This book develops a coherent and quite general theoretical approach to algorithm design for iterative learning control based on the use of operator representations and quadratic optimization concepts including the related ideas of inverse model control and gradient-based design. Using detailed examples taken from linear, discrete and continuous-time systems, the author gives the reader access to theories based on either signal or parameter optimization. Although the two approaches are shown to be related in a formal mathematical sense, the text presents them separately as their relevant algorithm design issues are distinct and give rise to different performance capabilities. Together with algorithm design, the text demonstrates the underlying robustness of the paradigm and also includes new control laws that are capable of incorporating input and output constraints, enable the algorithm to reconfigure systematically in order to meet the requirements of different reference and auxiliary signals and also to support new properties such as spectral annihilation. Iterative Learning Control will interest academics and graduate students working in control who will find it a useful reference to the current status of a powerful and increasingly popular method of control. The depth of background theory and links to practical systems will be of use to engineers responsible for precision repetitive processes.

Methods by which robots can learn control laws that enable real-time reactivity using dynamical systems; with applications and exercises. This book presents a wealth of machine learning techniques to make the control of robots more flexible and safe when interacting with humans. It introduces a set of control laws that enable reactivity using dynamical systems, a widely used method for solving motion-planning problems in robotics. These control approaches can replan in milliseconds to adapt to new environmental constraints and offer safe and compliant control of forces in contact. The techniques offer theoretical advantages, including convergence to a goal, non-penetration of obstacles, and passivity. The coverage of learning begins with low-level control parameters and progresses to higher-level competencies composed of combinations of skills. Learning for Adaptive and Reactive Robot Control is designed for graduate-level courses in robotics, with chapters that proceed from fundamentals to more advanced content. Techniques covered include learning from demonstration, optimization, and reinforcement learning, and using dynamical systems in learning control laws, trajectory planning, and methods for compliant and force control . Features for teaching in each chapter: applications, which range from arm manipulators to whole-body control of humanoid robots; pencil-and-paper and programming exercises; lecture videos, slides, and MATLAB code examples available on the author’s website . an eTextbook platform website offering protected material[EPS2] for instructors including solutions.

An up-to-date account of the interplay between optimization and machine learning, accessible to students and researchers in both communities. The interplay between optimization and machine learning is one of the most important developments in modern computational science. Optimization formulations and methods are proving to be vital in designing algorithms to extract essential knowledge from huge volumes of data. Machine learning, however, is not simply a consumer of optimization technology but a rapidly evolving field that is itself generating new optimization ideas. This book captures the state of the art of the interaction between optimization and machine learning in a way that is accessible to researchers in both fields. Optimization approaches have enjoyed prominence in machine learning because of their wide applicability and attractive theoretical properties. The increasing complexity, size, and variety of today's machine learning models call for the reassessment of existing assumptions. This book starts the process of reassessment. It describes the resurgence in novel contexts of established frameworks such as first-order methods, stochastic approximations, convex relaxations, interior-point methods, and proximal methods. It also devotes attention to newer themes such as regularized optimization, robust optimization, gradient and subgradient methods, splitting techniques, and second-order methods. Many of these techniques draw inspiration from other fields, including operations research, theoretical computer science, and subfields of optimization. The book will enrich the ongoing cross-fertilization between the machine learning community and these other fields, and within the broader optimization community.

The efficiency of solar energy farms requires detailed analytics and information on each panel regarding voltage, current, temperature, and irradiance. Monitoring utility-scale solar arrays was shown to minimize the cost of maintenance and help optimize the performance of the photo-voltaic arrays under various conditions. We describe a project that includes development of machine learning and signal processing algorithms along with a solar array testbed for the purpose of PV monitoring and control. The 18kW PV array testbed consists of 104 panels fitted with smart monitoring devices. Each of these devices embeds sensors, wireless transceivers, and relays that enable continuous monitoring, fault detection, and real-time connection topology changes. The facility enables networked data exchanges via the use of wireless data sharing with servers, fusion and control centers, and mobile devices. We develop machine learning and neural network algorithms for fault classification. In addition, we use weather camera data for cloud movement prediction using kernel regression techniques which serves as the input that guides topology reconfiguration. Camera and satellite sensing of skyline features as well as parameter sensing at each panel provides information for fault detection and power output optimization using topology reconfiguration achieved using programmable actuators (relays) in the SMDs. More specifically, a custom neural network algorithm guides the selection among four standardized topologies. Accuracy in fault detection is demonstrate at the level of 90+% and topology optimization provides increase in power by as much as 16% under shading.

Optimization for Learning and Control Comprehensive resource providing a masters’ level introduction to optimization theory and algorithms for learning and control Optimization for Learning and Control describes how optimization is used in these domains, giving a thorough introduction to both unsupervised learning, supervised learning, and reinforcement learning, with an emphasis on optimization methods for large-scale learning and control problems. Several applications areas are also discussed, including signal processing, system identification, optimal control, and machine learning. Today, most of the material on the optimization aspects of deep learning that is accessible for students at a Masters’ level is focused on surface-level computer programming; deeper knowledge about the optimization methods and the trade-offs that are behind these methods is not provided. The objective of this book is to make this scattered knowledge, currently mainly available in publications in academic journals, accessible for Masters’ students in a coherent way. The focus is on basic algorithmic principles and trade-offs. Optimization for Learning and Control covers sample topics such as: Optimization theory and optimization methods, covering classes of optimization problems like least squares problems, quadratic problems, conic optimization problems and rank optimization. First-order methods, second-order methods, variable metric methods, and methods for nonlinear least squares problems. Stochastic optimization methods, augmented Lagrangian methods, interior-point methods, and conic optimization methods. Dynamic programming for solving optimal control problems and its generalization to reinforcement learning. How optimization theory is used to develop theory and tools of statistics and learning, e.g., the maximum likelihood method, expectation maximization, k-means clustering, and support vector machines. How calculus of variations is used in optimal control and for deriving the family of exponential distributions. Optimization for Learning and Control is an ideal resource on the subject for scientists and engineers learning about which optimization methods are useful for learning and control problems; the text will also appeal to industry professionals using machine learning for different practical applications.

Simulation-Based Optimization: Parametric Optimization Techniques and Reinforcement Learning introduce the evolving area of static and dynamic simulation-based optimization. Covered in detail are model-free optimization techniques – especially designed for those discrete-event, stochastic systems which can be simulated but whose analytical models are difficult to find in closed mathematical forms. Key features of this revised and improved Second Edition include: · Extensive coverage, via step-by-step recipes, of powerful new algorithms for static simulation optimization, including simultaneous perturbation, backtracking adaptive search and nested partitions, in addition to traditional methods, such as response surfaces, Nelder-Mead search and meta-heuristics (simulated annealing, tabu search, and genetic algorithms) · Detailed coverage of the Bellman equation framework for Markov Decision Processes (MDPs), along with dynamic programming (value and policy iteration) for discounted, average, and total reward performance metrics · An in-depth consideration of dynamic simulation optimization via temporal differences and Reinforcement Learning: Q-Learning, SARSA, and R-SMART algorithms, and policy search, via API, Q-P-Learning, actor-critics, and learning automata · A special examination of neural-network-based function approximation for Reinforcement Learning, semi-Markov decision processes (SMDPs), finite-horizon problems, two time scales, case studies for industrial tasks, computer codes (placed online) and convergence proofs, via Banach fixed point theory and Ordinary Differential Equations Themed around three areas in separate sets of chapters – Static Simulation Optimization, Reinforcement Learning and Convergence Analysis – this book is written for researchers and students in the fields of engineering (industrial, systems, electrical and computer), operations research, computer science and applied mathematics.

An up-close look at the theory behind and application of extremum seeking Originally developed as a method of adaptive control for hard-to-model systems, extremum seeking solves some of the same problems as today's neural network techniques, but in a more rigorous and practical way. Following the resurgence in popularity of extremum-seeking control in aerospace and automotive engineering, Real-Time Optimization by Extremum-Seeking Control presents the theoretical foundations and selected applications of this method of real-time optimization. Written by authorities in the field and pioneers in adaptive nonlinear control systems, this book presents both significant theoretic value and important practical potential. Filled with in-depth insight and expert advice, Real-Time Optimization by Extremum-Seeking Control: * Develops optimization theory from the points of dynamic feedback and adaptation * Builds a solid bridge between the classical optimization theory and modern feedback and adaptation techniques * Provides a collection of useful tools for problems in this complex area * Presents numerous applications of this powerful methodology * Demonstrates the immense potential of this methodology for future theory development and applications Real-Time Optimization by Extremum-Seeking Control is an important resource for both students and professionals in all areas of engineering-electrical, mechanical, aerospace, chemical, biomedical-and is also a valuable reference for practicing control engineers.