pwc-archive/papers-with-abstracts huggingface dataset:
Personalized Dynamic Pricing Policy for Electric Vehicles: Reinforcement learning approach
Authors: Sangjun Bae, Balazs Kulcsar, Sebastien Gros
Date: 2024-01-01 00:00:00
Tasks: Q-Learning, reinforcement-learning, Reinforcement Learning, Reinforcement Learning (RL)

With the increasing number of fast-electric vehicle charging stations (fast-EVCSs) and the popularization of information technology, electricity price competition between fast-EVCSs is highly expected, in which the utilization of public and/or privacy-preserved information will play a crucial role. Self-interest electric vehicle (EV) users, on the other hand, try to select a fast-EVCS for charging in a way to maximize their utilities based on electricity price, estimated waiting time, and their state of charge. While existing studies have largely focused on finding equilibrium prices, this study proposes a personalized dynamic pricing policy (PeDP) for a fast-EVCS to maximize revenue using a reinforcement learning (RL) approach. We first propose a multiple fast-EVCSs competing simulation environment to model the selfish behavior of EV users using a game-based charging station selection model with a monetary utility function. In the environment, we propose a Q-learning-based PeDP to maximize fast-EVCS' revenue. Through numerical simulations based on the environment: (1) we identify the importance of waiting time in the EV charging market by comparing the classic Bertrand competition model with the proposed PeDP for fast-EVCSs (from the system perspective); (2) we evaluate the performance of the proposed PeDP and analyze the effects of the information on the policy (from the service provider perspective); and (3) it can be seen that privacy-preserved information sharing can be misused by artificial intelligence-based PeDP in a certain situation in the EV charging market (from the customer perspective).
Efficient Design for Multi-user Downlink Beamforming with Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface
Authors: Mohammad Ebrahimi, Min Dong
Date: 2023-12-31 00:00:00

This paper considers downlink multi-user transmission facilitated by a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS). First, focusing on the multi-group multicast beamforming scenario, we develop a fast and scalable algorithm for the joint base station (BS) and RIS beamforming optimization to minimize the transmit power subject to the user quality-of-service (QoS) constraints. By exploring the structure of this QoS problem, we show that the joint beamforming optimization can be naturally decomposed into a BS multicast beamforming QoS problem and an RIS passive multicast beamforming max-min-fair (MMF) problem. We propose an alternating multicast beamforming (AMBF) algorithm to solve the two subproblems alternatingly. For the BS QoS subproblem, we utilize the optimal multicast beamforming structure to obtain the BS beamformers efficiently. Furthermore, we reformulate the challenging RIS MMF subproblem and employ a first-order projected subgradient algorithm (PSA), which yields closed-form updates. The computational complexity of the AMBF algorithm grows linearly with the number of RIS elements and BS antennas. We further show that the AMBF approach is also an efficient method for the RIS-assisted downlink multi-user unicast beamforming problem, providing semi-closed-form updates. Next, we study the MMF problem for the RIS-assisted downlink beamforming design and propose a PSA-based fast algorithm to compute the BS and RIS beamforming solutions with closed-form updates per iteration, leading to a highly computationally efficient solution. Simulation results show the efficacy of our proposed algorithms in both performance and computational cost compared to other alternative methods.
Notes on the SWIFT method based on Shannon Wavelets for Option Pricing -- Revisited
Authors: Fabien Le Floc'h
Date: 2024-01-03 00:00:00

This note revisits the SWIFT method based on Shannon wavelets to price European options under models with a known characteristic function in 2023. In particular, it discusses some possible improvements and exposes some concrete drawbacks of the method.
On Complexity of Stability Analysis in Higher-order Ecological Networks through Tensor Decompositions
Authors: Anqi Dong, Can Chen
Date: 2024-01-04 00:00:00

Complex ecological networks are often characterized by intricate interactions that extend beyond pairwise relationships. Understanding the stability of higher-order ecological networks is salient for species coexistence, biodiversity, and community persistence. In this article, we present complexity analyses for determining the linear stability of higher-order ecological networks through tensor decompositions. We are interested in the higher-order generalized Lotka-Volterra model, which captures high-order interactions using tensors of varying orders. To efficiently compute Jacobian matrices and thus determine stability in large ecological networks, we exploit various tensor decompositions, including higher-order singular value decomposition, Canonical Polyadic decomposition, and tensor train decomposition, accompanied by in-depth computational and memory complexity analyses. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our framework with numerical examples.
Interference Management in 5G and Beyond Networks
Authors: Nessrine Trabelsi, Lamia Chaari Fourati, Chung Shue Chen
Date: 2024-01-03 00:00:00
Tasks: Management

During the last decade, wireless data services have had an incredible impact on people's lives in ways we could never have imagined. The number of mobile devices has increased exponentially and data traffic has almost doubled every year. Undoubtedly, the rate of growth will continue to be rapid with the explosive increase in demands for data rates, latency, massive connectivity, network reliability, and energy efficiency. In order to manage this level of growth and meet these requirements, the fifth-generation (5G) mobile communications network is envisioned as a revolutionary advancement combining various improvements to previous mobile generation networks and new technologies, including the use of millimeter wavebands (mm-wave), massive multiple-input multipleoutput (mMIMO) multi-beam antennas, network densification, dynamic Time Division Duplex (TDD) transmission, and new waveforms with mixed numerologies. New revolutionary features including terahertz (THz) communications and the integration of Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN) can further improve the performance and signal quality for future 6G networks. However, despite the inevitable benefits of all these key technologies, the heterogeneous and ultra-flexible structure of the 5G and beyond network brings non-orthogonality into the system and generates significant interference that needs to be handled carefully. Therefore, it is essential to design effective interference management schemes to mitigate severe and sometimes unpredictable interference in mobile networks. In this paper, we provide a comprehensive review of interference management in 5G and Beyond networks and discuss its future evolution. We start with a unified classification and a detailed explanation of the different types of interference and continue by presenting our taxonomy of existing interference management approaches. Then, after explaining interference measurement reports and signaling, we provide for each type of interference identified, an in-depth literature review and technical discussion of appropriate management schemes. We finish by discussing the main interference challenges that will be encountered in future 6G networks and by presenting insights on the suggested new interference management approaches, including useful guidelines for an AI-based solution. This review will provide a first-hand guide to the industry in determining the most relevant technology for interference management, and will also allow for consideration of future challenges and research directions.
Algorithm-Supervised Millimeter Wave Indoor Localization using Tiny Neural Networks
Authors: Anish Shastri, Steve Blandino, Camillo Gentile, Chiehping Lai, Paolo Casari
Date: 2024-01-02 00:00:00
Tasks: Indoor Localization

The quasi-optical propagation of millimeter-wave signals enables high-accuracy localization algorithms that employ geometric approaches or machine learning models. However, most algorithms require information on the indoor environment, may entail the collection of large training datasets, or bear an infeasible computational burden for commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) devices. In this work, we propose to use tiny neural networks (NNs) to learn the relationship between angle difference-of-arrival (ADoA) measurements and locations of a receiver in an indoor environment. To relieve training data collection efforts, we resort to a self-supervised approach by bootstrapping the training of our neural network through location estimates obtained from a state-of-the-art localization algorithm. We evaluate our scheme via mmWave measurements from indoor 60-GHz double-directional channel sounding. We process the measurements to yield dominant multipath components, use the corresponding angles to compute ADoA values, and finally obtain location fixes. Results show that the tiny NN achieves sub-meter errors in 74% of the cases, thus performing as good as or even better than the state-of-the-art algorithm, with significantly lower computational complexity.
Unsupervised Graph-based Learning Method for Sub-band Allocation in 6G Subnetworks
Authors: Daniel Abode, Ramoni Adeogun, Lou Salaün, Renato Abreu, Thomas Jacobsen, Gilberto Berardinelli
Date: 2023-12-13 00:00:00

In this paper, we present an unsupervised approach for frequency sub-band allocation in wireless networks using graph-based learning. We consider a dense deployment of subnetworks in the factory environment with a limited number of sub-bands which must be optimally allocated to coordinate inter-subnetwork interference. We model the subnetwork deployment as a conflict graph and propose an unsupervised learning approach inspired by the graph colouring heuristic and the Potts model to optimize the sub-band allocation using graph neural networks. The numerical evaluation shows that the proposed method achieves close performance to the centralized greedy colouring sub-band allocation heuristic with lower computational time complexity. In addition, it incurs reduced signalling overhead compared to iterative optimization heuristics that require all the mutual interfering channel information. We further demonstrate that the method is robust to different network settings.
Direction of Arrival Estimation Using Microphone Array Processing for Moving Humanoid Robots
Authors: Vladimir Tourbabin, Boaz Rafaely
Date: 2024-01-04 00:00:00
Tasks: Direction of Arrival Estimation, Motion Compensation

The auditory system of humanoid robots has gained increased attention in recent years. This system typically acquires the surrounding sound field by means of a microphone array. Signals acquired by the array are then processed using various methods. One of the widely applied methods is direction of arrival estimation. The conventional direction of arrival estimation methods assume that the array is fixed at a given position during the estimation. However, this is not necessarily true for an array installed on a moving humanoid robot. The array motion, if not accounted for appropriately, can introduce a significant error in the estimated direction of arrival. The current paper presents a signal model that takes the motion into account. Based on this model, two processing methods are proposed. The first one compensates for the motion of the robot. The second method is applicable to periodic signals and utilizes the motion in order to enhance the performance to a level beyond that of a stationary array. Numerical simulations and an experimental study are provided, demonstrating that the motion compensation method almost eliminates the motion-related error. It is also demonstrated that by using the motion-based enhancement method it is possible to improve the direction of arrival estimation performance, as compared to that obtained when using a stationary array.
Robust Control Barrier Functions using Uncertainty Estimation with Application to Mobile Robots
Authors: Ersin Das, Joel W. Burdick
Date: 2024-01-03 00:00:00

This paper proposes a safety-critical control design approach for nonlinear control affine systems in the presence of matched and unmatched uncertainties. Our constructive framework couples control barrier function (CBF) theory with a new uncertainty estimator to ensure robust safety. We use the estimated uncertainty, along with a derived upper bound on the estimation error, for synthesizing CBFs and safety-critical controllers via a quadratic program-based feedback control law that rigorously ensures robust safety while improving disturbance rejection performance. We extend the method to higher-order CBFs (HOCBFs) to achieve safety under unmatched uncertainty, which may cause relative degree differences with respect to control input and disturbances. We assume the relative degree difference is at most one, resulting in a second-order cone constraint. We demonstrate the proposed robust HOCBF method through a simulation of an uncertain elastic actuator control problem and experimentally validate the efficacy of our robust CBF framework on a tracked robot with slope-induced matched and unmatched perturbations.
Enhancing the Performance of DeepReach on High-Dimensional Systems through Optimizing Activation Functions
Authors: Qian Wang, Tianhao Wu
Date: 2023-12-29 00:00:00

With the continuous advancement in autonomous systems, it becomes crucial to provide robust safety guarantees for safety-critical systems. Hamilton-Jacobi Reachability Analysis is a formal verification method that guarantees performance and safety for dynamical systems and is widely applicable to various tasks and challenges. Traditionally, reachability problems are solved by using grid-based methods, whose computational and memory cost scales exponentially with the dimensionality of the system. To overcome this challenge, DeepReach, a deep learning-based approach that approximately solves high-dimensional reachability problems, is proposed and has shown lots of promise. In this paper, we aim to improve the performance of DeepReach on high-dimensional systems by exploring different choices of activation functions. We first run experiments on a 3D system as a proof of concept. Then we demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach on a 9D multi-vehicle collision problem.
Algorithm for globally identifiable reparametrizations of ODEs
Authors: Sebastian Falkensteiner, Alexey Ovchinnikov, J. Rafael Sendra
Date: 2024-01-01 00:00:00

Structural global parameter identifiability indicates whether one can determine a parameter's value in an ODE model from given inputs and outputs. If a given model has parameters for which there is exactly one value, such parameters are called globally identifiable. Given an ODE model involving not globally identifiable parameters, first we transform the system into one with locally identifiable parameters. As a main contribution of this paper, then we present a procedure for replacing, if possible, the ODE model with an equivalent one that has globally identifiable parameters. We first derive this as an algorithm for one-dimensional ODE models and then reuse this approach for higher-dimensional models.
Optimal Real-Weighted Beamforming With Application to Linear and Spherical Arrays
Authors: V. Tourbabin, M. Agmon, B. Rafaely, J. Tabrikian
Date: 2024-01-04 00:00:00

One of the uses of sensor arrays is for spatial filtering or beamforming. Current digital signal processing methods facilitate complex-weighted beamforming, providing flexibility in array design. Previous studies proposed the use of real-valued beamforming weights, which although reduce flexibility in design, may provide a range of benefits, e.g., simplified beamformer implementation or efficient beamforming algorithms. This paper presents a new method for the design of arrays with real-valued weights, that achieve maximum directivity, providing closed-form solution to array weights. The method is studied for linear and spherical arrays, where it is shown that rigid spherical arrays are particularly suitable for real-weight designs as they do not suffer from grating lobes, a dominant feature in linear arrays with real weights. A simulation study is presented for linear and spherical arrays, along with an experimental investigation, validating the theoretical developments.
Listening broadband physical model for microphones: a first step
Authors: Laurent Millot, Antoine Valette, Manuel Lopes, Gérard Pelé, Mohammed Elliq, Dominique Lambert
Date: 2024-01-04 00:00:00

We will present a first step in design of a broadband physical model for microphones. Within the proposed model, classical directivity patterns (omnidirectional, bidirectional and cardioids family) are refound as limit cases: monochromatic excitation, low frequency and far-field approximation. Monophonic pieces of music are used as sources for the model so we can listen the simulation of the associated recorded sound field in realtime thanks to a Max/MSP application. Listening and subbands analysis show that the directivity is a function of frequential subband and source location. This model also exhibits an interesting proximity effect. Audio demonstrations will be given.Paper 6638 presented at the 120th Convention of the Audio Engineering Society, Paris, 2006
CTC Blank Triggered Dynamic Layer-Skipping for Efficient CTC-based Speech Recognition
Authors: JunFeng Hou, Peiyao Wang, Jincheng Zhang, Meng Yang, Minwei Feng, Jingcheng Yin
Date: 2024-01-04 00:00:00
Tasks: Knowledge Distillation, speech-recognition, Speech Recognition

Deploying end-to-end speech recognition models with limited computing resources remains challenging, despite their impressive performance. Given the gradual increase in model size and the wide range of model applications, selectively executing model components for different inputs to improve the inference efficiency is of great interest. In this paper, we propose a dynamic layer-skipping method that leverages the CTC blank output from intermediate layers to trigger the skipping of the last few encoder layers for frames with high blank probabilities. Furthermore, we factorize the CTC output distribution and perform knowledge distillation on intermediate layers to reduce computation and improve recognition accuracy. Experimental results show that by utilizing the CTC blank, the encoder layer depth can be adjusted dynamically, resulting in 29% acceleration of the CTC model inference with minor performance degradation.
Ultraspherical/Gegenbauer polynomials to unify 2D/3D Ambisonic directivity designs
Authors: Franz Zotter
Date: 2024-01-01 00:00:00

This report on axisymmetric ultraspherical/Gegenbauer polynomials and their use in Ambisonic directivity design in 2D and 3D presents an alternative mathematical formalism to what can be read in, e.g., my and Matthias Frank's book on Ambisonics or J\'er\^ome Daniel's thesis, Gary Elko's differential array book chapters, or Boaz Rafaely's spherical microphone array book. Ultraspherical/Gegenbauer polynomials are highly valuable when designing axisymmetric beams and understanding spherical t designs, and this report will shed some light on what circular, spherical, and ultraspherical axisymmetric polynomials are. While mathematically interesting by themselves already, they can be useful in spherical beamforming as described in the literature on spherical and differential microphone arrays. In this report, these ultraspherical/Gegenbauer polynomials will be used to uniformly derive for arbitrary dimensions D the various directivity designs or Ambisonic order weightings known from literature: max-DI/basic, max-rE , supercardioid, cardioid/inphase. Is there a way to relate higher-order cardioids and supercardioids? How could one define directivity patterns with an on-axis flatness constraint?
Self-supervised Reflective Learning through Self-distillation and Online Clustering for Speaker Representation Learning
Authors: Danwei Cai, Zexin Cai, Ze Li, Ming Li
Date: 2024-01-03 00:00:00
Tasks: Clustering, Knowledge Distillation, Online Clustering, Pseudo Label, Representation Learning

Speaker representation learning is crucial for voice recognition systems, with recent advances in self-supervised approaches reducing dependency on labeled data. Current two-stage iterative frameworks, while effective, suffer from significant computational overhead due to repeated rounds of clustering and training. They also struggle with noisy pseudo labels that can impair model learning. This paper introduces self-supervised reflective learning (SSRL), an improved framework that addresses these limitations by enabling continuous refinement of pseudo labels during training. Through a teacher-student architecture and online clustering mechanism, SSRL eliminates the need for iterative training rounds. To handle label noise, we incorporate noisy label modeling and pseudo label queues that maintain temporal consistency. Experiments on VoxCeleb show SSRL's superiority over current two-stage iterative approaches, surpassing the performance of a 5-round method in just a single training round. Ablation studies validate the contributions of key components like noisy label modeling and pseudo label queues. Moreover, consistent improvements in pseudo labeling and the convergence of cluster counts demonstrate SSRL's effectiveness in deciphering unlabeled data. This work marks an important advancement in efficient and accurate self-supervised speaker representation learning through the novel reflective learning paradigm.
The role of direct sound spherical harmonics representation in externalization using binaural reproduction
Authors: Eran Miller, Boaz Rafaely
Date: 2024-01-01 00:00:00

The importance of the information in the direct sound to human perception of spatial sound sources is an ongoing research topic. The classification between direct sound and diffuse or reverberant sound forms the basis of numerous studies in the field of spatial audio. In particular, parametric spatial audio representation methods use this classification and employ signal processing in order to enhance the audio quality at reproduction. However, current literature does not provide information concerning the impact of ideal direct sound representation on externalization, in the context of Ambisonics. This paper aims to assess the importance of the spatial information in the direct sound in the externalization of a sound field when using binaural reproduction. This is done in the spherical harmonics (SH) domain, where an ideal direct sound representation within an otherwise Ambisonics signal is simulated, and its perceived externalization is evaluated in a formal listening test. This investigation leads to the conclusion that externalization of a first order Ambisonics signal may be significantly improved by enhancing the direct sound component, up to a level similar to a third order Ambisonics signal.