bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Socratic Ethics and the Challenge of Globalization
Authors: Hartman Edwin M.
Published: July 2007

We have reached a rough moral consensus in the field of business ethics. We believe in capitalism with a safety net and enough regulation to deal with serious market imperfections. We favor autonomy for individuals and democracy for governments, though not necessarily for organizations. We recognize the rights of citizens and the different rights of employees. We respect a variety of possible sets of values, and so countenance a distinction between public and private. In other words, we are capitalists, pluralists, and liberals. But globalization will force us and businesspeople who share our views to deal with significant stakeholders who do not. The 21st century will see the accelerating pace of globalization. The great challenge for business ethics, for its philosophers and its scholars of business, will be to identify and advocate morality that takes adequate account of globalization, and that in so doing avoids untenable parochialism without falling into relativism.
A “Matter of Opinion, What Tends to the General Welfare”: Governing the Workplace
Authors: Keeley Michael
Published: July 2007

Opinion surveys and popular media suggest that American workers are disillusioned with their employers and bosses. Governance in organizations is becoming a recognized problem. Classical works on governance call for more virtuous leaders, less selfish followers, and closer attention to the common good. These works were rejected as a basis for governing nations in the 18th century. They are unlikely to provide a basis for governing organizations in the 21st century. This article outlines a liberal-democratic approach to governing corporations, applies this approach to debates over shareholder-stakeholder accountabilities, and proposes special accountabilities to employees.
Does Ethics Pay?
Authors: Paine Lynn Sharp
Published: July 2007

The relationship between ethics and economics has never been easy. Opponents in a tug of war, friends in a warm embrace, ships passing in the night—the relationship has been highly variable. In recent years, the friendship model has been gaining credence, particularly among U.S. corporate executives. Increasingly, companies are launching ethics programs, values initiatives, and community involvement activities premised on management’s belief that “Ethics pays.”
Globalization and the Failure of Ethics
Authors: Velasquez Manuel
Published: July 2007

As the 21st century breaks upon us, no ethical issues in business appear as significant as those being created by the rapid globalization of business. Globalization has created numerous ethical problems for the manager of the multinational corporation. What does justice demand, for example, in the relations between a multinational and its host country, particularly when that country is less developed? Should human rights principles govern the relations between a multinational and the workers of a host country, and if so, which principles are the correct ones? How should a multinational deal with a government in which corruption is rife? What are the ethical considerations involved in determining whether and how to transfer a risky technology to a country whose people may not be able to safely absorb that technology? What kind of labor and environmental standards should a multinational adopt when operating in a country whose government legislates only very low standards?
Exporting Mental Models: Global Capitalism in the 21st Century
Authors: Werhane Patricia H.
Published: July 2007

The most serious ethical challenge facing multinational corporations in the next century is their exportation of the mental model of Western-style capitalism. This model promises that industrialized free enterprise in a free trade global economy, where businesses and entrepreneurs can pursue their interests competitively without undue regulations or labor restrictions, will produce growth and well-being, i.e., economic good, in every country or community where this phenomenon is allowed to operate. This paper points to some limitations to this model and illustrates how multinational corporations might meet this challenge.
Human Rights and Business Responsibilities in the Global Marketplace
Authors: Cassel Douglass
Published: July 2007

Communism lost the Cold War, not to pure free market capitalism, but to a range of diverse economic systems based on varying degrees and forms of social regulation of the market. Such social regulation was possible because both polities and economies were primarily national. Since the end of the Cold War, there has been rapid globalization of the economy, but not of effective social regulation. Incipient global political institutions are too weak to regulate global corporate power, while national governments no longer have sufficient reach to regulate large multinationals. Corporate self-regulation has begun, but only haltingly and mostly ineffectively.

While global prosperity has risen dramatically in recent decades, not everyone has progressed since the end of the Cold War. Since 1990 some 55 countries have had declining per capita incomes, while inequality has risen within and between countries. It is too soon to say whether global capitalism will be saved from itself by regulation, just as American national capitalism may have been saved by the New Deal reforms it opposed. As Pope John Paul II has warned, the world must not succumb to a “radical capitalist ideology” which “blindly entrusts” social problems to market forces.
The Battle in Seattle: Reconciling Two World Views on Corporate Culture
Authors: Dobson John
Published: July 2007

This paper investigates the broad ideological conflict between world views on corporate culture. Two views are identified: one encompassing standard liberal economic philosophy; the other taking broader notions of corporate culture from ethics theory. The conflict that surrounded the World Trade Organization meeting in Seattle is used as an illustration of the current conflict between these views. The writings of Alasdair MacIntyre are employed as a means of elucidating and reconciling these two world views.
The Moral Significance of Employee Loyalty
Authors: Schrag Brian
Published: July 2007

Expectations and possibilities for employee loyalty are shifting rapidly, particularly in the for-profit sector. I explore the nature of employee loyalty to the organization, in particular, those elements of loyalty beyond the notion of the ethical demands of employee loyalty. I consider the moral significance of loyalty for the employee and whether the development of ties of loyalty to the work organization is in fact a good thing for the employee or for the employer. I argue that employees have a natural inclination to extend loyalty to the organization and that organizations consequently have an obligation to make clear to employees the degree to which the organization will recognize and reward employee loyalty.
Employee Voice in Corporate Governance: A Defense of Strong Participation Rights
Authors: McCall John J.
Published: July 2007

This article surveys arguments for the claim that employees have a right to strong forms of decision-making participation. It considers objections to employee participation based on shareholders’ property rights and it claims that those objections are flawed. In particular, it argues the employee participation rights are grounded on the same values as are property rights. The article suggests that the conflict between these two competing rights claims is best resolved by limiting the scope of corporate property rights and by recognizing a strong employee right to co-determine corporate decisions.
On Social Psychology, Business Ethics, and Corporate Governance
Authors: Fort Timothy L.
Published: July 2007

This paper is a response to a recent colloquy among Professors David Messick, Donna Wold, and Edwin Harman. I defend Messick’s naturalist methodology, which suggests that people inherently categorize others and act altruistically toward certain people in a given person’s in-group. This paper suggests that an anthropological reason for this grouping tendency is a limited human neural ability to process large numbers of relationships. But because human beings also have the ability to modify, to some extent, their nature, corporate law can organize small mediating institutions within large corporations in order to take ethical advantage of this grouping tendency. Within a corporate law taking seriously a mediating institution’s formulation of business communities, a virtue ethics approach can be integrated with a naturalist approach in a way that fosters ethical business behavior while mitigating the dangers of ingrouping tendencies.
Transforming Justice: A Conceptualization
Authors: McMahon Thomas F.
Published: July 2007

Rights, justice, and power raise many interesting questions. Why do such basic concepts as rights and justice have such different points of concern—equality, proportionality, medium rei (moderation or the middle of the thing itself without reference to the person using it)? Why are there such different perspectives in philosophy, theology, and law? Why is the notion of power in business ethics so isolated from the general discussion of applied justice in treatises on business contracts, employee relations, and in other related topics? Discussions of power seemed parallel with discussions of justice. The two did not seem to intersect.

In this paper I shall argue that rights, power, and justice are interrelated. While natural rights are the basis for justice, rights cannot be realized nor justice become operative without power. I shall call this relationship and the theory underlying it “Transforming Justice.” One of the basic concerns of this article is to notice the lack of interaction between rights and power in the traditional theories of justice. Granted that for many philosophers it is sufficient to determine what is just. But the notion of justice as an active virtue that persons are to exercise in their dealings with others goes further. It touches the realities of life that every person experiences. Life does not separate rights from power. Reflection upon the current separation of rights from power both in theory and in action is analogous to the separation of the “sensory” from the “imaginative” in art and in life. The urge to devise a framework of justice that brings out the wholeness of its existential being is the underlying rationale for developing a theory of transforming justice. Another purpose for developing a theory of transforming justice is to suggest a conceptual framework of business ethics and corporate social responsibility that incorporates values, rights, power, and virtue. Authors and teachers approach these issues either from a value (or rights/justice) perspective or from the view that institutions respond only to those who exercise power (apart from legitimate claims). Thus, it is necessary for a conceptual framework to incorporate the dynamics of power and the qualifying aspects of rights or claims. A natural law approach to justice and rights argues that humans have certain basic rights that others, whether humans or institutions (regardless of source), are required to respect. Natural rights theory places the burden or duty on each individual to respect the rights of every other person. In addition, justice is usually defined by natural law theorists as “giving each person his or her due,” what is required by natural rights, what is owed, earned, or deserved. But its applications fall short of reality. It raises other questions. How does one person get another to give him what is “his due”? How are duties and claims entailed by natural rights enforced in practice? The notion of transforming justice attempts to answer these questions.
Toward an Ethics of Organizations
Authors: Phillips Robert A. , Margolis Joshua D.
Published: July 2007

The organization is importantly different from both the nation-state and the individual and hence needs its own ethical models and theories, distinct from political and moral theory. To develop a case for organizational ethics, this paper advances arguments in three directions. First, it highlights the growing role of organizations and their distinctive attributes. Second, it illuminates the incongruities between organizations and moral and political philosophy. Third, it takes these incongruities, as well as organizations’ distinctive attributes, as a starting point for suggesting an agenda for an ethics of organizations.
Corporate Ethics and the Entrepreneurial Theory of “Social Success”
Authors: Sciarelli Sergio
Published: July 2007

The introduction of ethics in the running of a corporate firm is functional to the reaching of its business purposes.

The adoption of values of distributive justice (equity) and respect (trust) concurs and determines the building of trust both inside the corporation itself and externally, making the birth of solid relationships based on collaboration and a lasting sense of loyalty possible in a productive world, which tends to praise efficiency throughout the entire production line. Therefore, the judgment that ethics pays and the conclusion that the growth of an “ethical sense” in the organization makes up one of the most difficult challenges of modern management.
Upping the Stakes: A Response to John Hasnas on the Normative Viability of the Stockholder and Stakeholder Theories
Authors: Palmer Daniel E.
Published: July 2007

This essay responds to Hasnas’s recent article “The Normative Theories of Business Ethics: A Guide for the Perplexed” in Business Ethics Quarterly. Hasnas claims that the stockholder theory is more plausible than commonly supposed and that the stakeholder theory is prone to significant difficulties. I argue that Hasnas’s reasons for favoring the stockholder over the stakeholder theory are not as strong as he suggests. Following Hasnas, I examine both theories in light of two sets of normative considerations: utilitarian and deontological. First, I show that utilitarian considerations clearly favor the stakeholder theory. I then argue that though Hasnas rightly accents the basic deontological constraint at the core of the stockholder theory, he is wrong to think that acknowledging such a constraint necessarily counts against the stakeholder theory. Here, I develop Ross’s notion of prima facie obligations to show how a viable stakeholder theory might be developed within a deontological framework.
Tensions and Dilemmas of Ecotopianism
Authors: Pepper David
Published: July 2007

This paper examines some of many tensions associated with the utopian propensity that underlies much thinking and action in radical environmentalism. They include the tensions inherent within ecotopianism's approach to social change, its desire to embrace ecological universals, its general propensity to face Janus-like in the direction of both modernity and post-modernity, and its tendency towards a polarised stance on scale, and local and global issues. These tensions create dilemmas that are not merely of academic interest: they have practical, tactical and strategic implications, affecting the environmental movement's ‘transgressive’ potential in the search for ecotopia.
The Troubled Marriage of Deep Ecology and Bioregionalism
Authors: Davidson Stewart
Published: July 2007

Bioregionalism is often presented as the politics of deep ecology, or deep ecology's social philosophy. That the ties uniting these doctrines are rarely explored can be put down to a perception amongst commentators that such links are self-evident and therefore unworthy of closer examination. By arguing that the bonds between deep ecology and bioregionalism are more tenuous than has often been assumed, this paper addresses this theoretical lacuna. There is nothing exclusive to the central tenets of deep ecology which provides us with a coherent rationale for a specifically bioregional form of decentralisation. However, deep ecology has nonetheless had an appreciable impact on bioregional thinking. In this context it is argued that bioregionalism's assimilation of aspects of deep ecology, and particularly an emphasis upon cross-species identification, undermines the project in various ways.
Robust pole placement indirect adaptive control
Authors: Giri F. , M'Saad M. , Dugard L. , Dion J. M.
Published: July 2007

The problem of designing a robustly stable pole placement indirect adaptive controller in the presence of output disturbances and unmodelled dynamics is addressed. The key features of such a design are the following. (1) The unknown parameters are estimated by a normalized least‐squares algorithm with a dead zone to provide the stability robustness with respect to bounded disturbances and ‘small’ unmodelled dynamics. (2) The estimated model controllability is ensured by modifying the control law over a finite time. The modification involved consists of adding an internal impulse excitation and ‘freezing’ the controller parameters.
A robust solution to the admissibility problem in indirect adaptive control without persistency of excitation
Authors: de Larminat Philippe , Raynaud Henri‐Francois
Published: July 2007

This paper deals with adaptive control based on explicit identification. The problem of admissibility of the identified model is solved without requiring persistently exciting inputs. This solution is robust with respect to process variations, unstructured disturbances and model order errors. Finally, this approach is not restricted to a particular class of control laws.
Direct adaptive control of a pulsed liquid‐liquid extraction column
Authors: Najlm K. , Youlal H. , Praly L. , Najlm M.
Published: July 2007

This paper describes an application of a direct adaptive control scheme to a pulsed liquid‐liquid extraction column. Liquid—liquid extraction has been increasingly used in several industries as a separation technique. It performs a high degree of purification and is not heavy on energy. In spite of the flow and physical properties of solvent (the extractor) and solute (the liquid mixture) fluctuations, the control objective is to maintain the column at the flooding point. The pulser frequency and the conductivity measured under the distributor at the bottom of the column have been selected as control variables. A simplified linear discrete model of the complex dynamics of the process was assumed. The control algorithm is derived using the pole placement method as the underlying design procedure and is based on estimation of both model and controller parameters. This estimation procedure is bilinear in these parameters and is obtained from input and output prediction error models. A least‐square criterion minimization is adopted to solve this identification problem. In this approach no assumptions are made on the stabilizability of the identified model nor on the persistence of excitation. The column was interfaced by a PDP‐11 microcomputer. Attention was paid to practical problem implementation of the algorithm for permanent plant operation. Experimental results demonstrate that this algorithm accomplishes satisfactory and robust control of this highly sensitive plant.
Adaptive estimation in the presence of order and parameter changes
Authors: Xia L. , Krishnamurthy V. , Moore J. B.
Published: July 2007

This paper gives an approach to adaptive estimation/control when there are jump parameter changes which include order changes. Order changes can be viewed as the introduction of overparametrization, which in conventional algorithms causes ill‐conditioning. Here, modified algorithms which involve the introduction of noise into the calculations are proposed and studied by theory and simulations.
Adaptive decoupling control of mimo systems
Authors: And Li Mo , Bayoumi M. M.
Published: July 2007

This paper describes a new adaptive controller for MIMO systems. The resulting closed‐loop system will be stable and decoupled. The system to be controlled can be linear, non‐minimum phase and/or unstable. The interactor matrix need not be known beforehand. Instead of employing the certainty equivalence principle to design the adaptive controller, a special controller design procedure is used. By using this special scheme, the computation time required for controller design will be drastically reduced. Moreover, the boundedness of the controller parameters is automatically ensured. This is a desired property which is useful in stability analysis. The steady state performance of the controller designed by the proposed method will be the same as that of controllers designed using the certainty equivalence principle. Approximate decoupling can be achieved by underestimating the degree of the decoupling matrix without affecting the stability of the system. To achieve decoupling, we need to specify the denominator of the closed‐loop transfer function matrix of the system which is assumed to be in the form T(q−1) = t(q−1)I where the polynomial t(q−1) is assumed to be monic and stable. Global stability of the adaptive system is obtained for deterministic systems. A simulation example is presented to demonstrate this control scheme.
An advanced example of direct adaptive control system design
Authors: Mudgett D. R. , Morse A. S.
Published: July 2007

This paper describes the result of a computer study of the adaptive control of a family of example systems by the model reference algorithm of Reference 1, suitably modified to account for unmodelled dynamics and external disturbances.
Application of linear adaptive control to some advanced benchmark examples
Authors: Johnson C. D.
Published: July 2007

Linear adaptive control1–8 is a new approach to adaptive controller design that uses a novel exogenous linear dynamical model of parameter perturbation ‘effects’ and an ordinary linear observer to generate the required adaptive control signal u(t). By this means, the need for a non‐linear parameter estimator, as traditionally used in adaptive control, is eliminated and the resulting adaptive controller is completely linear and time‐invariant (all controller ‘gains’ are constant).

The performance capabilities of linear adaptive controllers have been demonstrated in References 4 and 6–8 using relatively simple examples. In this paper the linear adaptive control technique is applied to several examples having complex forms of plant uncertainty. Computer simulation studies are presented to demonstrate the quality of adaptive performance achieved.
A method for the state estimation of elastic joint robots by global position measurements
Authors: Nicosia Salvatore , Tomei Patrizio
Published: July 2007

The design of observers for elastic joint robots is investigated. Using some structural properties of the robot dynamics, a model‐based observer is proposed which requires only the knowledge of the link positions. The asymptotic stability of the related error dynamics along with an estimate of the region of attraction are also given. The observer performances are analysed by means of simulation tests.
Consistent parameter estimation for deterministic mimo systems with overparametrized models
Authors: Mo L. , Bayoumi M. M.
Published: July 2007

In this paper the parameter estimation problem for deterministic MIMO systems with overparametrized models will be addressed. In SISO systems overparametrized signal models might arise if the order of the plant model is set too high. For MIMO systems this problem will arise whenever its observability indices are different or, as in SISO systems, the order of the system is set too high. With a proper definition of persistent excitation it is shown that the estimated parameters will converge to a set of parameters. Each point of this set will result in the same transfer function as that of the system under consideration. A very efficient correction algorithm will be used to remove the greatest left common divisor of the estimated system parameters. Hence adaptive control algorithms, which may not be suitable if the estimated system parameters are not left coprime, can then be implemented.
Robust failure detection for linear distributed parameter systems
Authors: Lou Sheldon X. C. , Jiang Jiong
Published: July 2007

This paper discusses the robust failure detection methods in general separable Hilbert space using an operator approximation approach. It is simple and provides an intuitive geometric interpretation. The computational procedure required is the Schmit expansion of an operator. An example arising from the sensor failure detection design for space structures is given to illustrate the methodology suggested.

This paper was recommended for publication by editor A. Benveniste
PID, Predictive and fuzzy temperature control for nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy experiments
Authors: Grossi P. , Scattolini R.
Published: July 2007

Temperature control inside the probe of an NMR spectrometer is dealt with. First a simple model of the system is derived by means of step response experiments. Then four control algorithms are implemented and compared. Specifically, a PID regulator is first synthesized and applied to the real plant. Then, in order to cope with the non‐linearity of the plant, two adaptive predictive control algorithms are implemented, namely the generalized predictive control and the constrained receding horizon predictive control algorithms. They both show superior performance with respect to PID for control of a simulated plant model and of the real plant. Finally a feasibility study is carried out for a fuzzy controller; its unsatisfactory behaviour in simulation prevents one from applying it to the plant.
Robustness of VS‐MRAC with respect to unmodelled dynamics and external disturbances
Authors: Costa Ramon R. , Hsu Liu
Published: July 2007

A variable structure model reference adaptive controller (VS‐MRAC) using only input and output measurements was recently proposed and shown to be globally asymptotically stable with superior transient behaviour and disturbance rejection properties. In this paper a singular perturbation approach is used in order to establish the robustness of the controller in the presence of unmodelled dynamics (parasitics) and disturbances. We develop a new Lyapunov‐based technique to analyse the overall system and show that for sufficiently small parasitics the system remains stable and the output error is small in some sense.
An adaptive tracking problem
Authors: Miller Daniel E. , Davison E. J.
Published: July 2007

In this paper we consider the problem of designing a controller for an uncertain linear time‐invariant (LTI) system; the control objective is that of asymptotic error regulation for reference and disturbance signals which are described by a known unforced differential equation. In particular, we are concerned with the case in which this differential equation describes linear combinations of sinusoidal and constant functions; we show that under mild (almost necessary) structural requirements on the plant, prior knowledge of the order of an LTI exponentially stabilizing compensator is sufficient to achieve this control objective.
A discussion of model accuracy in system identification
Authors: Ljung Lennart
Published: July 2007

Model quality and model accuracy are of prime interest in system identification. In this contribution we will review and discuss these concepts. In particular we will split model errors into contributions from a ‘random error’ and a ‘bias error’ and describe and discuss how to assess these two concepts.
Adaptive control of siso plants with unmodelled dynamics
Authors: Bartolini G. , Ferrara A.
Published: July 2007

In this paper we pursue a twofold aim. First we want to simplify the complexity of the classical Monopoli's scheme, the so‐called ‘Augmented error signal control scheme’. Then we also wish to cope with the realistic situation in which the presence of unmodelled dynamics has to be taken into account. This latter problem has been faced in the literature by suitably modifying the adaptation mechanism in order to avoid undesired phenomena as well as to obtain an attractive stability region for the state trajectories starting from any point in a predefined initial condition set. In our case the necessity of introducing any sort of modification in the adaptation mechanism is completely avoided, but we still obtain asymptotic stability of the output error signal.
Estimation of convergence rate for robust identification algorithms
Authors: Kul'Chitskiy O. Yu. , Mozgovoy A. E.
Published: July 2007

The problem of constructing non‐asymptotic (true from the first step) estimates of the convergence rate of robust identification on‐line algorithms is considered. Estimates which are correct at each procedural step with any preassigned probability are shown for the one‐dimensional algorithm class. Examples of such estimates are given.
A stable gradient algorithm of adaptation using an output signal
Authors: Nikiforov V. O.
Published: July 2007

This paper studies the adaptation law design problem for a linear error model with a scalar output signal. The proposed gradient algorithm of adaptation allows one to provide asymptotic stability of a closed adaptive system without the necessity of error model positivity. The basis of the design is similar to that of Monopoli, who proposed using an additional signal proportional to the speed of parameter adjustment. Relationships of the algorithm and previous ones (the MIT‐rule and Narendra's et al. one) and its employment for a time‐variant error model are briefly discussed.
Enhancing optimal controllers via techniques from robust and adaptive control
Authors: Imae J. , Irlicht L. , Obinata G. , Moore J. B.
Published: July 2007

Optimal control strategies for both non‐linear and linear plants and indices are notoriously sensitive to modelling errors and external noise disturbances. In this paper a general framework to enhance robustness of an optimal control law is presented, with emphasis on the non‐linear case. The framework allows a blending of off‐line non‐linear optimal control, on‐line linear robust feedback control for regulation about the optimal trajectory and on‐line adaptive techniques to enhance performance/robustness. The adaptive‐Q techniques are those developed in previous work based on the Youla‐Kucera parametrization for the class of all stabilizing two‐degree‐of‐freedom controllers. Some general fundamental stability properties are developed which are new, at least for the non‐linear plant and linear robust controller case. Also, performance enhancement results in the presence of unmodelled linear dynamics based on an averaging analysis are reviewed. A convergence analysis based on averaging theory appears possible in principle for any specific non‐linear system but is beyond the scope of the present paper. Certain model reference adaptive control algorithms come out as special cases. A non‐linear optimal control problem is studied to illustrate the efficacy of the techniques, and the possibility of further performance enhancement based on functional learning is noted.
Functional learning in signal processing via least squares
Authors: Perkins J. E. , Mareels I. M. Y. , Moore J. B. , Horowitz R.
Published: July 2007

This paper addresses certain functional learning tasks in signal processing using familiar algorithms and analytical tools of least squares for autoregressive moving average exogenous input (ARMAX) models, the models can be viewed as conventional ARMAX models but with parameters dependent on variables such as inputs or states, termed function input variables. The functional dependence of the parameters on these variables is represented in terms of basis function expansions or, more generally, interpolation function representations. The interpolation functions in a least‐squares identification of coefficients also turn out to be in essence spread functions that spread learning throughout the space of function input variables. Thus for a set of training sequences or trajectories in function input space, system parameters and thereby system functionals can be updated. The idea is that these will have relevance for similar sequences or neighbouring trajectories.

The concept of persistence of excitation to achieve complete function learning or, equivalently, signal model learning is studied using least‐squares convergence results. Application of the proposed algorithms and theory within the signal‐processing context is addressed by means of simple illustrative examples.
Model reference adaptive control with unknown relative degree
Authors: Moctezuma Rubén G. , Lozano Rogelio , Suárez Dionisio A.
Published: July 2007

This work presents an indirect, model reference adaptive control for minimum phase linear systems of arbitrary relative degree. Global stability of the closed‐loop system is proved in spite of bounded disturbances and asympotic tracking is achieved in the ideal case.
A self‐organizing knn fuzzy controller and its neural network structure
Authors: Kwon T. M. , Zervakis M. E.
Published: July 2007

This paper introduces a fuzzy controller that can be designed without specific information on the membership functions and the fuzzy rules. We show how the membership values of crisp inputs can be determined by K‐nearest‐neighbour (KNN) distance measures applied to the centres of the input clusters. Based on this new type of membership values, we introduce a KNN defuzzification method that allows the direct estimation of the crisp output of the given input data. the proposed computational model requires a clustering (self‐organizing) process. We employ a simple clustering method that can adaptively allocate new clusters as more data become available to the controller. We prove that the resulting controller can uniformly approximate any real and continuous function to any desirable accuracy on a compact set. For hardware implementations we develop a neural network structure of the proposed fuzzy controller and compare it with other types of neural networks. It is shown that the three‐layer sigmoid neural network and the Gaussian radial basis function (GRBF) network are special cases of this structure. A learning algorithm for the new structure is provided. the performance of the proposed controller is considered through three application studies: a controller design for truck backer‐upper control, the prediction of the S&P 500 index, and the prediction of the Mackey‐Glass time series.
Adaptive estimation for periodic signal enhancement and tracking
Authors: Händel Peter , Tichavský Petr
Published: July 2007

A fast algorithm for enhancement and tracking of periodic signals with fixed or slowly varying central frequency in additive noise is proposed. the algorithm is based on results from discounted least squares identification of a harmonic signal model combined with a recursive update scheme for the estimated fundamental frequency. In particular the gain sequence of the algorithm is determined by the fundamental frequency and an eligible forgetting factor. the performance of the algorithm is compared with theoretical lower bounds and it is shown that the algorithm yields good results.
An adaptive filter using scanning observation with application to a DPS
Authors: Muraca P. , Pugliese P.
Published: July 2007

In this paper an observation strategy is presented, based on the concept of scanning observability, for finite‐dimensional linear systems with discrete observations. It aims to improve the convergence properties of the extended Kalman filter, regarded as an adaptive estimator of the state for the above class of systems. A significant application to a distributed parameter system is shown, related to the problem of determining a convenient trajectory for a moving sensor or a convenient scanning observation rule over a set of fixed sensors. the effectiveness of the resulting filter is analysed on the basis of several numerical experiments.
Signal‐processing‐based performance measures for differential linear repetitive processes
Authors: Smyth K. J. , Cao Y. , Rogers E. , Owens D. H.
Published: July 2007

Repetitive or multipass processes are a class of systems characterized by a series of sweeps through a set of dynamics defined over a fixed finite duration. The output of each sweep or pass acts as an explicit forcing function on and hence contributes to the next pass profile. This in turn leads to the unique control problem that the output sequence can contain oscillations which increase in amplitude from pass to pass. In this paper signal‐processing techniques are employed to develop unique computable performance measures of direct use in controller design and related studies.
Parameter bounds for a class of discrete bilinear systems from records with bounded output errors
Authors: Cerone V.
Published: July 2007

Parameter bounding offers a useful alternative to point parameter estimation methods when either statistical hypotheses on the errors are not met or uncertainties are better characterized in a deterministic way (e.g. systematic, round‐off, truncation errors). So far, many efforts have been devoted to the problem of parameter bounding in linear systems, where exact parameter uncertainty intervals can be computed. In contrast, only partial results have been found for general non‐linear parametrization, namely either upper or lower bounds on parameter uncertainties can be evaluated. In this paper we derive approximate parameter uncertainty intervals for a class of discrete bilinear systems with bounded output errors. This work is based on a linear input‐output parametrization and previous results on bounded errors‐in‐variables models. For an extensively simulated example, central estimates by means of the bounded errors‐in‐variables approach and least squares estimates are computed and compared.
A design method of adaptive load frequency control with dual‐rate sampling
Authors: Yamashita Katsumi , Hirayasu Mitsuru , Okafuji Kei , Mlyagi Hayao
Published: July 2007

An adaptive control strategy for load frequency control, the purpose of which is to reduce the transient errors in the frequency and scheduled tie‐line power deviations and to ensure zero steady state errors of these two quantities, is described. A dual‐rate sampling self‐tuning regulator whereby data sampling and control output are performed at different rates is designed for interconnected power systems with unknown deterministic load disturbances. the proposed control scheme is applied to a two‐area power system provided with reheat thermal turbines and the control effects of the regulator are examined using digital simulation.
Self‐optimization adaptive velocity control of asymmetric hydraulic actuator
Authors: Huang C. H. , Wang Y. T.
Published: July 2007

For the velocity control of an asymmetric hydraulic actuator the servovalve is not operated in the vicinity of zero. Thus the linearized model is not easily defined and the classical controller cannot be readily found. Also, because of its asymmetry, a fixed reference model of adaptive control cannot result in optimal performances for both directions.

In this paper, to minimize the performance index associated with the estimated model and control penalty, the self‐optimization α‐adaptive control shows an ability to adapt to variations in directions and operating conditions. Thus it will provide similarly optimal performances for both extending and retracting processes. Then, comparing with the variable gain control, the experimental results clearly show its superior performance and disturbance rejection.
Illuminating Embodiment: Rafael Lozano‐Hemmer's Relational Architectures
Authors: Fernández Maria
Published: July 2007

Art and architecture have a strong tradition of humanism in which man and the human body are the centre and measure of all things. Maria Fernández describes the work of artist Rafael Lozano‐Hemmer whose work transgresses and challenges these preconceptions through performance, seeking to expose the body and society's receptivity to instability, fluctuation and re‐imagining. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Concert Hall, Bruges
Authors: Melvin Jeremy
Published: July 2007

Jeremy Melvin describes how Robbrecht en Daem Architecten's concert hall in Bruges provides one of the most exemplary medieval Flemish cities with a ‘window to modernity’. Exceeding mere juxtaposition of old and new, the architects have created a wholly sensory experience for their concert‐going audience, which embraces the ephemeral quality of musical performance with the physicality of architecture. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
3+1 architects
Authors: Kurg Andres
Published: July 2007

Without the predominance of a single presiding tradition of modern architecture in Estonia, the way has been clear for a younger generation of architects to make their mark. Andres Kurg describes the work of 3+1 architects, who launched their career in the mid‐1990s with an Estonian Embassy in Vilnius, Lithuania. Through their trend‐setting domestic work, they have proved able to appeal to a new wealthy client base, while also developing their own interests in programme and architecture's relationship to the physical landscape. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Novel Nanoparticle‐Reinforced Metal Matrix Composites with Enhanced Mechanical Properties
Authors: Tjong S. C.
Published: July 2007

This paper summarizes and reviews the state‐of‐the‐art processing methods, structures and mechanical properties of the metal matrix composites reinforced with ceramic nanoparticles. The metal matrices of nanocomposites involved include aluminum and magnesium. The processing approaches for nanocomposites can be classified into ex‐situ and in‐situ synthesis routes. The ex‐situ ceramic nanoparticles are prone to cluster during composite processing and the properties of materials are lower than the theoretical values. Despite the fact of clustering, ex‐situ nanocomposites reinforced with very low loading levels of nanoparticles exhibit higher yield strength and creep resistance than their microcomposite counterparts filled with much higher particulate content. Better dispersion of ceramic nanoparticles in metal matrix can be achieved by using appropriate processing techniques. Consequently, improvements in both the mechanical strength and ductility can be obtained readily in aluminum or magnesium by adding ceramic nanoparticles. Similar beneficial enhancements in mechanical properties are observed for the nanocomposites reinforced with in‐situ nanoparticles.
Diffraction‐Based Residual Stress Analysis Applied to Problems in the Aircraft Industry
Authors: Staron P. , Cihak U. , Clemens H. , Stockinger M. , Bayraktar F. S. , Koçak M. , Schreyer A.
Published: July 2007

Cost reduction and weight saving are most important principles governing design and construction of aircrafts. Advanced alloys and thermo‐mechanical treatments as well as new and optimized production processes are being developed. For example, welding of fuselage components like stringers or clips made of Al alloys can have several advantages over riveting. Retention of optimum weld microstructure and properties as well as control of welding related residual stresses and distortion is essential. In the context of risk analysis and damage tolerance it will be of growing importance to study residual stress fields in weld configurations and their influence on fatigue crack propagation. In this paper, methods to evaluate residual stresses in turbine discs and laser welded Al joints are reviewed.
Testing for market power in the Australian grains and oilseeds industries
Authors: O'Donnell Christopher J. , Griffith Garry R. , Nightingale John J. , Piggott Roley R.
Published: July 2007

We formally assess competitive buying and selling behavior in the Australian grains and oilseeds industries using a more realistic empirical model and a less aggregated data set than previously available. We specify a duality model of profit maximization that allows for imperfect competition in both input and output markets and for variable‐proportions technologies. Aggregate input‐output data are used to define the structure of the relevant industries, and time series data are then used to implement the model for 13 grains and oilseeds products handled by seven groups of agents. The model is estimated in a Bayesian econometrics framework. We find evidence of flour and cereal food product manufacturers exerting market power when purchasing wheat, barley, oats and triticale; beer and malt manufacturers exerting market power when purchasing wheat and barley; and other food product manufacturers exerting market power when purchasing wheat, barley, oats and triticale. [EconLit citations: C11, L66, Q11]. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Agribusiness 23: 349–376, 2007.
Obesity and low‐carb diets in the united states: A herd behavior model
Authors: Miljkovic Dragan , Mostad Daniel
Published: July 2007

We propose that consumer herding is a plausible explanation of the popularity of low‐carb diets in the United States. This proposition was empirically tested using per capita consumption of both broilers and eggs as proxies of the popularity of low‐carb diets. Results confirm that people do not always make (perfectly) rational choices, even when a good signal or correct information is available to them. Instead, they choose to do what everyone else is doing. In addition, we could not conclusively determine that an increase in media reports about low‐carb diets led to further increase in the popularity of low‐carb diets. [JEL: D12, D82, Q18]. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Agribusiness 23: 421–434, 2007.
An old threat in a new setting: High prevalence of silicosis among jewelry workers
Authors: Murgia Nicola , Muzi Giacomo , dell'Omo Marco , Sallese Domenico , Ciccotosto Cesario , Rossi Margherita , Scatolini Paola , Zingarelli Alberto , Accattoli Maria Patrizia , Melchiorri Daniela , Abbritti Giuseppe
Published: July 2007

Background

Silicosis is caused by inhaling free crystalline silica. Few case reports have addressed the risk of silicosis in the jewelry trade where chalk molds containing a high percentage of silica are used in casting. We conducted a cross‐sectional study involving 100 goldsmiths exposed to silica.

Methods

All workers replied to a questionnaire and underwent a clinical examination, pulmonary function tests, a chest X‐ray and a high‐resolution CT scan.

Results

High‐resolution CT visualized signs of silicosis in 23 cases, confirmed by standard chest X‐rays in 10. In the 23 workers with CT evidence of silicosis Total Lung Capacity, FEV1 and the Lung Diffusing Capacity did not differ from the workers without the disease. Pulmonary function tests did not correlate with silica exposure.

Conclusion

In this study we demonstrate that use of chalk molds in casting in jewelry causes silicosis. The composition of the dust could be responsible of the high prevalence observed. Am. J. Ind. Med. 50:577–583, 2007. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Carbon black and lung cancer: Testing a new exposure metric in a German cohort
Authors: Morfeld Peter , McCunney Robert J.
Published: July 2007

Background

A cohort mortality study of a large carbon black production plant in Germany showed an elevation in lung cancer mortality (SMR 1.81 (95% CI: 1.34–2.39)), although the elevation could not be linked to exposure to carbon black.

Methods

In follow up to a British study of carbon black production workers [Sorahan et al., 2007] in which risk of lung cancer progressively declined after cessation of employment—in contrast to an expected upward trend—we evaluated the German cohort with a similar methodology, that is, by focusing on the first 15 years after leaving employment in terms of lung cancer SMR.

Results

In our SMR analysis of the German cohort of 1,528 men and an inception cohort of 1,271 men, distinctly different results from the British cohort were observed. We observed a rising trend in lung cancer SMR, in contrast to the declining SMR trend noted in the British cohort. In fact, Cox models for lung cancer mortality with attained age as the basic time variable showed negative coefficients for the full and inception cohorts.

Conclusions

Our analysis of a large German cohort of carbon black workers does not support the concept of a declining risk of lung cancer following cessation of employment. Am. J. Ind. Med. 50:565–567, 2007. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.