Law Informs Code: A Legal Informatics Approach to Aligning Artificial Intelligence with Humans

We are currently unable to specify human goals and societal values in a way that reliably directs AI behavior. Law-making and legal interpretation form a computational engine that converts opaque human values into legible directives. "Law Informs Code" is the research agenda embedding legal knowledge and reasoning in AI. Similar to how parties to a legal contract cannot foresee every potential contingency of their future relationship, and legislators cannot predict all the circumstances under which their proposed bills will be applied, we cannot ex ante specify rules that provably direct good AI behavior. Legal theory and practice have developed arrays of tools to address these specification problems. For instance, legal standards allow humans to develop shared understandings and adapt them to novel situations. In contrast to more prosaic uses of the law (e.g., as a deterrent of bad behavior through the threat of sanction), leveraged as an expression of how humans communicate their goals, and what society values, Law Informs Code. We describe how data generated by legal processes (methods of law-making, statutory interpretation, contract drafting, applications of legal standards, legal reasoning, etc.) can facilitate the robust specification of inherently vague human goals. This increases human-AI alignment and the local usefulness of AI. Toward society-AI alignment, we present a framework for understanding law as the applied philosophy of multi-agent alignment. Although law is partly a reflection of historically contingent political power - and thus not a perfect aggregation of citizen preferences - if properly parsed, its distillation offers the most legitimate computational comprehension of societal values available. If law eventually informs powerful AI, engaging in the deliberative political process to improve law takes on even more meaning.Comment: Forthcoming in Northwestern Journal of Technology and Intellectual Property, Volume 2

Timeless principles of taxpayer protection: how they adapt to digital disruption

Digital transformation will pose growing challenges to tax revenues and systems of taxation that were designed for another century. The tax rules may hasten slowly, but the record of response to the challenges of electronic commerce, and of base erosion and profit shifting, shows that tax administration is more adaptable. This article identifies the detailed nature of technological changes in electronics and systems; big data, automation and artificial intelligence; and security, including blockchain; as those changes affect tax administration. It highlights the critical taxpayer rights issues and applies accepted taxpayer rights frameworks. The article concludes that taxpayer rights principles are both highly adaptable to a digital world, and provide useful guidance to where urgent action and further research are required. © 2019 UNSW Business School™

Towards an integrated framework for the configuration of modular micro assembly systems

The future of manufacturing in high-cost economies is to maximise responsiveness to change whilst simultaneously minimising the financial implications. The concept of Reconfigurable Assembly Systems (RAS) has been proposed as a potential route to achieving this ideal. RASs offer the potential to rapidly change the configuration of a system in response to predicted or unforeseen events through standardised mechanical, electrical and software interfaces within a modular environment. This greatly reduces the design and integration effort for a single configuration, which, in combination with the concept of equipment leasing, enables the potential for reduction in system cost, reconfiguration cost, lead time and down time. This work was motivated by the slow implementation of the RAS concept in industry due, in part, to the limited research into the planning of multiple system reconfigurations. The challenge is to enable consideration of, and planning for, the production of numerous different products within a single modular, reconfigurable assembly environment. The developed methodology is to be structured and traceable, but also adaptable to specific and varying circumstances. This thesis presents an approach that aims towards providing a framework for the configuration of modular assembly systems. The approach consists of a capability model, a reconfiguration methodology and auxiliary functions. As a result, the approach facilitates the complete process of requirement elicitation, capability identification, definition and comparison, configuration analysis and optimisation and the generation of a system configuration lifecycle. The developed framework is demonstrated through a number of test case applications, which were used during the research, as well as the development of some specific technological applications needed to support the approach and application

An intelligent framework for dynamic web services composition in the semantic web

As Web services are being increasingly adopted as the distributed computing technology of choice to securely publish application services beyond the firewall, the importance of composing them to create new, value-added service, is increasing. Thus far, the most successful practical approach to Web services composition, largely endorsed by the industry falls under the static composition category where the service selection and flow management are done a priori and manually. The second approach to web-services composition aspires to achieve more dynamic composition by semantically describing the process model of Web services and thus making it comprehensible to reasoning engines or software agents. The practical implementation of the dynamic composition approach is still in its infancy and many complex problems need to be resolved before it can be adopted outside the research communities. The investigation of automatic discovery and composition of Web services in this thesis resulted in the development of the eXtended Semantic Case Based Reasoner (XSCBR), which utilizes semantic web and AI methodology of Case Based Reasoning (CBR). Our framework uses OWL semantic descriptions extensively for implementing both the matchmaking profiles of the Web services and the components of the CBR engine. In this research, we have introduced the concept of runtime behaviour of services and consideration of that in Web services selection. The runtime behaviour of a service is a result of service execution and how the service will behave under different circumstances, which is difficult to presume prior to service execution. Moreover, we demonstrate that the accuracy of automatic matchmaking of Web services can be further improved by taking into account the adequacy of past matchmaking experiences for the requested task. Our XSCBR framework allows annotating such runtime experiences in terms of storing execution values of non-functional Web services parameters such as availability and response time into a case library. The XSCBR algorithm for matchmaking and discovery considers such stored Web services execution experiences to determine the adequacy of services for a particular task. We further extended our fundamental discovery and matchmaking algorithm to cater for web services composition. An intensive knowledge-based substitution approach was proposed to adapt the candidate service experiences to the requested solution before suggesting more complex and computationally taxing AI-based planning-based transformations. The inconsistency problem that occurs while adapting existing service composition solutions is addressed with a novel methodology based on Constraint Satisfaction Problem (CSP). From the outset, we adopted a pragmatic approach that focused on delivering an automated Web services discovery and composition solution with the minimum possible involvement of all composition participants: the service provider, the requestor and the service composer. The qualitative evaluation of the framework and the composition tools, together with the performance study of the XSCBR framework has verified that we were successful in achieving our goal

Towards an integrated framework for the configuration of modular micro assembly systems

The future of manufacturing in high-cost economies is to maximise responsiveness to change whilst simultaneously minimising the financial implications. The concept of Reconfigurable Assembly Systems (RAS) has been proposed as a potential route to achieving this ideal. RASs offer the potential to rapidly change the configuration of a system in response to predicted or unforeseen events through standardised mechanical, electrical and software interfaces within a modular environment. This greatly reduces the design and integration effort for a single configuration, which, in combination with the concept of equipment leasing, enables the potential for reduction in system cost, reconfiguration cost, lead time and down time. This work was motivated by the slow implementation of the RAS concept in industry due, in part, to the limited research into the planning of multiple system reconfigurations. The challenge is to enable consideration of, and planning for, the production of numerous different products within a single modular, reconfigurable assembly environment. The developed methodology is to be structured and traceable, but also adaptable to specific and varying circumstances. This thesis presents an approach that aims towards providing a framework for the configuration of modular assembly systems. The approach consists of a capability model, a reconfiguration methodology and auxiliary functions. As a result, the approach facilitates the complete process of requirement elicitation, capability identification, definition and comparison, configuration analysis and optimisation and the generation of a system configuration lifecycle. The developed framework is demonstrated through a number of test case applications, which were used during the research, as well as the development of some specific technological applications needed to support the approach and application

How a Diverse Research Ecosystem Has Generated New Rehabilitation Technologies: Review of NIDILRR’s Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers

Over 50 million United States citizens (1 in 6 people in the US) have a developmental, acquired, or degenerative disability. The average US citizen can expect to live 20% of his or her life with a disability. Rehabilitation technologies play a major role in improving the quality of life for people with a disability, yet widespread and highly challenging needs remain. Within the US, a major effort aimed at the creation and evaluation of rehabilitation technology has been the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers (RERCs) sponsored by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research. As envisioned at their conception by a panel of the National Academy of Science in 1970, these centers were intended to take a “total approach to rehabilitation”, combining medicine, engineering, and related science, to improve the quality of life of individuals with a disability. Here, we review the scope, achievements, and ongoing projects of an unbiased sample of 19 currently active or recently terminated RERCs. Specifically, for each center, we briefly explain the needs it targets, summarize key historical advances, identify emerging innovations, and consider future directions. Our assessment from this review is that the RERC program indeed involves a multidisciplinary approach, with 36 professional fields involved, although 70% of research and development staff are in engineering fields, 23% in clinical fields, and only 7% in basic science fields; significantly, 11% of the professional staff have a disability related to their research. We observe that the RERC program has substantially diversified the scope of its work since the 1970’s, addressing more types of disabilities using more technologies, and, in particular, often now focusing on information technologies. RERC work also now often views users as integrated into an interdependent society through technologies that both people with and without disabilities co-use (such as the internet, wireless communication, and architecture). In addition, RERC research has evolved to view users as able at improving outcomes through learning, exercise, and plasticity (rather than being static), which can be optimally timed. We provide examples of rehabilitation technology innovation produced by the RERCs that illustrate this increasingly diversifying scope and evolving perspective. We conclude by discussing growth opportunities and possible future directions of the RERC program

Ph.D. Research Proposal: Biomimetic Characteristics of an Active Deployable Structure

Biomimetic structures are structures that demonstrate increased functionality through mimicking qualities of biological organisms. Self-repair and adaptation mechanisms are examples of biological qualities that can be adapted in structural engineering. Over the last decades, great strides have been made in advancing theory and practice of active structural control. However, little scientific progress has been made on biomimetic structures. Advances in sensor, actuator, and microprocessor technologies provide increasing possibilities for implementing active control systems in the built environment. Intelligent control methodologies such as self-diagnosis, self-repair and learning could be integrated into structural systems to provide innovative solutions. The general goal of this thesis is to study biomimetic characteristics of an active and deployable tensegrity bridge. Building on previous research carried out at EPFL, this thesis proposal includes the following objectives: 1) design an active control system in order to ensure damage tolerance of a deployable tensegrity pedestrian bridge; 2) extend existing strategies for self-diagnosis of the deployable tensegrity bridge to avoid ambiguous results; 3) extend existing strategies in order to achieve a more robust self-repair scheme; 4) develop algorithms that allow the active control system to learn efficiently using case-based reasoning; 5) validate the methodologies developed with experiments on a near full-scale (1/3) model. A literature survey of biomimetics, structural control, tensegrity structures, deployable structures, deployable tensegrity structures, active tensegrity structures, case-based reasoning, system identification, and multi-objective search has identified that these objectives are original. Results obtained from the preliminary studies demonstrate the potential of this research strategy. A research plan containing 19 subtasks that will be completed by the end of April 2012 leaves sufficient buffer time before the official end of this Ph.D. research on September 30, 2012

Aggregate Cost Model for Scalability in Manufacturing Systems

Manufacturing continues to face escalated cost challenges on a global scale. To gain a competitive advantage among their rivals, manufacturing firms continuously strive to lower their manufacturing costs than their competitors. This dissertation introduces mathematical optimization model based on an Activity-Based Costing (ABC) method, which considers the relationship between hourly rates and annual hours on each machine/workcentre. Several constraints are considered in the proposed models, such as the cost of reconfiguration, capacity, available machining hours, a decision on facility expansion and a cost-benefit analysis on industry 4.0 implementation. The model outputs are the optimum hourly rates, deciding which jobs to accept or reject, and determining reconfiguration\u27s financial feasibility. Reconfiguration in this dissertation describes system-level reconfiguration (investing in additional equipment/machinery) and/or machine-level reconfiguration (extra module to a piece of existing equipment) as well as factory-level (in terms of expanding additional factory segments to the existing facility). The model will be applied to a real-life case study of a global original equipment manufacturer (OEM) of machinery. The mathematical models proposed in this dissertation are developed based on a multinational hydraulic-press manufacturing company. The company owns a local machine shop (one of the sister companies in North America) for building hydraulic presses meant to be delivered to companies producing engineered wood products (such as OSB (oriented Strand Board), PB (Particle Board), and MDF Board (Medium-Density Fibre) …etc.). The sister company in North America occupies a footprint of 5,000 meters squared with a number of capabilities such as machining (turning and machining centres, welding, assembly, material handling…etc.). Several aspects of the model proposed in this dissertation had been implemented in the company such as the bi-directional relationship between total hours and hourly rates which assisted the company in gaining more jobs and projects. In addition, connectivity between strategic suppliers and company branched has been established (enabler of Industry 4.0). The proposed model\u27s novelty incorporates the bi-directional relationship between hourly rates and annual hours in each workcentre. It provides a managerial decision-making tool for the investment level required to pursue new business and gaining a competitive advantage over rivals. Furthermore, a cost-benefit analysis is performed on the implementation of Industry 4.0. The primary aspect considered in industry 4.0 is Information Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure with strategic suppliers to intensify interconnection between the manufacturing firm and the strategic suppliers. This research\u27s significance is focused on cost analysis and provides managers in manufacturing facilities with the required decision-making tools to decide on orders to accept or decline, as well as investing in additional production equipment, facility expansion, as well as Industry 4.0. In addition, this research will also help manufacturing companies achieve a competitive edge among rivals by reducing hourly rates within their facility. Furthermore, the implementation of the model reduced hourly rates for workcentres by up to 25% as a result of accepting more jobs (and accordingly, machining hours) on the available workcentres, and hence, reducing the hourly rates. This implementation has helped the company gain a competitive advantage among rivals since pricing of products submitted to customer was reduced. Additional benefits and significance are (1) providing manufacturing companies with a method to quantify the decision-making process for right-sizing their manufacturing space, (2) the ability to justify growing a scalable system (machine level, system-level and factory level) using costing (not customer demand), (3) expanding market share and, (4) reducing operational cost and allowing companies a numerical model to justify scaling the manufacturing system

A Smart Products Lifecycle Management (sPLM) Framework - Modeling for Conceptualization, Interoperability, and Modularity

Autonomy and intelligence have been built into many of today’s mechatronic products, taking advantage of low-cost sensors and advanced data analytics technologies. Design of product intelligence (enabled by analytics capabilities) is no longer a trivial or additional option for the product development. The objective of this research is aimed at addressing the challenges raised by the new data-driven design paradigm for smart products development, in which the product itself and the smartness require to be carefully co-constructed. A smart product can be seen as specific compositions and configurations of its physical components to form the body, its analytics models to implement the intelligence, evolving along its lifecycle stages. Based on this view, the contribution of this research is to expand the “Product Lifecycle Management (PLM)” concept traditionally for physical products to data-based products. As a result, a Smart Products Lifecycle Management (sPLM) framework is conceptualized based on a high-dimensional Smart Product Hypercube (sPH) representation and decomposition. First, the sPLM addresses the interoperability issues by developing a Smart Component data model to uniformly represent and compose physical component models created by engineers and analytics models created by data scientists. Second, the sPLM implements an NPD3 process model that incorporates formal data analytics process into the new product development (NPD) process model, in order to support the transdisciplinary information flows and team interactions between engineers and data scientists. Third, the sPLM addresses the issues related to product definition, modular design, product configuration, and lifecycle management of analytics models, by adapting the theoretical frameworks and methods for traditional product design and development. An sPLM proof-of-concept platform had been implemented for validation of the concepts and methodologies developed throughout the research work. The sPLM platform provides a shared data repository to manage the product-, process-, and configuration-related knowledge for smart products development. It also provides a collaborative environment to facilitate transdisciplinary collaboration between product engineers and data scientists