On Abstraction-Based Controller Design With Output Feedback

We consider abstraction-based design of output-feedback controllers for dynamical systems with a finite set of inputs and outputs against specifications in linear-time temporal logic. The usual procedure for abstraction-based controller design (ABCD) first constructs a finite-state abstraction of the underlying dynamical system, and second, uses reactive synthesis techniques to compute an abstract state-feedback controller on the abstraction. In this context, our contribution is two-fold: (I) we define a suitable relation between the original system and its abstraction which characterizes the soundness and completeness conditions for an abstract state-feedback controller to be refined to a concrete output-feedback controller for the original system, and (II) we provide an algorithm to compute a sound finite-state abstraction fulfilling this relation. Our relation generalizes feedback-refinement relations from ABCD with state-feedback. Our algorithm for constructing sound finite-state abstractions is inspired by the simultaneous reachability and bisimulation minimization algorithm of Lee and Yannakakis. We lift their idea to the computation of an observation-equivalent system and show how sound abstractions can be obtained by stopping this algorithm at any point. Additionally, our new algorithm produces a realization of the topological closure of the input/output behavior of the original system if it is finite-state realizable

The impact of regional and neighbourhood deprivation on physical health in Germany: a multilevel study

Voigtländer S, Berger U, Razum O. The impact of regional and neighbourhood deprivation on physical health in Germany: a multilevel study. BMC Public Health. 2010;10(1): 403.Background There is increasing evidence that individual health is at least partly determined by neighbourhood and regional factors. Mechanisms, however, remain poorly understood, and evidence from Germany is scant. This study explores whether regional as well as neighbourhood deprivation are associated with physical health and to what extent this association can be explained by specific neighbourhood exposures. Methods Using 2004 data from the German Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP) merged with regional and neighbourhood characteristics, we fitted multilevel linear regression models with subjective physical health, as measured by the SF-12, as the dependent variable. The models include regional and neighbourhood proxies of deprivation (i.e. regional unemployment quota, average purchasing power of the street section) as well as specific neighbourhood exposures (i.e. perceived air pollution). Individual characteristics including socioeconomic status and health behaviour have been controlled for. Results This study finds a significant association between area deprivation and physical health which is independent of compositional factors and consistent across different spatial scales. Furthermore the association between neighbourhood deprivation and physical health can be partly explained by specific features of the neighbourhood environment. Among these perceived air pollution shows the strongest association with physical health (-2.4 points for very strong and -1.5 points for strong disturbance by air pollution, standard error (SE) = 0.8 and 0.4, respectively). Beta coefficients for perceived air pollution, perceived noise and the perceived distance to recreational resources do not diminish when including individual health behaviour in the models. Conclusions This study highlights the difference regional and in particular neighbourhood deprivation make to the physical health of individuals in Germany. The results support the argument that specific neighbourhood exposures serve as an intermediary step between deprivation and health. As people with a low socioeconomic status were more likely to be exposed to unfavourable neighbourhood characteristics these conditions plausibly contribute towards generating health inequalities

An Industrial Case Study In Hw-Sw Co-Design Using Castle

Introduction Co-design is concerned with the joint design of hardware and software making up an embedded computer system [Wol94]. A top down design flow for an embedded system begins with a system specification. If it is executable, it may be used for simulation, system verification or to identify algorithmical bottlenecks. In contrast to other chapters of this book, the specification is not developed in this case study, rather it is given from the beginning. Furthermore we are not concerned with partitioning or synthesis of dedicated HW. Instead we focus on the problem how to find an off-the-shelf micro-controller which implements the desired functionality and meets all specification constraints. If feasible, this is usually much cheaper then using dedicated hardware. This chapter will answer the question of feasibility for a real life problem from automobile industry. Based on the application example of an electronic diesel injection controller (EDC), we present various tool

Coating-Doping Interactions in commercial Ni-rich NCM Cathode Materials for high-energy Lithium Ion Batteries

Coming from the global picture of climate change and the crucial need to reduce greenhouse gases there is a huge demand for renewable energies. Innovations in different fields are necessary to account for the increased demand in generation, storage and distribution that evokes.The storage of green electricity is one example with the challenge that every application has different requirements in cost, lifetime, gravimetric and volumetric energy density. In the sector of individual mobility, a user will expect a comparable cost, safety and driving range of an electric car as the one that can be obtained from a combustion engine. Therefore, the future generations of battery systems in electric vehicles (EV) need to become cheaper and at the same time gain energy density.Ni-rich NCM-type layered oxide materials are promising candidates to satisfy those needs. The main advantages of increasing the Ni content lies in an increased energy density at the material level and the reduction of cobalt as critical raw material.There are however mayor drawbacks in terms of instability issues and cycling stability. Several mitigation strategies are often applied in literature such as doping to mitigate strong lattice parameter variations, coatings to protect the surface in contact with the electrolyte or core shell/gradient concentration design approaches. Although it is well-known that each of these approaches separately benefits the cycling stability of Ni-rich cathode materials, there are however no systematic reports investigating the simultaneous combination of two of the approaches.However a combination of coating and doping will be needed to overcome the instability issues for NCM materials with Ni contents above 90 %.In this work, the combination of Zr as frequently used dopant in commercial materials with W-coatingsis thoroughly investigated with a special focus on the impact of different processing conditions and post-processing temperatures. Beside material characterization via XRD, SEM, TEM and XPS also the electrochemical performance in Lithium ion batteries (LIBs) is reported. It sheds light onto the importance to not only investigate the effect of individual dopants or coatings but also the interactions between both