scholarly journals Secure and secret cooperation in robot swarms

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (56) ◽  
pp. eabf1538
Author(s):  
Eduardo Castelló Ferrer ◽  
Thomas Hardjono ◽  
Alex Pentland ◽  
Marco Dorigo
Keyword(s):  
Swarm Robotics ◽  
Explicit Knowledge ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Robot Swarms ◽  
Cooperation Mechanism ◽  
Swarm Robots ◽  
Real Robot ◽  
High Level ◽  
Robotic Missions ◽  
Large Groups

The importance of swarm robotics systems in both academic research and real-world applications is steadily increasing. However, to reach widespread adoption, new models that ensure the secure cooperation of large groups of robots need to be developed. This work introduces a method to encapsulate cooperative robotic missions in an authenticated data structure known as a Merkle tree. With this method, operators can provide the “blueprint” of the swarm’s mission without disclosing its raw data. In other words, data verification can be separated from data itself. We propose a system where robots in a swarm, to cooperate toward mission completion, have to “prove” their integrity to their peers by exchanging cryptographic proofs. We show the implications of this approach for two different swarm robotics missions: foraging and maze formation. In both missions, swarm robots were able to cooperate and carry out sequential tasks without having explicit knowledge about the mission’s high-level objectives. The results presented in this work demonstrate the feasibility of using Merkle trees as a cooperation mechanism for swarm robotics systems in both simulation and real-robot experiments, which has implications for future decentralized robotics applications where security plays a crucial role.

scholarly journals SwarmDAG: A Partition Tolerant Distributed Ledger Protocol for Swarm Robotics

Ledger ◽  
2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason A Tran ◽  
Gowri Sankar Ramachandran ◽  
Palash M Shah ◽  
Claudiu B. Danilov ◽  
Rodolfo A. Santiago ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Swarm Robotics ◽  
Blockchain Technology ◽  
Robot Swarms ◽  
Distributed Ledger ◽  
Virtual Synchrony ◽  
Swarm Robots ◽  
Communication Challenges ◽  
Network Partitions

Blockchain technology has the potential to disrupt applications beyond cryptocurrencies. This work applies the concepts of blockchain technology to swarm robotics applications. Swarm robots typically operate in a distributed fashion, wherein the collaboration and coordination between the robots are essential to accomplishing the application goals. However, robot swarms may experience network partitions either due to navigational and communication challenges or in order to perform certain tasks efficiently. We propose a novel protocol, SwarmDAG, that enables the maintenance of a distributed ledger based on the concept of extended virtual synchrony while managing and tolerating network partitions.

Procurement Analytics: Enabling Data Architectures in the Age of Big Data

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Goul ◽  
T. S. Raghu ◽  
Ziru Li
Keyword(s):  
Big Data ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Data Space ◽  
Prescriptive Analytics ◽  
Data Architecture ◽  
The Future ◽  
High Level ◽  
Area Data

As procurement organizations increasingly move from a cost-and-efficiency emphasis to a profit-and-growth emphasis, flexible data architecture will become an integral part of a procurement analytics strategy. It is therefore imperative for procurement leaders to understand and address digitization trends in supply chains and to develop strategies to create robust data architecture and analytics strategies for the future. This chapter assesses and examines the ways companies can organize their procurement data architectures in the big data space to mitigate current limitations and to lay foundations for the discovery of new insights. It sets out to understand and define the levels of maturity in procurement organizations as they pertain to the capture, curation, exploitation, and management of procurement data. The chapter then develops a framework for articulating the value proposition of moving between maturity levels and examines what the future entails for companies with mature data architectures. In addition to surveying the practitioner and academic research literature on procurement data analytics, the chapter presents detailed and structured interviews with over fifteen procurement experts from companies around the globe. The chapter finds several important and useful strategies that have helped procurement organizations design strategic roadmaps for the development of robust data architectures. It then further identifies four archetype procurement area data architecture contexts. In addition, this chapter details exemplary high-level mature data architecture for each archetype and examines the critical assumptions underlying each one. Data architectures built for the future need a design approach that supports both descriptive and real-time, prescriptive analytics.

Research on Knowledge Discovery and Stock Forecasting of Financial News Based on Domain Ontology

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (03) ◽  
pp. 953-979 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lingling Zhang ◽  
Minghui Zhao ◽  
Zili Feng
Keyword(s):  
Knowledge Acquisition ◽  
Knowledge Discovery ◽  
Tacit Knowledge ◽  
Explicit Knowledge ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Online News ◽  
Domain Ontology ◽  
General Mechanism ◽  
Financial News ◽  
Knowledge Reasoning

In the era of big data, how to obtain useful knowledge from online news and utilize it as an important basis to make investment decision has become the hotspot of industrial and academic research. At present, there have been research and practice on explicit knowledge acquisition from news, but tacit knowledge acquisition is still under exploration. Based on the general mechanism of domain knowledge, knowledge reasoning, and knowledge discovery, this paper constructs a framework for discovering tacit knowledge from news and applying the knowledge to stock forecasting. The concrete work is as follows: First, according to the characteristics of financial field and the conceptual cube, the conceptual structure of industry–company–product is constructed, and the framework of domain ontology is put forward. Second, with the construction of financial field ontology, the financial news knowledge management framework is proposed. Besides, with the application of attributes in ontology and domain rules extracted from news text, the knowledge reasoning mechanism of financial news is constructed to achieve financial news knowledge discovery. Finally, news knowledge that reflects important information about stock changes is integrated into the traditional stock price forecasting model and the newly proposed model performs well in the empirical analysis of polyester industry.

scholarly journals Colour Ambiguity in Real Scenes and the Role of Perceptual Organisation

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annette Werner ◽  
Alisa Schmidt ◽  
Julian Hilmers ◽  
Lukas Boborzi ◽  
Manuela Weigold
Keyword(s):  
Light Source ◽  
Explicit Knowledge ◽  
Local Region ◽  
Light Blue ◽  
The Real ◽  
Quantitative Measurements ◽  
Real Scene ◽  
Neural Processes ◽  
High Level

AbstractIn this study we show a reproduction of the dress-ambiguity phenomenon in a real scene and we report quantitative measurements of the corresponding colour perceptions. The original, real dress, known from #thedress-illusion, was illuminated by combined short- and longwavelength broadband lights from two slide projectors. Test subjects viewing the dress reported to perceive the dress’ fabric and lace colours as blue & black, white & gold or light blue & brown; their corresponding perceptual matches were distributed along the blue/yellow cardinal axis, and exhibited a variability comparable to the ambiguity of the dress photograph. It is particularly noteworthy that the colour ambiguity emerged despite explicit knowledge of the observers about the direction of the light source. Manipulating the background of the real dress (change in chromaticity and luminance, or masking) revealed significant differences between the perceptual groups regarding lightness and colour of the dress. Our findings suggest that observer specific differences in the perceptual organisation of the visual scene are responsible for the colour ambiguity observed for the real dress; in particular, we conclude that colour computations of white & gold viewers focused onto the local region of the dress, whereas the colour processes of blue & black and light-blue & brown viewers were strongly influenced by contextual computations including the background. Our segmentation hypothesis extends existing explanations for the dress’ ambiguity and proposes image based (in the case of the real scene) and high level (in the case of the photograph) neural processes which control the spatial reach of contextual colour computations. The relation between the ambiguity in our real scene and the dress photograph is discussed.

Two-level simulation approach to evaluate the performance of autonomous wheelchairs in a hospital

SIMULATION ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 96 (10) ◽  
pp. 781-789
Author(s):  
Iván Castilla-Rodríguez ◽  
Rafael Arnay ◽  
Raquel Rodríguez ◽  
Jonel Rodríguez
Keyword(s):  
Waiting Times ◽  
Physical World ◽  
Simulation Approach ◽  
Economic Implications ◽  
Hospital Resources ◽  
Real Robot ◽  
Transportation Times ◽  
Sensor Configuration ◽  
High Level

In this paper, we present the combined usage of two different simulation levels to evaluate the economic and quality-of-service impact of deploying a fleet of autonomous wheelchairs in a hospital. The first simulation level deals with the physical world and takes into account the characteristics of a real robot, such as dimensions, sensor configuration, and speed. We simulate different trajectories in order to obtain realistic transportation times that are subsequently used in the high-level simulation. This high-level simulation considers those hospital resources that are affected by the inclusion of automated wheelchairs, and computes the economic implications of partially or totally substituting the current fleet of manual wheelchairs. Our results show that switching to automated wheelchairs may be beneficial in terms not only of reduced waiting times for patients, but also of economic savings.

scholarly journals Editorial: Special Issue “Swarm Robotics”

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (7) ◽  
pp. 1474 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giandomenico Spezzano
Keyword(s):  
Collective Behavior ◽  
Swarm Robotics ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Editorial Special Issue ◽  
Large Groups

Swarm robotics is the study of how to coordinate large groups of relatively simple robots through the use of local rules so that a desired collective behavior emerges from their interaction [...]

scholarly journals A strategic managerial approach to corporate sports hospitality: the case of Belgian football

2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-75
Author(s):  
Matteo Balliauw ◽  
Thomas Verlinden ◽  
Lisa De Croocq ◽  
Aline Fobe ◽  
Tomas Van Den Spiegel
Keyword(s):  
Ad Hoc ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Holistic Approach ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Economic Downturn ◽  
Management Process ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Marketing Tool ◽  
High Level

Purpose Corporate sports hospitality (CSH) is a relationship marketing tool whereby customers and other stakeholders are invited by a company buying CSH from a club to attend a sports event. The CSH product involves premium seating and optional services such as catering. This industry has been perceived to be in decline, especially in times of economic downturn. The purposes of this paper are a quantification of the CSH industry’s value and the development of a formal CSH management process for both companies and clubs. Design/methodology/approach A case study from the highest division in Belgian football (soccer) is conducted, involving interviews and quantitative data collection as the primary data source, in addition to secondary data and insights from the literature. As opposed to literature, this paper uses a holistic approach, combining the perspective of the club and the CSH buying company with attention for customers. Findings CSH returns account for an important share of club revenues (>10%), despite the smaller market compared to the American major sports leagues. Since a club experiences the strongest competitive impact from substitutes and other clubs in the league, and CSH is often managed on an ad hoc base, disposing of a formal management process is crucial for both clubs and companies. For companies buying CSH, not only return on investment but also return on other objectives matters. Moreover, CSH is at least as effective to deepen existing business relationships as to create new ones. Research limitations/implications The paper provides clubs and companies with a theoretic background and practical key performance indicators (KPIs) to base their managerial decisions on. Although external validity to other Belgian venue-based sports can reasonably be assumed, translating the findings to other countries or non-venue based sports requires caution. Originality/value Little academic research about the CSH industry is available. Specific KPIs to define objectives and measure output, as well as feedback loops for clubs and companies, are developed. The proposed CSH management process follows the same high-level steps, but with different specific actions per actor, leading to a better understanding of similarities and differences of both processes, and a better co-creation of the CSH event.

The role of consciousness and sub-consciousness in teaching of grammar in ELT

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 115-120
Author(s):  
Selin Ozdemir ◽  
Fatih Yavuz
Keyword(s):  
Literature Review ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Explicit Knowledge ◽  
Learning Processes ◽  
Grammar Teaching ◽  
High Level ◽  
Teaching Grammar ◽  
The Way

Teaching grammar has been regarded as one of the most crucial issues in the field of language. It gains its importance since it helps learners attain high level of accuracy and proficiency in language learning processes. During these processes, the way of teaching grammar differs under some certain circumstances and is divided into some sub-categories such as conscious grammar teaching and subconscious grammar teaching. In this study, a literature review of issues on the role of consciousness and sub-consciousness in teaching of grammar has been widely discussed since there are numerous views, claims and approaches related to choosing one of them as an ideal way to teach grammar. Both of them have a significant impact on the knowledge of grammar .The study revealed that neither conscious grammar teaching which lays emphasis on the structures and rules of a language nor subconscious grammar teaching without attention to explicit knowledge of grammar should be neglected. Keywords: Grammar teaching, consciousness, sub-consciousness, deductive, inductive.

Constrained Multibody Dynamics With Python: From Symbolic Equation Generation to Publication

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gilbert Gede ◽  
Dale L. Peterson ◽  
Angadh S. Nanjangud ◽  
Jason K. Moore ◽  
Mont Hubbard
Keyword(s):  
Open Source ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Multibody Systems ◽  
Degrees Of Freedom ◽  
Equations Of Motion ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
General Purpose ◽  
Engineering Software ◽  
Symbolic Equations Of Motion ◽  
High Level

Symbolic equations of motion (EOMs) for multibody systems are desirable for simulation, stability analyses, control system design, and parameter studies. Despite this, the majority of engineering software designed to analyze multibody systems are numeric in nature (or present a purely numeric user interface). To our knowledge, none of the existing software packages are 1) fully symbolic, 2) open source, and 3) implemented in a popular, general, purpose high level programming language. In response, we extended SymPy (an existing computer algebra system implemented in Python) with functionality for derivation of symbolic EOMs for constrained multibody systems with many degrees of freedom. We present the design and implementation of the software and cover the basic usage and workflow for solving and analyzing problems. The intended audience is the academic research community, graduate and advanced undergraduate students, and those in industry analyzing multibody systems. We demonstrate the software by deriving the EOMs of a N-link pendulum, show its capabilities for LATEX output, and how it integrates with other Python scientific libraries — allowing for numerical simulation, publication quality plotting, animation, and online notebooks designed for sharing results. This software fills a unique role in dynamics and is attractive to academics and industry because of its BSD open source license which permits open source or commercial use of the code.

Research Collaboration with Community Organizations: A Case Example

2003 ◽  
Vol 84 (1) ◽  
pp. 75-79 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deborah B. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Research Collaboration ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Community Organizations ◽  
State University ◽  
Research Experience ◽  
Community Based Organization ◽  
High Level ◽  
The University ◽  
Collaborative Efforts

This case example details a collaborative research experience between an urban state university and a community-based organization. The project combined the author's interest in midlife volunteering with the organization's need for long-term planning in volunteer and program development. Important components of this endeavor mirror those previously reported in the literature as necessary for collaborative success, including shared concerns, good timing, strong stakeholder groups, involvement of high-level visible leaders, and development of respect and trust. In addition, the author found that prior involvement between the university and the organization helped, as did the author's prior experience with collaborative efforts. Also discussed are the positive outcomes and challenges of undertaking academic research with community organizations.

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