Building and Refining Abstract Planning Cases by Change of Representation Language

ion is one of the most promising approaches to improve the performance of problem solvers. In several domains abstraction by dropping sentences of a domain description -- as used in most hierarchical planners -- has proven useful. In this paper we present examples which illustrate significant drawbacks of abstraction by dropping sentences. To overcome these drawbacks, we propose a more general view of abstraction involving the change of representation language. We have developed a new abstraction methodology and a related sound and complete learning algorithm that allows the complete change of representation language of planning cases from concrete to abstract. However, to achieve a powerful change of the representation language, the abstract language itself as well as rules which describe admissible ways of abstracting states must be provided in the domain model. This new abstraction approach is the core of Paris (Plan Abstraction and Refinement in an Integrated System), a system in which abstract planning cases are automatically learned from given concrete cases. An empirical study in the domain of process planning in mechanical engineering shows significant advantages of the proposed reasoning from abstract cases over classical hierarchical planning.Comment: See http://www.jair.org/ for an online appendix and other files accompanying this articl

BeSpaceD: Towards a Tool Framework and Methodology for the Specification and Verification of Spatial Behavior of Distributed Software Component Systems

In this report, we present work towards a framework for modeling and checking behavior of spatially distributed component systems. Design goals of our framework are the ability to model spatial behavior in a component oriented, simple and intuitive way, the possibility to automatically analyse and verify systems and integration possibilities with other modeling and verification tools. We present examples and the verification steps necessary to prove properties such as range coverage or the absence of collisions between components and technical details

Conceptual modelling: Towards detecting modelling errors in engineering applications

Rapid advancements of modern technologies put high demands on mathematical modelling of engineering systems. Typically, systems are no longer “simple” objects, but rather coupled systems involving multiphysics phenomena, the modelling of which involves coupling of models that describe different phenomena. After constructing a mathematical model, it is essential to analyse the correctness of the coupled models and to detect modelling errors compromising the final modelling result. Broadly, there are two classes of modelling errors: (a) errors related to abstract modelling, eg, conceptual errors concerning the coherence of a model as a whole and (b) errors related to concrete modelling or instance modelling, eg, questions of approximation quality and implementation. Instance modelling errors, on the one hand, are relatively well understood. Abstract modelling errors, on the other, are not appropriately addressed by modern modelling methodologies. The aim of this paper is to initiate a discussion on abstract approaches and their usability for mathematical modelling of engineering systems with the goal of making it possible to catch conceptual modelling errors early and automatically by computer assistant tools. To that end, we argue that it is necessary to identify and employ suitable mathematical abstractions to capture an accurate conceptual description of the process of modelling engineering systems

Size-Change Termination, Monotonicity Constraints and Ranking Functions

Size-Change Termination (SCT) is a method of proving program termination based on the impossibility of infinite descent. To this end we may use a program abstraction in which transitions are described by monotonicity constraints over (abstract) variables. When only constraints of the form x>y' and x>=y' are allowed, we have size-change graphs. Both theory and practice are now more evolved in this restricted framework then in the general framework of monotonicity constraints. This paper shows that it is possible to extend and adapt some theory from the domain of size-change graphs to the general case, thus complementing previous work on monotonicity constraints. In particular, we present precise decision procedures for termination; and we provide a procedure to construct explicit global ranking functions from monotonicity constraints in singly-exponential time, which is better than what has been published so far even for size-change graphs.Comment: revised version of September 2

Looking at Mean-Payoff through Foggy Windows

Mean-payoff games (MPGs) are infinite duration two-player zero-sum games played on weighted graphs. Under the hypothesis of perfect information, they admit memoryless optimal strategies for both players and can be solved in NP-intersect-coNP. MPGs are suitable quantitative models for open reactive systems. However, in this context the assumption of perfect information is not always realistic. For the partial-observation case, the problem that asks if the first player has an observation-based winning strategy that enforces a given threshold on the mean-payoff, is undecidable. In this paper, we study the window mean-payoff objectives that were introduced recently as an alternative to the classical mean-payoff objectives. We show that, in sharp contrast to the classical mean-payoff objectives, some of the window mean-payoff objectives are decidable in games with partial-observation

Algebraic Quantum Theory on Manifolds: A Haag-Kastler Setting for Quantum Geometry

Motivated by the invariance of current representations of quantum gravity under diffeomorphisms much more general than isometries, the Haag-Kastler setting is extended to manifolds without metric background structure. First, the causal structure on a differentiable manifold M of arbitrary dimension (d+1>2) can be defined in purely topological terms, via cones (C-causality). Then, the general structure of a net of C*-algebras on a manifold M and its causal properties required for an algebraic quantum field theory can be described as an extension of the Haag-Kastler axiomatic framework. An important application is given with quantum geometry on a spatial slice within the causally exterior region of a topological horizon H, resulting in a net of Weyl algebras for states with an infinite number of intersection points of edges and transversal (d-1)-faces within any neighbourhood of the spatial boundary S^2.Comment: 15 pages, Latex; v2: several corrections, in particular in def. 1 and in sec.

Electromagnetic Potential in Pre-Metric Electrodynamics: Causal Structure, Propagators and Quantization

An axiomatic approach to electrodynamics reveals that Maxwell electrodynamics is just one instance of a variety of theories for which the name electrodynamics is justified. They all have in common that their fundamental input are Maxwell's equations $\textrm{d} F = 0$ (or $F = \textrm{d} A$) and $\textrm{d} H = J$ and a constitutive law H = # F which relates the field strength two-form $F$ and the excitation two-form $H$. A local and linear constitutive law defines what is called local and linear pre-metric electrodynamics whose best known application are the effective description of electrodynamics inside media including, e.g., birefringence. We analyze the classical theory of the electromagnetic potential $A$ before we use methods familiar from mathematical quantum field theory in curved spacetimes to quantize it in a locally covariant way. Our analysis of the classical theory contains the derivation of retarded and advanced propagators, the analysis of the causal structure on the basis of the constitutive law (instead of a metric) and a discussion of the classical phase space. This classical analysis sets the stage for the construction of the quantum field algebra and quantum states. Here one sees, among other things, that a microlocal spectrum condition can be formulated in this more general setting.Comment: 34 pages, references added, update to published version, title updated to published versio