Worst-case analysis of moving obstacle avoidance systems for unmanned vehicles

This paper investigates worst-case analysis of a moving obstacle avoidance algorithm for unmanned vehicles in a dynamic environment in the presence of uncertainties and variations. Automatic worst-case search algorithms are developed based on optimization techniques, and illustrated by a Pioneer robot with a moving obstacle avoidance algorithm developed using the potential field method. The uncertainties in physical parameters, sensor measurements, and even the model structure of the robot are taken into account in the worst-case analysis. The minimum distance to a moving obstacle is considered as an objective function in automatic search process. It is demonstrated that a local nonlinear optimization method may not be adequate, and global optimization techniques are necessary to provide reliable worst-case analysis. The Monte Carlo simulation is carried out to demonstrate that the proposed automatic search methods provide a significant advantage over random sampling approaches

The Phenomenology of Economics: Life-World, Formalism, and the Invisible Hand

I use the phenomenological notion of the life-world for a thorough critique of economic science on three different levels. First, for a description of the discursive situation of current economists regarding their public, professional and pedagogical ethos. Second, for a social history of the scientification of economics from the 17th century until today. Third, for a biography of a mathematical economist, Gerard Debreu, who never perceived himself as an economist but nevertheless received the Nobel Prize for Economics. I argue that economic science is constituted by the oblivion of the life-world, specifically the oblivion of the motives that give rise to economics. Claiming scientific authority in economics thus produces an experiential conflict for the intellectual life of economists

Actas de las XXXIV Jornadas de Automática

Postprint (published version