A planner for All-Terrain Vehicles on unknown rough terrains based on the MPC paradigm and D*-like algorithm

A novel conceptual design of a planner for a mobile vehicle, operating on poorly traversable unknown rough terrains, is discussed. Finding a way to include a vehicle model into the planning stage, while coping with unknown or partially known terrains, is a challenging and rarely addressed optimization setup. The main advantages of a possible solution of such a problem would be twofold. First, the planner would give trajectories which are feasible to follow by the vehicle, which is not the case in many other state of the art planning algorithms especially for large vehicle speeds. Second, those trajectories would be the optimal ones in accordance to the current vehicle states and knowledge on its environment. We propose a solution based on an MPC planning paradigm, wherein the planner solves a constrained optimal control problem at each time instant using the current knowledge on the terrain, which is caught appropriately by an objective function. Solving an optimal control problem allows for the vehicle model being included into the planning stage, while the repeated optimization allows for taking continuously into account new terrain information. To deal with the information given beyond the sensor range and to guarantee reaching a given goal position, we have adopted a D∗-like algorithm for rough terrains being used as a cost-to-go term within the optimization setup

Patient-reported quality of life outcomes for children with serious congenital heart defects

Objective To compare patient-reported, health-related quality of life (QoL) for children with serious congenital heart defects (CHDs) and unaffected classmates and to investigate the demographic and clinical factors influencing QoL. Design Retrospective cohort study. Setting UK National Health Service. Patients UK-wide cohort of children with serious CHDs aged 10–14 years requiring cardiac intervention in the first year of life in one of 17 UK paediatric cardiac surgical centres operating during 1992–1995. A comparison group of classmates of similar age and sex was recruited. Main outcome measures Child self-report of healthrelated QoL scores (Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory, PedsQL) and parental report of schooling and social activities. Results Questionnaires were completed by 477 children with CHDs (56% boys; mean age 12.1 (SD 1.0) years) and 464 classmates (55%; 12.0 (SD 1.1) years). Children with CHDs rated QoL significantly lower than classmates (CHDs: median 78.3 (IQR 65.0–88.6); classmates: 88.0 (80.2–94.6)) and scored lower on physical (CHDs: 84.4; classmates: 93.8; difference 9.4 (7.8 to 10.9)) and psychosocial functioning subscales (CHDs: 76.7, classmates: 85.0; difference 8.3 (6.0 to 10.6)). Cardiac interventions, school absence, regular medications and non-cardiac comorbidities were independently associated with reduced QoL. Participation in sport positively influenced QoL and was associated with higher psychosocial functioning scores. Conclusions Children with serious CHDs experience lower QoL than unaffected classmates. This appears related to the burden of clinical intervention rather than underlying cardiac diagnosis. Participation in sports activities is positively associated with increased emotional well-being. Child self-report measures of QoL would be a valuable addition to clinical outcome audit in this age group.RLK was awarded an MRC Special Training Fellowship in Health of the Public and Health Services Research (reference G106/1083). TD was supported by an NIHR Academic Clinical Fellowship. This work was supported by a British Heart Foundation project grant (reference PG/02/065/13934). The Centre for Paediatric Epidemiology and Biostatistics benefits from funding support from the Medical Research Council in its capacity as the MRC Centre of Epidemiology for Child Health (reference G04005546). Great Ormond St Hospital for Children NHS Trust and the UCL Institute of Child Health receives a proportion of funding from the Department of Health’s NIHR Biomedical Research Centres schem

Validation of the FEW16 questionnaire for the assessment of physical well-being in patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction: results from the CIBIS-ELD study

Tahirović E, Lashki DJ, Trippel TD, et al. Validation of the FEW16 questionnaire for the assessment of physical well-being in patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction: results from the CIBIS-ELD study. ESC Heart Failure. 2015;2(3):194-203