An iterative joint codebook and classifier improvement algorithm for finite-state vector quantization

A finite-state vector quantizer (FSVQ) is a multicodebook system in, which the current state (or codebook) is chosen as a function of the previously quantized vectors. The authors introduce a novel iterative algorithm for joint codebook and next state function design of full search finite-state vector quantizers. They consider the fixed-rate case, for which no optimal design strategy is known. A locally optimal set of codebooks is designed for the training data and then predecessors to the training vectors associated with each codebook are appropriately labelled and used in designing the classifier. The algorithm iterates between next state function and state codebook design until it arrives at a suitable solution. The proposed design consistently yields better performance than the traditional FSVQ design method (under identical state space and codebook constraints)

Integrated simulation for (sustainable) building design : state-of-the-art illustration

Many buildings are still constructed or remodelled without consideration of energy conserving strategies or other sustainability aspects. To provide substantial improvements in energy consumption and comfort levels, there is a need to treat buildings as complete optimised entities not as the sum of a number of separately optimised components

Informal family insurance and the design of the welfare state

We study the problem of unemployment benefit provision when the family is also a provider of social insurance. As a benchmark, a simple model is presented where risksharing motives govern intra-family transfers and more generous unemployment benefits, provided by the State, crowd out family risk-sharing arrangements one-forone. The model is then extended to capture the idea that the State has an advantage vis-a-vis the family in the provision of insurance because it can tax individuals, whereas the family must rely on self-enforcing agreements. In this case, the effect of State transfers on intra-family transfers is found to be more than one-for-one. Thus, somewhat perversely, both informal transfers and total insurance transfers to the unemployed fall as the State's generosity increases. This does not imply that the optimal Welfare State is zero. Our results still hold when families are assumed to be better than the State at monitoring the job search activities of the unemployed. --Self-enforcing contracts,Optimal welfare generosity

When the State Mirrors the Family: The Design of Pension Systems

This paper studies the transmission mechanism from family culture to economic institutions, by analyzing the impact of the within family organization on the original design of the public pension systems. We build a simple OLG model with families featuring either weak or strong internal ties. When pensions systems are initially introduced, in society with strong ties they replicate the tight link between generations by providing earnings related benefits; whereas in societies with weak family ties they only act as a safety net. To test this transition mechanism, we consider Todd (1982) historical classification of family types across countries. We find that in societies dominated by absolute nuclear families (i.e., weak family ties), pension systems act as a flat safety net entailing a large within-cohort redistribution, and viceversa in societies characterized by stronger family ties where pension systems are more generous. This link between the type of families and the design of pension systems is robust to testing for alternative explanations, such as legal origin, religion, urbanization and democratization of the country at the time of their introduction. Interestingly, historical family types matter for explaining the design of the pension systems, which represents a persistent feature, but not their size, which have largely changed over time.culture, institutions, historical evidence

Optimal experiment design in a filtering context with application to sampled network data

We examine the problem of optimal design in the context of filtering multiple random walks. Specifically, we define the steady state E-optimal design criterion and show that the underlying optimization problem leads to a second order cone program. The developed methodology is applied to tracking network flow volumes using sampled data, where the design variable corresponds to controlling the sampling rate. The optimal design is numerically compared to a myopic and a naive strategy. Finally, we relate our work to the general problem of steady state optimal design for state space models.Comment: Published in at http://dx.doi.org/10.1214/09-AOAS283 the Annals of Applied Statistics (http://www.imstat.org/aoas/) by the Institute of Mathematical Statistics (http://www.imstat.org

State of the art of plastic sorting and recycling : Feedback to vehicle design

Today car manufacturers are beginning to integrate recycling constraints in the first stages of the design of a new car due to their concern regarding the effects of car design on the recovery of material after End-of-Life Vehicle treatment. Improved understanding of the recycling process can help designers to avoid contaminants in the recycled product and improve the efficiency of current and new sorting methods. The main goal of this paper is to describe the state of the art of the technical efficiency of recovery channels for plastics in Europe in order to define requirements for automotive plastic part design. This paper will first present the results of a survey on industrial and innovative recycling technologies mainly originating from the mining sector, and secondly a simplified methodology for car design integrating plastic recycling constraints. This methodology concerns material association and compatibility, the type of assemblies favourable to better recycling, and better reuse of recycled products in cars.Renault Research Direction FR TCR LAB 1 13, Service 641000-Recycling Engineering, 1 avenue du Golf, 78288 Guyancourt Cedex, Franc

State-of-the-art cockpit design for the HH-65A helicopters

In the design of a HH-65A helicopter cockpit, advanced integrated electronics systems technology was employed to achieve several important goals for this multimission aircraft. They were: (1) integrated systems operation with consistent and simplified cockpit procedures; (2) mission-task-related cockpit displays and controls, and (3) reduced pilot instrument scan effort with excellent outside visibility. The integrated avionics system was implemented to depend heavily upon distributed but complementary processing, multiplex digital bus technology, and multifunction CRT controls and displays. This avionics system was completely flight tested and will soon enter operational service with the Coast Guard

Observer-based correct-by-design controller synthesis

Current state-of-the-art correct-by-design controllers are designed for full-state measurable systems. This work first extends the applicability of correct-by-design controllers to partially observable LTI systems. Leveraging 2nd order bounds we give a design method that has a quantifiable robustness to probabilistic disturbances on state transitions and on output measurements. In a case study from smart buildings we evaluate the new output-based correct-by-design controller on a physical system with limited sensor information