5,542 research outputs found
RAFCON: a Graphical Tool for Task Programming and Mission Control
There are many application fields for robotic systems including service
robotics, search and rescue missions, industry and space robotics. As the
scenarios in these areas grow more and more complex, there is a high demand for
powerful tools to efficiently program heterogeneous robotic systems. Therefore,
we created RAFCON, a graphical tool to develop robotic tasks and to be used for
mission control by remotely monitoring the execution of the tasks. To define
the tasks, we use state machines which support hierarchies and concurrency.
Together with a library concept, even complex scenarios can be handled
gracefully. RAFCON supports sophisticated debugging functionality and tightly
integrates error handling and recovery mechanisms. A GUI with a powerful state
machine editor makes intuitive, visual programming and fast prototyping
possible. We demonstrated the capabilities of our tool in the SpaceBotCamp
national robotic competition, in which our mobile robot solved all exploration
and assembly challenges fully autonomously. It is therefore also a promising
tool for various RoboCup leagues.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figure
Bayesian Networks for Max-linear Models
We study Bayesian networks based on max-linear structural equations as
introduced in Gissibl and Kl\"uppelberg [16] and provide a summary of their
independence properties. In particular we emphasize that distributions for such
networks are generally not faithful to the independence model determined by
their associated directed acyclic graph. In addition, we consider some of the
basic issues of estimation and discuss generalized maximum likelihood
estimation of the coefficients, using the concept of a generalized likelihood
ratio for non-dominated families as introduced by Kiefer and Wolfowitz [21].
Finally we argue that the structure of a minimal network asymptotically can be
identified completely from observational data.Comment: 18 page
Open Piping: Towards an Open Visual Workflow Environment
The most popular visual programming tools focus on procedural, object-oriented and event-based programming. This paper describes a boxes-and-wires functional programming tool, aimed to be accessible to novice programmers, while also supporting open access to the specified processes, executable programs and results for study and deployment
Global well-posedness for a slightly supercritical surface quasi-geostrophic equation
We use a nonlocal maximum principle to prove the global existence of smooth
solutions for a slightly supercritical surface quasi-geostrophic equation. By
this we mean that the velocity field is obtained from the active scalar
by a Fourier multiplier with symbol , where
is a smooth increasing function that grows slower than as
.Comment: 11 pages, second version with slightly stronger resul
Modification of various metals by volume discharge in air atmosphere
The results of the modification of stainless steel, niobium and titanium by volume discharge induced by a beam of runaway electrons in air under normal pressure are presented. Changes in the chemical composition of the surface layers of metal by the action of the discharge, structural changes and changes of hardness were studied. It has been found that the concentration of oxygen and carbon in the surface layers of the samples depend on the number of discharge pulses. The aim of this work is to find possible application of this type of discharge in science and industrial production
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Investing the customer journey and the impact of online and offline touchpoints on brand loyalty in the context of a UK retailer
Improving the customer experience has recently gained the attention of both scholars and practitioners. However,
there has been limited research to date identifying how different touchpoints throughout the customer journey contribute to the overall experience and generate brand loyalty. Using a retail setting and adopting a mixed method research approach, this study will explore this journey and measure the impact of the touchpoints. The research is structured into two phases. Phase 1 involves focus group discussions, which will explore the customer touchpoints across a retailer's in-store and online channels and identify how the experiences along the touchpoints influence customer loyalty to the retailer brand. The second phase will measure the importance of the touchpoints. The initial findings from Phase 1 revealed that in an in-store setting, characteristics such as atmospherics, staff, and store signposting create a positive customer experience, while coherent content and navigation create experience online. These early findings suggest that a seamless shopping experience, both from channel to channel and within the specific channel, is key to driving customer loyalty
A statistical network analysis of the HIV/AIDS epidemics in Cuba
The Cuban contact-tracing detection system set up in 1986 allowed the
reconstruction and analysis of the sexual network underlying the epidemic
(5,389 vertices and 4,073 edges, giant component of 2,386 nodes and 3,168
edges), shedding light onto the spread of HIV and the role of contact-tracing.
Clustering based on modularity optimization provides a better visualization and
understanding of the network, in combination with the study of covariates. The
graph has a globally low but heterogeneous density, with clusters of high
intraconnectivity but low interconnectivity. Though descriptive, our results
pave the way for incorporating structure when studying stochastic SIR epidemics
spreading on social networks
Method for fabricating a low stress x-ray mask using annealable amorphous refractory compounds
X‐ray masks have been fabricated by depositing a compressively stressed refractory material on a wafer, annealing to a zero stress state, and then forming the membrane. Amorphous TaSiN and TaSi alloys deposited with a magnetron sputter tool have been extensively characterized in terms of resistivity, composition, defectivity, surface roughness, and crystalline state. Optimization in terms of these parameters has resulted in base line selection of absorber films of the following compositions: Ta_(61)Si_(17)N_(21) and Ta_(75)Si_(23). The process is shown to be extendable to an entire class of amorphous annealable refractory materials. Careful studies of deposition and annealing conditions have resulted in a 4× reduction of image placement to the 30 nm maximum vector level. Finally, the importance of stress gradients is experimentally verified
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