Distributed estimation and control of a four-tank process

A multivariable process of four interconnected water tanks is considered for modeling and control. The objective of the current study is to design and implement a distributed control and estimation (DEC) for a multivariable four-tank process. Distributed model and inter-nodal communication structure are derived from global state–space matrices, thus combining the topology of plant flow sheet and the interaction dynamics across the plant subunits. Using experimental data, the process dynamics and disturbance effects are modeled. A typical lab-scale system was simulated and the obtained results demonstrated the potential of the DEC algorithm.

Protection and Control Standards with Auto Diagnosis for the Motor in Low-Voltage Switchgear According to Industry 4.0

The article is a review of the latest available technologies on the market which are part of “Industry 4.0”, in the field of protection, control, and power supply of equipment. The authors focus on the development of the protection devices (PLC controllers), which can be used not only for protection purposes but also for the diagnosis and monitoring of the entire system. The key element is the communication structure involving protection, main PLC controller, and DCS, which has an impact on the reliability of the whole system. The authors compare different solutions that allow increasing the reliability of the system (ethernet connection), compared to the classic system (wire connection). Universal protection devices are more flexible devices compared to classic control equipment, but also allow us to make modifications to the structure after commissioning, during normal operation of the system without stopping the technological process.

The communicative structure of network political leadership: Opportunities for empirical research

The phenomenon of the leadership in the network space is becoming the subject of modern Russian and foreign studies. At the same time, the phenomenon has not been determined. The article describes the communication structure of network leadership between the concepts of network leadership, blogger, and influencer, as well as the basis for the future empirical research.

The Communication Structure of the Government of Puerto Rico; Evolution and Challenges

The communication structure of a government is an area barely studied. This article intends to present academic perspectives to shape a structural organizational model of communication that is used as a reference in the evolutionary analysis of the communication of the Puerto Rico central government. It is concluded that the communication structure of the Government of Puerto Rico has presented significant structural modifications during six administrations that contain efficiencies, deficiencies and challenges for the management of its public communication.

Problem-solving by total productive maintenance swift teams: communication network structure, media choice and team effectiveness

PurposeThis study aims to look at the performance, communication structure and media choice for swift teams (STs) formed with the purpose of recovering from operational emergencies in manufacturing. The problem-solving process associated with these ad hoc teams include an early stage, where the main goal is to restore the process to working conditions, and a later stage, longer in duration, where the root cause of the problem is found and eliminated.Design/methodology/approachBased on field data from an industrial manufacturing operation, the authors test hypotheses by means of regression models.FindingsIt was found that in the evolution from early to later stage, media usage shifts from highly synchronous to asynchronous and the structural characteristics of the teams' collaboration networks mutate as well. These effects are different when comparing high- vs low-performing teams.Research limitations/implicationsThe study contains data for only one company, limiting the external validity of the conclusions. The sample was predominantly male. Participant attrition and other potential covariates not included in the study can be additional limitations.Practical implicationsMore successful teams adapt their communication patterns more rapidly, going from an initially decentralized organization to a more centralized one. These changes in network patterns open a new view of ST’s success, based on network characteristics rather than on aggregate measures. The conclusions yield insights for interventions that may increase the success rates of these teams and reduce production line downtime.Originality/valueThe two stages in the operational emergency problem-solving process have to the authors’ knowledge not been addressed simultaneously in previous research, which is attempted in this paper as its main theoretical contribution. Moreover, previous studies dealing with ST’s success have only looked at aggregated measures impacting effectiveness and never to how their communication networks evolve along the path to problem resolution. The network view of the evolution of the ST from a relatively disorganized impromptu agglomeration of individuals to an effective problem-solving organization is to the authors’ knowledge first presented.

Providing an Adaptive Routing along with a Hybrid Selection Strategy to Increase Efficiency in NoC-Based Neuromorphic Systems

Effective and efficient routing is one of the most important parts of routing in NoC-based neuromorphic systems. In fact, this communication structure connects different units through the packets routed by routers and switches embedded in the network on a chip. With the help of this capability, not only high scalability and high development can be created, but by decreasing the global wiring to the chip level, power consumption can be reduced. In this paper, an adaptive routing algorithm for NoC-based neuromorphic systems is proposed along with a hybrid selection strategy. Accordingly, a traffic analyzer is first used to determine the type of local or nonlocal traffic depending on the number of hops. Then, considering the type of traffic, the RCA and NoP selection strategies are used for the nonlocal and local strategies, respectively. Finally, using the experiments that performed in the simulator environment, it has been shown that this solution can well reduce the average delay time and power consumption.

COMMUNICATION IN AI-ASSISTED TEAMS DURING AN INTERDISCIPLINARY DRONE DESIGN PROBLEM

Human-artificial intelligent (AI) - assisted teaming is becoming a strategy for coalescing the complementary strengths of humans and computers to solve difficult tasks. Yet, there is still much to learn regarding how the integration of humans with AI agents into a team affects human behavior. Accordingly, this work begins to inform this research gap by focusing specifically on how the communication structure and interaction changes within AI-assisted human teams. The underlying discourse data for this work originates from a prior research study in which teams solve an interdisciplinary drone design and path-planning problem. Several metrics are employed in this work to study team discourse, including count, diversity, content richness, and semantic coherence. Results show significant differences in communication behavior in AI-assisted teams including more diversity and frequency in communication, more exchange of information regarding principal design parameters and problem-solving strategies, and more cohesion. Overall, this work takes meaningful steps towards understanding the effects of AI agents on human behavior in teams, critical for fully building effective human-AI hybrid teams in the future.

Disaster Preparedness and Resilience at Household Level in Yangon, Myanmar

Resilience has become important in disaster preparedness and response. Unfortunately, little is known about resilience at the household level. This study presents the results of a survey into individual and household level preparedness to disaster events in Yangon, Myanmar, which is prone to natural disasters such as tropical cyclones, flooding, and earthquakes. The study aimed to understand societal resilience and to provide information that could be used to develop a holistic framework. In four different Yangon townships, 440 households were interviewed. The results of the survey indicate how risk preparedness could be improved by specific measures related to the following five factors: 1) increasing the general public’s knowledge of first-aid and its role in preparedness; 2) improving mobile phone infrastructure so that it can be used for communication during disasters, along with building up a redundant communication structure; 3) better use and organisation of volunteer potential; 4) more specific involvement of religious and public buildings for disaster response; and 5) developing specific measures for improving preparedness in urban areas, where the population often has reduced capacities for coping with food supply insufficiencies due to the high and immediate availability of food, shops and goods in regular times. The findings of this survey have led to specific recommendations for Yangon. The identified measures represent a first step in developing a more general framework. Future research could investigate the transferability of these measures to other areas and thus their suitability as a basis for a framework.