Where is the rudder of a fish?:the mechanism of swimming and control of self-propelled fish school

Numerical simulation and control of self- propelled swimming of two- and three-dimensional biomimetic fish school in a viscous flow are investigated. With a parallel computational fluid dynamics package for the two- and three-dimensional moving boundary problem, which combines the adaptive multi-grid finite volume method and the methods of immersed boundary and volume of fluid, it is found that due to the interactions of vortices in the wakes, without proper control, a fish school swim with a given flap- ping rule can not keep the fixed shape of a queue. In order to understand the secret of fish swimming, a new feedback con- trol strategy of fish motion is proposed for the first time, i,e., the locomotion speed is adjusted by the flapping frequency of the caudal, and the direction of swimming is controlled by the swinging of the head of a fish. Results show that with this feedback control strategy, a fish school can keep the good order of a queue in cruising, turning or swimming around circles. This new control strategy, which separates the speed control and direction control, is important in the construction of biomimetic robot fish, with which it greatly simplifies the control devices of a biomimetic robot fish.

Self-adapting control parameters modifieddifferential evolution for trajectoryplanning of manipulators

Control parameters of original differential evolution （DE） are kept fixed throughout the entire evolutionary process. However, it is not an easy task to properly set control parameters in DE for different optiinization problems. According to the relative position of two different individual vectors selected to generate a difference vector in the searching place, a self-adapting strategy for the scale factor F of the difference vector is proposed. In terms of the convergence status of the target vector in the current population, a self-adapting crossover probability constant CR strategy is proposed. Therefore, good target vectors have a lower CFI while worse target vectors have a large CFI. At the same time, the mutation operator is modified to improve the convergence speed. The performance of these proposed approaches are studied with the use of some benchmark problems and applied to the trajectory planning of a three-joint redundant manipulator. Finally, the experiment results show that the proposed approaches can greatly improve robustness and convergence speed.

Robust Tracking Control for Self-balancing Mobile Robots Using Disturbance Observer

In this paper,a robust tracking control scheme based on nonlinear disturbance observer is developed for the self-balancing mobile robot with external unknown disturbances.A desired velocity control law is firstly designed using the Lyapunov analysis method and the arctan function.To improve the tracking control performance,a nonlinear disturbance observer is developed to estimate the unknown disturbance of the self-balancing mobile robot.Using the output of the designed disturbance observer,the robust tracking control scheme is presented employing the sliding mode method for the selfbalancing mobile robot.Numerical simulation results further demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed robust tracking control scheme for the self-balancing mobile robot subject to external unknown disturbances.

Fuzzy self-tuning PID control of the operation temperatures in a two-staged membrane separation process

A two-staged membrane separation process for hydrogen recovery from refinery gases is introduced. The principle of the gas membrane separation process and the influence of the operation temperatures are analyzed. As the conventional PID controller is difficult to make the operation temperatures steady, a fuzzy self-tuning PID control algorithm is proposed. The application shows that the algorithm is effective, the operation temperatures of both stages can be controlled steadily, and the operation flexibility and adaptability of the hydrogen recovery unit are enhanced with safety. This study lays a foundation to optimize the control of the membrane separation process and thus ensure the membrane performance.

Efficacy and safety of standard and anti-reflux self-expanding metal stent: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

BACKGROUND Self-expanding metal stents are the main palliative treatment modality for unresectable esophageal cancer. Gastroesophageal reflux is a common adverse outcome after placement of esophageal stent for cancer involving the gastroesophageal junction and the gastric cardia. Anti-reflux stents with valve have been designed to prevent the acid reflux. The superiority of anti-reflux stent over standard stent in preventing gastroesophageal reflux has not been established well. This study compares the anti-reflux stent and the standard stent in terms of their efficacy to prevent acid reflux.AIM To compare the standard and the anti-reflux stents in terms of their efficacy,safety, and complications.METHODS The meta-analysis included 8 randomized clinical trials(RCTs) to compare pooled outcomes of total 395 patients. Primary outcomes include improvement in reflux symptoms and dysphagia score. Secondary outcomes include complications of stent migration, occlusion, and bleeding.RESULTS A total of eight RCTs were included in the meta-analysis. Compared to the standard stent, the anti-reflux stent showed a trend towards reduction in the dysphagia score without reaching a statistical significance [Standardized mean difference(SMD):-0.33(-0.71, 0.05); P = 0.09, I2: 37%]. There was no statistical difference in the gastrointestinal reflux(GER) scores between the two types of stents [SMD:-0.17(-0.78, 0.45); P = 0.008, I2: 74%]. Compared to standard stent,anti-reflux stent showed no difference in the risk of stent migration [OR: 1.37(0.66, 2.83); P = 0.40, I2: 0 %], bleeding [OR: 1.43(0.40, 5.13); P = 0.59, I2: 0 %], and obstruction [OR: 1.66(0.60, 4.60); P = 0.33, I2: 0 %].CONCLUSION Traditional self-expanding standard esophageal stent and anti-reflux stent with valve are similar in terms of outcomes and complications.

New robust fault-tolerant controller for self-repairing flight control systems

A new robust fault-tolerant controller scheme integrating a main controller and a compensator for the self-repairing flight control system is discussed.The main controller is designed for high performance of the original faultless system.The compensating controller can be seen as a standalone loop added to the system to compensate the effects of fault guaranteeing the stability of the system.A design method is proposed using nonlinear dynamic inverse control as the main controller and nonlinear extended state observer-based compensator.The stability of the whole closed-loop system is analyzed.Feasibility and validity of the new controller is demonstrated with an aircraft simulation example.

Self-triggered Consensus Control for Linear Multi-agent Systems With Input Saturation

In this paper, we study the consensus problem for a class of linear multi-agent systems(MASs) with consideration of input saturation under the self-triggered mechanism. In the context of discrete-time systems, a self-triggered strategy is developed to determine the time interval between the adjacent triggers. The triggering condition is designed by using the current sampled consensus error. Furthermore, the consensus control protocol is designed by means of a state feedback approach. It is shown that the considered multi-agent systems can reach consensus with the presented algorithm. Some sufficient conditions are proposed in the form of linear matrix inequalities(LMIs) to show the positively invariant property of the domain of attraction(DOA). Moreover, some sufficient conditions of controller synthesis are provided to enlarge the volume of the DOA and obtain the control gain matrix. A numerical example is simulated to demonstrate the effectiveness of the theoretical analysis results.

Controlled crystallization of hydroxyapatite under hexadecylamine self-assembled monolayer

The role of self assembled monolayer in inducing the crystal growth was investigated by X ray diffractions (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Results show that crystallization in the absence of monolayer results in a mixture of poorly crystallized calcium phosphates, including hydroxyapatite (HAP) and octacalcium phosphate (OCP), while the presence of self assembled monolayer gives rise to oriented and well crystallized HAP crystals. Moreover, the HAP crystal grows very quickly under the self assembled monolayer, whereas very little calcium phosphate crystals grow without the monolayer. It is rationalized that the hexadecylamine monolayer with high polarity and charged density leads to increase supersaturation and lower the interfacial energy, which attributes to the HAP crystals nucleation. On the other hand, the positive headgroups construct the ordered "recognized site" with distinct size and topology, which results in the oriented HAP crystals deposit.

Self-adaptive PID controller of microwave drying rotary device tuning on-line by genetic algorithms

The control design, based on self-adaptive PID with genetic algorithms(GA) tuning on-line was investigated, for the temperature control of industrial microwave drying rotary device with the multi-layer(IMDRDWM) and with multivariable nonlinear interaction of microwave and materials. The conventional PID control strategy incorporated with optimization GA was put forward to maintain the optimum drying temperature in order to keep the moisture content below 1%, whose adaptation ability included the cost function of optimization GA according to the output change. Simulations on five different industrial process models and practical temperature process control system for selenium-enriched slag drying intensively by using IMDRDWM were carried out systematically, indicating the reliability and effectiveness of control design. The parameters of proposed control design are all on-line implemented without iterative predictive calculations, and the closed-loop system stability is guaranteed, which makes the developed scheme simpler in its synthesis and application, providing the practical guidelines for the control implementation and the parameter design.

Development of seam tracking system with ultrasonic sensor using self-tuning fuzzy control

One kind of the SAW seam tracking system with contactless ultrasonic sensor is presented in this paper. The new contactless ultrasonic sensor for seam tracking and the working principle of the seam tracking with the sensor are introduced. Based on the experiments, the optimal values of the fuzzy control parameters α and k 3 are defined by means of the off line adjusting method. Because the self tuning fuzzy control is adopted in the seam tracking system, the overshoot of the system is restrained, the steady state error is reduced, and the system's response speed is improved effectively. The results of the SAW seam tracking experiments show that this system's tracking accuracy is up to ±0.5 mm and the system can satisfy the requirements of the engineering application.

Stabilization of CSTR w ith Self-tuning Sliding Mode Controller Using T-S Fuzzy Linearization

A self-tuning reaching law based sliding mode control(SMC)theory is proposed to stabilize the nonlinear continuous stirred tank reactor(CSTR).T-S fuzzy logic is used to build a global fuzzy state-space linear model.Combing the traits of SMC and CSTR,three fuzzy rules can meet the requirements of controlled system.The self-tuning switch control law which can drive the state variables to the sliding surface as soon as possible is designed to ensure the robustness of uncertain fuzzy system.Lyapunov equation is applied to proving the stability of the sliding surface.The simulations show that the proposed approach can achieve desired performance with less chattering problem.

Controllable fabrication of self-organized nano-multilayers in copper–carbon films

In order to clarify the influence of methane concentration and deposition time on self-organized nano-multilayers,three serial copper-carbon films have been prepared at various methane concentrations with different deposition times using a facile magnetron sputtering deposition system. The ratios of methane concentration(CH4/Ar+CH4) used in the experiments are 20%, 40%, and 60%, and the deposition times are 5 minutes, 20 minutes, and 40 minutes, respectively.Despite the difference in the growth conditions, self-organizing multilayered copper-carbon films are prepared at different deposition times by changing methane concentration. The film composition and microstructure are investigated by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS), x-ray diffraction(XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy(FESEM), and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy(HRTEM). By comparing the composition and microstructure of three serial films, the optimal growth conditions and compositions for self-organizing nano-multilayers in copper-carbon film are acquired. The results demonstrate that the self-organized nano-multilayered structure prefers to form in two conditions during the deposition process. One is that the methane should be curbed at low concentration for long deposition time,and the other condition is that the methane should be controlled at high concentration for short deposition time. In particular, nano-multilayered structure is self-organized in the copper-carbon film with copper concentration of 10-25 at.%.Furthermore, an interesting microstructure transition phenomenon is observed in copper-carbon films, that is, the nanomultilayered structure is gradually replaced by a nano-composite structure with deposition time and finally covered by amorphous carbon.

Vibration Control of a Composite Beam Using Self-sensing Semi-active Approach

Structural vibration control was an active research area for the past twenty years because of their potential applications in aerospace structures,civil structures,naval structures,etc.Semi-active vibration control methods based on piezoelectric actuators and synchronized switch damping on inductance（SSDI） techniques attract the attention of many researchers recently due to their advantages over passive and active methods.In the SSDI method,a switch shunt circuit is connected to the piezoelectric patch to shift the phase and amplify the magnitude of the voltage on the piezoelectric patch.The most important issue in SSDI method is to control the switching actions synchronously with the maximum vibration displacement or maximum strain.Hence,usually a displacement sensor is used to measure the vibration displacement or a collocated piezoelectric sensor is needed to measure the strain of the structure near the piezoelectric actuator.A self-sensing SSDI approach is proposed and applied to the vibration control of a composite beam,which avoids using a separate sensor.In the self-sensing technique,the same piezoelectric element functions as both a sensor and an actuator so that the total number of required piezoelectric elements can be reduced.One problem in the self-sensing actuator,which is the same as that in the traditional collocated piezoelectric sensors,is the noise generated in the sensor signal by the impact of voltage inversion,which may cause extra switching actions and deteriorate control performance.In order to prevent the shunt circuit from over-frequent on-and-off actions,a simple switch control algorithm is proposed.The results of control experiments show that the self-sensing SSDI approach combined with the improved switch control algorithm can effectively suppress over-frequent switching actions and gives good control performance by reducing the vibration amplitude by 45%,about 50% improvement from the traditional SSDI with a separate piezoelectric element and a classical switch.

Variable Parameter Self-Adaptive Control Strategy Based on Driving Condition Identification for Plug-In Hybrid Electric Bus

A variable parameter self-adaptive control strategy based on driving condition identification is proposed to take full advantage of the fuel saving potential of the plug-in hybrid electric bus(PHEB).Firstly,the principal component analysis(PCA)and the fuzzy c-means clustering(FCM)algorithm is used to construct the comprehensive driving cycle,congestion driving cycle,urban driving cycle and suburban driving cycle of Chinese urban buses.Secondly,an improved particle swarm optimization(IPSO)algorithm is proposed,and is used to optimize the control parameters of PHEB under different driving cycles,respectively.Then,the variable parameter self-adaptive control strategy based on driving condition identification is given.Finally,for an actual running vehicle,the driving condition is identified by relevance vector machine(RVM),and the corresponding control parameters are selected to control the vehicle.The simulation results show that the fuel consumption of using the variable parameter self-adaptive control strategy is reduced by 4.2% compared with that of the fixed parameter control strategy,and the feasibility of the variable parameter self-adaptive control strategy is verified.

The Relationship between College Students’ Online Game Addiction, Family Function and Self-Control

Objective: To study the status of online game addiction, self-control ability and family function, analyze the influence factors and the relationship between them. Methods: The questionnaire of online game addiction, family function and self-control ability was used to investigate some college students. Results: 1) The detection rate of college students’ online game addiction is 40%. There are significant differences in sex, grade and only child in online game addiction. 2) There are significant differences in self-control ability and family function between online game addicts and non-addicts. 3) Self-control ability and family function have a significant predictive effect on online game addiction. Conclusion: College students’ online game addiction is affected by their self-control ability and family function, and it can be alleviated by improving their self-control ability and family function.

Backstepping sliding mode control with self recurrent wavelet neural network observer for a novel coaxial twelve-rotor UAV

The robust attitude control for a novel coaxial twelve-rotor UAV which has much greater payload capacity,higher drive capability and damage tolerance than a quad-rotor UAV is studied. Firstly,a dynamical and kinematical model for the coaxial twelve-rotor UAV is designed. Considering model uncertainties and external disturbances,a robust backstepping sliding mode control( BSMC) with self recurrent wavelet neural network( SRWNN) method is proposed as the attitude controller for the coaxial twelve-rotor. A combinative algorithm of backstepping control and sliding mode control has simplified design procedures with much stronger robustness benefiting from advantages of both controllers. SRWNN as the uncertainty observer is able to estimate the lumped uncertainties effectively.Then the uniformly ultimate stability of the twelve-rotor system is proved by Lyapunov stability theorem. Finally,the validity of the proposed robust control method adopted in the twelve-rotor UAV under model uncertainties and external disturbances are demonstrated via numerical simulations and twelve-rotor prototype experiments.

Multiple mediation effects of health locusof control and hope on the relationshipbetween stroke patients’ social supportand self-management

Objective:This study aimed to identify the mediation effects of health locus of control(HLC)and hope between stroke patients’social support and self-management.Methods:A cross-sectional study was conducted.A total of 300 Chinese stroke patients were recruited by convenient sampling from the acupuncture department of two Chinese Traditional Medical Hospitals in Tianjin Province from June to September 2018.The self-report questionnaires include Social Support Assessment Scale,Herth Hope Index,Mental Health Locus of Control Scale,Stroke Self-management Behavior Scale,and personal information questionnaires.All the survey data were entered in Excel and analyzed using the SPSS 24.0 program.Mediation was tested with Bootstrapping in AMOS 23.0 program.Results:The result showed that internal health locus of control(IHLC),chance health locus of control(CHLC)and hope were the mediators between social support and self-management.The direct,indirect,and total effects of social support on self-management behavior were 0.306 (P<0.01),0.109(P<0.01),and 0.415(P<0.01),respectively.Conclusions:Social support can directly influence self-management,and it can also indirectly influence self-management through IHLC,CHLC,and hope.

A Real Time Self-Tuning Motion Controller for Mobile Robot Systems

This paper proposes an intelligent controller for motion control of robotic systems to obtain high precision tracking without the need for a real-time trial and error method.In addition, a new self-tuning algorithm has been developed based on both the ant colony algorithm and a fuzzy system for real-time tuning of controller parameters. Simulations and experiments using a real robot have been addressed to demonstrate the success of the proposed controller and validate the theoretical analysis. Obtained results confirm that the proposed controller ensures robust performance in the presence of disturbances and parametric uncertainties without the need for adjustment of control law parameters by a trial and error method.

Pole-placement self-tuning control of nonlinear Hammerstein system and its application to pH process control

By taking advantage of the separation characteristics of nonlinear gain and dynamic sector inside a Hammerstein model, a novel pole placement self tuning control scheme for nonlinear Hammerstein system was put forward based on the linear system pole placement self tuning control algorithm. And the nonlinear Hammerstein system pole placement self tuning control(NL-PP-STC) algorithm was presented in detail. The identi fication ability of its parameter estimation algorithm of NL-PP-STC was analyzed, which was always identi fiable in closed loop. Two particular problems including the selection of poles and the on-line estimation of model parameters, which may be met in applications of NL-PP-STC to real process control, were discussed. The control simulation of a strong nonlinear p H neutralization process was carried out and good control performance was achieved.

The Development of Self-Balancing Controller for One-Wheeled Vehicles

The purpose of this study is to develop a self-balancing controller (SBC) for one-wheeled vehicles (OWVs). The composition of the OWV system includes: a DSP motion card, a wheel motor, and its driver. In addition, a tilt and a gyro, for sensing the angle and angular velocity of the body slope, are used to realize self-balancing controls. OWV, a kind of unicycle robot, can be dealt with as a mobile-inverted-pendulum system for its instability. However, for its possible applications in mobile carriers or robots, it is worth being further developed. In this study, first, the OWV system model will be derived. Next, through the simulations based on the mathematical model, the analysis of system stability and controllability can be evaluated. Last, a concise and realizable method, through system pole-placement and linear quadratic regulator (LQR), will be proposed to design the SBC. The effectiveness, reliability, and feasibility of the proposal will be con- firmed through simulation studies and experimenting on a physical OWV.