Smart Gait:A Gait Optimization Framework for Hexapod Robots

The current gait planning for legged robots is mostly based on human presets,which cannot match the flexible characteristics of natural mammals.This paper proposes a gait optimization framework for hexapod robots called Smart Gait.Smart Gait contains three modules:swing leg trajectory optimization,gait period&duty optimization,and gait sequence optimization.The full dynamics of a single leg,and the centroid dynamics of the overall robot are considered in the respective modules.The Smart Gait not only helps the robot to decrease the energy consumption when in locomotion,mostly,it enables the hexapod robot to determine its gait pattern transitions based on its current state,instead of repeating the formalistic clock-set step cycles.Our Smart Gait framework allows the hexapod robot to behave nimbly as a living animal when in 3D movements for the first time.The Smart Gait framework combines offline and online optimizations without any fussy data-driven training procedures,and it can run efficiently on board in real-time after deployment.Various experiments are carried out on the hexapod robot LittleStrong.The results show that the energy consumption is reduced by 15.9%when in locomotion.Adaptive gait patterns can be generated spontaneously both in regular and challenge environments,and when facing external interferences.

Recent Advances and Challenges of Visual Signal Quality Assessment

While quality assessment is essential for testing, optimizing, benchmarking, monitoring, and inspecting related systems and services, it also plays an essential role in the design of virtually all visual signal processing and communication algorithms, as well as various related decision-making processes. In this paper, we first provide an overview of recently derived quality assessment approaches for traditional visual signals (i.e., 2D images/videos), with highlights for new trends (such as machine learning approaches). On the other hand, with the ongoing development of devices and multimedia services, newly emerged visual signals (e.g., mobile/3D videos) are becoming more and more popular. This work focuses on recent progresses of quality metrics, which have been reviewed for the newly emerged forms of visual signals, which include scalable and mobile videos, High Dynamic Range (HDR) images, image segmentation results, 3D images/videos, and retargeted images.

Ants-Based On-Demand Routing Algorithm for Mobile Ad Hoc Networks

An ants-based on-demand routing algorithm （AORA） specialized for mobile ad hoc networks is proposed. AORA measures the network＇s traffic information including delivery time, route energy etc. by the continuous delivery of data packets, then calculates the compositive parameter for each route which can be seen as the stigmity and uses it to choose the comparatively optimal route in real time. To adjust the weight of each traffic information, the algorithm can meet the different demand of the network＇s user. Multipath source self repair routing （MSSRR） algorithm and dynamic source routing （DSR） can be seen as the special samples of AORA. The routing overhead is not increased in this algorithm. By using simulation, it can be seen that the performance of AORA is better than that of DSR in all scenarios obviously, especially the delivery fraction is increased by more than 100 96.

A distributed deadlock detection algorithm for mobile computing system

The mode of mobile computing originated from distributed computing and it has the un-idempotent operation property, therefore the deadlock detection algorithm designed for mobile computing systems will face challenges with regard to correctness and high efficiency. This paper attempts a fundamental study of deadlock detection for the AND model of mobile computing systems. First, the existing deadlock detection algorithms for distributed systems are classified into the resource node dependent (RD) and the resource node independent (RI) categories, and their corresponding weaknesses are discussed. Afterwards a new RI algorithm based on the AND model of mobile computing system is presented. The novelties of our algorithm are that: 1) the blocked nodes inform their predecessors and successors simultaneously; 2) the detection messages (agents) hold the predecessors information of their originator; 3) no agent is stored midway. Additionally, the quit-inform scheme is introduced to treat the excessive victim quitting problem raised by the overlapped cycles. By these methods the proposed algorithm can detect a cycle of size n within n-2 steps and with (n^2-n-2)/2 agents. The performance of our algorithm is compared with the most competitive RD and RI algorithms for distributed systems on a mobile agent simulation platform. Experiment results point out that our algorithm outperforms the two algorithms under the vast majority of resource configurations and concurrent workloads. The correctness of the proposed algorithm is formally proven by the invariant verification technique.

Research on efficient edge-chasing deadlock detection/resolution for distributed systems

Numerous edge-chasing deadlock detection algonthms were developed lor the cycle detection in distributed systems, but their detections had the n steps speed limitation and n （ n- 1） overhead limitation to detect a cycle of size n under the one-resource request model. Since fast deadlock detection is critical, this paper proposed a new algorithm to speed up the detection process. In our algorithm, when the running of a transaction node is blocked, the being requested resource nodes reply it with the waiting or being waited message simultaneously, so the blocked node knows both its predecessors and successors, which helps it detecting a cycle of size 2 directly and locally. For the cycle of size n （ n 〉 2）, a special probe is produced which has the predecessors information of its originator, so the being detected nodes know their indirect predecessors and direct successors, and can detect the cycle within n - 2 steps. The proposed algorithm is formally proved to be correct by the invariant verification method. Performance evaluation shows that the message overhead of our detection is （ n^2 - n - 2）/2, hence both the detection speed and message cost of the proposed algorithm are better than that of the existing al gorithms.

An Efficient Handoff Decision Algorithm for Vertical Handoff Between WWAN and WLAN

Vertical handoff is one significant challenge for mobility management in heterogeneous wireless networks. Compared with horizontal handoff, vertical handoff involves different wireless network technologies varying widely in terms of bandwidth, delay, coverage area, power consumption, etc. In this paper, we analyze the signal strength model of mobile node and present a new vertical handoff decision algorithm. This algorithm can adapt to the change of mobile node＇s velocity and improve the handoff efficiency significantly. We analyze the algorithm＇s performance and the effect of different parameters on handoff triggering. In addition, we propose three performance evaluation models and verify the algorithm＇s feasibility and effectiveness in simulations.