Selection of Decentralised Schemes and Parametrisation of the Decentralised Degenerate Compensators

The design of decentralised control schemes has two major aspects. The selection of the decentralised structure and then the design of the decentralised controller that has a given structure and addresses certain design requirements. This paper deals with the parametrisation and selection of the decentralized structure such that problems such as the decentralised pole assignment may have solutions. We use the approach of global linearisation for the asymptotic linearisation of the pole assignment map around a degenerate compensator. Thus, we examine in depth the case of degenerate compensators and investigate the conditions under which certain degenerate structures exist. This leads to a parametrisation of decentralised structures based on the structural properties of the system

The Relative Degree Enhancement Problem for MIMO Nonlinear Systems *

The authors present a result for linearizing a nonlinear MIMO system by employing partial feedback - feedback at all but one input-output channel such that the SISO feedback linearization problem is solvable at the remaining input-output channel. The partial feedback effectively enhances the relative degree at the open input-output channel provided the feedback functions are chosen to satisfy relative degree requirements. The method is useful for nonlinear systems that are not feedback linearizable in a MIMO sense. Several examples are presented to show how these feedback functions can be computed. This strategy can be combined with decentralized observers for a completely decentralized feedback linearization result for at least one input-output channel

Two fault-tolerant control problems for multiple-integrators networks

The paper considers a network of agents with multiple-integrator internal dynamics, which share partial information on their states according to an arbitrary topology. For this system, two control problems are addressed and solved. The first consists in assigning the dominant closed-loop poles. The second consists in achieving a specified consensus with arbitrarily fast dynamics. In both cases, the regulator is required to be decentralized and the controlled network has to result tolerant with respect to faults in the communication apparatuses of the agents

Fault-Tolerant Stabilization in Discrete-Time Multiple-Integrator Networks with General Information Sharing

The paper considers a network of agentswith identical discrete-timemultiple-integrator dynamics. The agents share information according to an arbitrary topology. The information is relative to the states corresponding to some of the highest integration levels.With reference to this setting, a decentralized stabilization problem is faced, under the further assumption that faults may occur in the communication apparatus of one or several of the agents. A necessary and sufficient solvability condition is presented for the problem, together with formulas for a class of least-order regulators

Elimination of human rabies in Goa, India through an integrated One Health approach

Dog-mediated rabies kills tens of thousands of people each year in India, representing one third of the estimated global rabies burden. Whilst the World Health Organization (WHO), World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) have set a target for global dog-mediated human rabies elimination by 2030, examples of large-scale dog vaccination programs demonstrating elimination remain limited in Africa and Asia. We describe the development of a data-driven rabies elimination program from 2013 to 2019 in Goa State, India, culminating in human rabies elimination and a 92% reduction in monthly canine rabies cases. Smartphone technology enabled systematic spatial direction of remote teams to vaccinate over 95,000 dogs at 70% vaccination coverage, and rabies education teams to reach 150,000 children annually. An estimated 2249 disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) were averted over the program period at 526 USD per DALY, making the intervention ‘very cost-effective’ by WHO definitions. This One Health program demonstrates that human rabies elimination is achievable at the state level in India

Evaluation of an Immunochromatographic Assay as a Canine Rabies Surveillance Tool in Goa, India

Rabies is a fatal zoonotic disease transmitted by the bite of a rabid animal. More than 95% of the human rabies cases in India are attributed to exposure to rabid dogs. This study evaluated the utility of a lateral flow immunochromatographic assay (LFA) (Anigen Rapid Rabies Ag Test Kit, Bionote, Hwaseong-si, Korea) for rapid post mortem diagnosis of rabies in dogs. Brain tissue was collected from 202 animals that were screened through the Government of Goa rabies surveillance system. The brain tissue samples were obtained from 188 dogs, nine cats, three bovines, one jackal and one monkey. In addition, 10 dogs that died due to trauma from road accidents were included as negative controls for the study. The diagnostic performance of LFA was evaluated using results from direct fluorescence antibody test (dFT); the current gold standard post mortem test for rabies infection. Three samples were removed from the analysis as they were autolysed and not fit for testing by dFT. Of the 209 samples tested, 117 tested positive by LFA and 92 tested negative, while 121 tested positive by dFT and 88 tested negative. Estimates of LFA sensitivity and specificity were 0.96 (95% CI 0.91–0.99) and 0.99 (95% CI 0.94–1.00), respectively. The LFA is a simple and low-cost assay that aids in the rapid diagnosis of rabies in the field without the need for expensive laboratory equipment or technical expertise. This study found that Bionote LFA has potential as a screening tool in rabies endemic countries