A Note on Fault Diagnosis Algorithms

In this paper we review algorithms for checking diagnosability of discrete-event systems and timed automata. We point out that the diagnosability problems in both cases reduce to the emptiness problem for (timed) B\"uchi automata. Moreover, it is known that, checking whether a discrete-event system is diagnosable, can also be reduced to checking bounded diagnosability. We establish a similar result for timed automata. We also provide a synthesis of the complexity results for the different fault diagnosis problems.Comment: Note: This paper is an extended version of the paper published in the proceedings of CDC'09, 48th IEEE Conference on Decision and Control and 28th Chinese Control Conference, Shanghai, P.R. China, December 2009

Multi-weighted Automata Models and Quantitative Logics

Recently, multi-priced timed automata have received much attention for real-time systems. These automata extend priced timed automata by featuring several price parameters. This permits to compute objectives like the optimal ratio between rewards and costs. Arising from the model of timed automata, the multi-weighted setting has also attracted much notice for classical nondeterministic automata. The present thesis develops multi-weighted MSO-logics on finite, infinite and timed words which are expressively equivalent to multi-weighted automata, and studies decision problems for them. In addition, a Nivat-like theorem for weighted timed automata is proved; this theorem establishes a connection between quantitative and qualitative behaviors of timed automata. Moreover, a logical characterization of timed pushdown automata is given

Relating timed and register automata

Timed automata and register automata are well-known models of computation over timed and data words respectively. The former has clocks that allow to test the lapse of time between two events, whilst the latter includes registers that can store data values for later comparison. Although these two models behave in appearance differently, several decision problems have the same (un)decidability and complexity results for both models. As a prominent example, emptiness is decidable for alternating automata with one clock or register, both with non-primitive recursive complexity. This is not by chance. This work confirms that there is indeed a tight relationship between the two models. We show that a run of a timed automaton can be simulated by a register automaton, and conversely that a run of a register automaton can be simulated by a timed automaton. Our results allow to transfer complexity and decidability results back and forth between these two kinds of models. We justify the usefulness of these reductions by obtaining new results on register automata.Comment: In Proceedings EXPRESS'10, arXiv:1011.601

Competitive optimisation on timed automata

Timed automata are finite automata accompanied by a finite set of real-valued variables called clocks. Optimisation problems on timed automata are fundamental to the verification of properties of real-time systems modelled as timed automata, while the control-program synthesis problem of such systems can be modelled as a two-player game. This thesis presents a study of optimisation problems and two-player games on timed automata under a general heading of competitive optimisation on timed automata. This thesis views competitive optimisation on timed automata as a multi-stage decision process, where one or two players are confronted with the problem of choosing a sequence of timed moves—a time delay and an action—in order to optimise their objectives. A solution of such problems consists of the “optimal” value of the objective and an “optimal” strategy for each player. This thesis introduces a novel class of strategies, called boundary strategies, that suggest to a player a symbolic timed move of the form (b, c, a)— “wait until the value of the clock c is in very close proximity of the integer b, and then execute a transition labelled with the action a”. A distinctive feature of the competitive optimisation problems discussed in this thesis is the existence of optimal boundary strategies. Surprisingly perhaps, many competitive optimisation problems on timed automata of practical interest admit optimal boundary strategies. For example, optimisation problems with reachability price, discounted price, and average-price objectives, and two-player turn-based games with reachability time and average time objectives. The existence of optimal boundary strategies allows one to work with a novel abstraction of timed automata, called a boundary region graph, where players can use only boundary strategies. An interesting property of a boundary region graph is that, for every state, the set of reachable states is finite. Hence, the existence of optimal boundary strategies permits us to reduce competitive optimisation problem on a timed automaton to the corresponding competitive optimisation problem on a finite graph

Competative optimisation on timed automata

Timed automata are finite automata accompanied by a finite set of real-valued variables called clocks. Optimisation problems on timed automata are fundamental to the verification of properties of real-time systems modelled as timed automata, while the control-program synthesis problem of such systems can be modelled as a two-player game. This thesis presents a study of optimisation problems and two-player games on timed automata under a general heading of competitive optimisation on timed automata. This thesis views competitive optimisation on timed automata as a multi-stage decision process, where one or two players are confronted with the problem of choosing a sequence of timed moves—a time delay and an action—in order to optimise their objectives. A solution of such problems consists of the “optimal” value of the objective and an “optimal” strategy for each player. This thesis introduces a novel class of strategies, called boundary strategies, that suggest to a player a symbolic timed move of the form (b, c, a)— “wait until the value of the clock c is in very close proximity of the integer b, and then execute a transition labelled with the action a”. A distinctive feature of the competitive optimisation problems discussed in this thesis is the existence of optimal boundary strategies. Surprisingly perhaps, many competitive optimisation problems on timed automata of practical interest admit optimal boundary strategies. For example, optimisation problems with reachability price, discounted price, and average-price objectives, and two-player turn-based games with reachability time and average time objectives. The existence of optimal boundary strategies allows one to work with a novel abstraction of timed automata, called a boundary region graph, where players can use only boundary strategies. An interesting property of a boundary region graph is that, for every state, the set of reachable states is finite. Hence, the existence of optimal boundary strategies permits us to reduce competitive optimisation problem on a timed automaton to the corresponding competitive optimisation problem on a finite graph.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Symbolic Computation of Nonblocking Control Function for Timed Discrete Event Systems

In this paper, we symbolically compute a minimally restrictive nonblocking supervisor for timed discrete event systems, in the supervisory control theory context. The method is based on Timed Extended Finite Automata, which is an augmentation of extended finite automata (EFAs) by incorporating discrete time into the model. EFAs are ordinary automaton extended with discrete variables, guard expressions and action functions. To tackle large problems all computations are based on binary decision diagrams (BDDs). The main feature of this approach is that the BDD-based fixed-point computations is not based on “tick” models that have been commonly used in this area, leading to better performance in many cases. As a case study, we effectively computed the minimally restrictive nonblocking supervisor for a well-known production cell

Kleene Algebras and Semimodules for Energy Problems

With the purpose of unifying a number of approaches to energy problems found in the literature, we introduce generalized energy automata. These are finite automata whose edges are labeled with energy functions that define how energy levels evolve during transitions. Uncovering a close connection between energy problems and reachability and B\"uchi acceptance for semiring-weighted automata, we show that these generalized energy problems are decidable. We also provide complexity results for important special cases