
Application year: 1992
Main classification: G06G7
IPC codes: G06N7, G06G7, G06F9, G05B13