Experiments in Sequenced Reinforcement Learning of Reactive Tasks by a Mobile Robot

This paper presents an experimental investigation about Reinforcement Learning of multiple reactive behaviors in an autonomous mobile robot. Reactive behaviors are learned concurrently or sequentially in real-time and coping with finite lifespan, limited accuracy, and finite computational resources constraints. Results provide insight into the problems and tradeoffs faced in learning composite behaviors

A STRUCTURE-FUNCTION CONTROL PARADIGM FOR KNOWLEDGE-BASED MODELING AND DESIGN OF MANUFACTURING WORKCELLS

This paper discusses the integration of structural, functional and control knowledge in manufacturing workcell modeling, simulation and design. After an overview of applications of semantic and object-oriented data models in the manufacturing domain, issues relating to the control synthesis for manufacturing workcells are presented. In particular, a data model encompassing functional and control features, along with application domain structural knowledge, is developed. This model assists in explicitly representing the control aspects of engineering design within an object-oriented database and supports a task-level, functionality-driven, manufacturing workcell design. Since manufacturing workcells consist of a number of elements interacting in a complex manner, workcell control design is one of the most difficult steps in the workcell design procedure. Message passage, commonly used in object-oriented databases, provides no explicit modeling of the database behavior. Hence, it can not serve as a tool for the design of system control. On the other hand, Petri nets (PN) have proven successful in describing complex interaction among active agents. This paper will explore the incorporation of Petri nets as a basis for describing application control knowledge within a structure-function-control data model

Integrated Energy And Power Management: Validation Testing For Aerospace Vehicles

The structured technical and organizational approach to integrated dynamic energy and power management research is outlined from an integrated vehicle and dynamic subsystem/component perspective. This approach combines physics-based and statistical modeling and component and system validation testing on baseline airframe(s) in a flight simulated environment. It is concluded that experimental data of individual system component tests are not alone sufficient. Laboratory tests on an integrated airframe with interacting subsystems are needed to properly define requirements for effective validation testing needed to support robust model-based engineering and life-cycle growth management. The objective is to develop and demonstrate a robust validation testing approach that transcends beyond the component-only focus to one that addresses the vehicle in its entirety and throughout the vehicle life-cycle