Engineering Commons^™

Parameter Informed Reinforcement Learning For Vehicle System Identification, Nathan Schaff

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Accurate system identification is essential for modeling and controlling vehicle dynamics. This dissertation explores the application of Parameter Informed Reinforcement Learning (PIRL) as a novel approach to system identification (SYSID). PIRL integrates prior system knowledge, such as physical parameters, into reinforcement learning (RL) frameworks to improve estimation accuracy. The study begins with an overview of traditional SYSID methods and then introduces PIRL as a modification of standard RL. The research applies PIRL to short-period aircraft dynamics, demonstrating its effectiveness in both offline and online learning frameworks. The dissertation then further explores PIRL’s utility in an indirect model reference adaptive control …

Prism (Proxy Recognition And Inclusion Scoring Method), Destiny Raburnel, Crystal Tubbs, Md Abdullah Al Hafiz Khan

Symposium of Student Scholars

AI-driven automated hiring tools are reshaping how companies find talent, but they often reproduce the hidden biases embedded in their training data. Our project, PRISM (Proxy Recognition and Inclusion Scoring Method), investigates how subtle demographic signals, specifically first names associated with gender and race, influence AI resume screening even when candidates have identical qualifications. We built a controlled dataset of resumes that are identical in every way except for the applicant's first name, with each resume using a racially neutral surname to isolate how first names alone affect scoring. We tested these resumes against job postings in technology, healthcare, and …

A Predictive Model For Multi- Week Respiratory Risk From Red Tide On Florida’S Gulf Coast., Elmer S. Ochaeta

Computer Science and Engineering Faculty Publications

Florida’s Gulf Coast red tide (Karenia brevis) can put toxins into the air, making people cough, irritating the throat, and worsening asthma or other breathing problems especially when winds blow from the ocean toward the beach. Right now, most public updates don’t really help with the question people actually ask when planning a weekend or vacation: “Will going to or close to the beach be risky in the next few weeks?”.

In this project, I build a weekly early warning system that estimates respiratory risk for specific beaches and predicts that risk 2 to 4 weeks ahead. The study covers …

Iso-Detr: A Novel Detection Transformer For Industrial Small Object Detection, Faisal Saeed, Anand Paul

School of Public Health Faculty Publications

Effectively detecting and assessing real-time structural and ecological parameters in contemporary manufacturing environments poses significant challenges, particularly in identifying minute objects within product images. The swift evolution of the industrial sector underscores the necessity for intelligent manufacturing environments to uphold stringent product quality standards. However, accelerating production processes at high speeds heightens the risk of defective product outcomes. This research addresses the challenges inherent in small object detection within industrial contexts, proposing an innovative detection transformer model tailored to modern manufacturing environments. The proposed model integrates a feature-enhanced multi-head self-attention block (FEMSA), merging cross-channel communication network and multiple multi-head self-attention …

Adaptive Deep Learning In Physical Layer Applications, Ali Owfi

All Dissertations

Traditionally, signal processing models in communication systems have been designed based on solid foundations in statistics and information theory, often assuming linearity and optimizing for simplified models. However, real-world communication systems exhibit numerous imperfections and non-linearities that traditional linear models struggle to capture accurately. Deep Learning (DL)-based approaches, unconstrained by rigid mathematical models, have shown promise in optimizing system performance by accommodating specific hardware configurations and dynamic channel conditions as an alternative to the traditional methods. Despite all the recent research efforts on DL-based methods for physical layer applications, DL models have still not been widely applied to physical layer …

Privacy Preserving-Based Artificial Intelligence For Precision Agriculture, Partha P. Sengupta

Dissertations

The research work finds a solution to precision agriculture of cotton cultivation using artificial intelligence (AI) models. Two sets of model performance based on the application are selected namely a low resource and a high resource setting. This is because using drone surveys to capture images identifying the classes of stressed and unstressed cotton plantation requires limited model architecture and CPU based computation. Thus, traditional AI models were selected for low resource settings. Again, for high computation intensive models like transfer learning-convolution neural network (CNN) based architectures were grouped into high resource settings. There was another issue of class imbalance …

Bridging The Gap Between Network Science And Network Systems To Identify And Mitigate Cyber Risk: Identify And Mitigate Backdoor Attacks On Graph Neural Networks And On Complex Systems, Sabah Ettahri

Electrical & Computer Engineering Projects for D. Eng. Degree

This doctoral project aims to bridge the gap between graph theory and network science to identify and mitigate cyber risk, represented as a CY-Triangular Network that connects different networks. The CY-Triangular Framework is a cybersecurity system that integrates graph theory and network science through an interoperable learning approach. The objective of this project is to bridge the gap between two domains: network science and network systems. Accordingly, it examines one representative network from each field, focuses on a complex system network, and explores Graph Neural Networks (GNNs). The connection between these domains lies in graph theory. This research demonstrates that …

Cattlefever: An Automated Cattle Fever Estimation System, Trong Thang Pham, Ethan Coffman, Beth Kegley, Jeremy G. Powell, Jiangchao Zhao, Ngan Le

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Farmers face the critical challenge of monitoring cattle well-being for both ethical and economic success, relying on signals like body temperature and facial expressions to assess their animals' health. However, these indicators have traditionally relied on human observation with manual measurement, which is time-consuming and subjective. Despite this clear need, no automated system currently exists for monitoring cattle body temperature, and available datasets remain limited in scope. To address these challenges, we make two key contributions: (i) We introduce CattleFace-RGBT, a novel RGB-Thermal (RGB-T) Cattle Facial Landmark dataset consisting of 2,300 paired RGB and thermal images (4,600 images in total), …

Curvilinear Image Segmentation Using Multiscale Variational U-Net, Rebekah Fortes

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Segmentation of curvilinear structures such as water contours, cracks in cement, and vascular networks in biomedical imaging, poses unique challenges due to extreme class imbalance, irregular morphology, low contrast against complex backgrounds, and the need to preserve global connectivity while detecting fine-scale details. We propose a Multiscale Variational U-Net (MSVU-Net) architecture designed specifically to address these challenges. The model integrates multiscale convolutional filters to capture both global context and local detail, while embedding a variational model in the bottleneck layer to enhance structural representation. To mitigate class imbalance and improve fidelity, the network optimizes a hybrid loss function that combines …

The Future Is Now: Empowering Society Through Ai Literacy, Jason S. Wrench, Sanae Elmoudden

Milne Open Textbooks

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is no longer a futuristic concept—it is the reality of the present. From the algorithms shaping our social media feeds to the generative tools transforming our workplaces, AI has permeated every aspect of modern life. The Future is Now moves beyond the hype to provide a comprehensive roadmap for understanding, navigating, and shaping this technological revolution.

Demystifying the Machine

This textbook serves as a user-friendly guide to the “black box” of AI. It breaks down complex technical concepts—from machine learning and neural networks to large language models—making them accessible to students across all disciplines. By establishing a …

Human Identification And Action Recognition Using Small Data And Deep Domain Adaptation, Alexander M. Glandon

Electrical & Computer Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Human identification and human action recognition problems are two important research areas for real-world security and surveillance applications. In both human identification and action recognition, it is necessary to operate by collecting small datasets in the field, possibly in a short time window of observation. This dissertation studies and develops computational modeling and high-performance machine learning (ML) and deep learning (DL) models for human identification and human action recognition using small amounts of data. These methods and computational models may be useful for different security and surveillance applications.

This dissertation on human recognition develops a ML computational model to estimate …

Ai-Driven Optimization Of Wind Energy Distribution In Texas Using Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning, Waleed Amer, Owolabi Oluwadamilola, Bassey Ogbonnaya

SMU Data Science Review

Abstract. The integration of large-scale wind power into modern electrical grids presents persistent challenges due to variability, curtailment, and compliance with operational constraints. This study proposes a multi-agent reinforcement learning (MARL) framework for optimizing wind energy distribution within the Texas power grid. The system employs three specialized agents—managing wind curtailment, storage utilization, and load adjustments—to collaboratively balance supply and demand under dynamic grid conditions. Using historical operational data from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), the framework was trained and evaluated on a range of scenarios encompassing both typical and extreme operating conditions. Results demonstrate substantial performance improvements compared …

A Usv Path Planning Algorithm Under Special Environment Based On Td3-Rrt, Jitong Chen, Jiajia Zhou, Di Wu, Hailong Jiang

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: In view of USV path planning in special environments such as multiple obstacles, large-size obstacles, and narrow passages, the rapidly-exploring random tree (RRT) algorithm suffers from drawbacks such as a large sampling base, low success rate, and zigzagging planned path. To address these problems, a global path planning algorithm (TD3-RRT) was proposed based on the twin delayed deep deterministic policy gradient (TD3). The USV path search model was established by combining the RRT algorithm with deep reinforcement learning. Forward looking detection was used to sense the environment to adaptively adjust the step size. The path search direction was exported …

Auv Path Planning Based On Behavior Cloning And Improved Dqn In Partially Unknown Environments, Lijing Xing, Min Li, Xiangguang Zeng, Ping Zhang, Bei Peng

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: To address the problems of large randomness and slow convergence of the DQN dynamic path planning algorithm for a single autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) in a partially unknown environment, a path planning method combining behavior cloning with A* algorithm and DQN (BA_DQN) was proposed. Based on the known environmental information, an improved A* algorithm incorporating ocean current resistance was proposed to guide DQN, thereby reducing the randomness of the DQN algorithm. By considering the complexity of the marine environment, the sampling probability was improved again after expanding the positive experience pool to enhance the training success rate. To address …

Twin Modeling Of Gearbox Fault Early Warning System Based On Spatio-Temporal Characteristics, Yuanxing Tian, Zeyin Han, Ning Wang, Baoding Su, Weilin Xiang

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: The wind turbine gearbox cannot effectively collect vibration signals under complex faults, which leads to the decline of fault early warning accuracy of wind turbine gearbox. To address this issue, this study investigated the twin modeling of gearbox fault early warning system based on spatio-temporal characteristics. Through the information acquisition subsystem and optical fiber sensing technology, the time sequence and spatial position data of the wind turbine gearbox during operation were collected in real time to obtain spatio-temporal characteristic data. By using the twin space, the collected spatiotemporal characteristic data of the gearbox were transmitted to the virtual space. …

Path Planning For Mobile Robots Based On Improved Artificial Potential Field Algorithm, Chi Zhang, Wei Wei

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: In view of the problems of unreachable target areas and easy local minima in traditional artificial potential field methods, an improved artificial potential field method was proposed. The improved algorithm optimized the repulsive field function by introducing obstacle angle factors and distance factors to control the repulsive force magnitude. At the same time, an additional repulsive force towards the target point was added to solve the problem of unreachable target areas in traditional algorithms. When the robot fell into a local minimum, by introducing turning towards obstacles and turning factors to accurately apply escape forces to the robot, the …

Dynamic Supernetwork Modeling Of Command Information System Based On Task Timing, Xuehuan Qiu, Zhiming Dong, Liang Li, Zhuoli Liu

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: Due to the difficulty in reflecting the various information activities and interactions within the command information system using general modeling methods for complex system structure, the advantages of supernetwork in characterizing node heterogeneity and link multiplicity of the system were utilized. Based on the research on the mapping mechanism of the command information system across three domains, the dynamic and multifunctional properties of the functional network structure were analyzed. A dynamic supernetwork model based on task timing was constructed considering task requirements, providing model support for further research on complex interaction relationships in the command information system. The dynamic …

Improvement Of Slam Localization Accuracy In Ar By Enhancing Yolov8, Jia Liu, Zengwei Zhang, Dapeng Chen, Nanxuan Huang, Bin Wang, Hong Song

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: In the presence of dynamic interference in the environment, traditional simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) methods often experience reduced precision and stability in the registration of virtual objects during three-dimensional registration in augmented reality (AR). To address these issues, an improved method for dynamic scenes based on semantic segmentation and optical flow tracking was proposed. The convolutional block attention module (CBAM) attention mechanism was incorporated into YOLOv8 to enhance its focus on dynamic objects in the environment, thereby improving detection performance and accuracy. The semantic segmentation functionality of the improved YOLOv8 was integrated into the front-end of ORB-SLAM3 to …

Cooperative Guidance Method Considering Impact Time And Area Sealing, Zheng Guo, Guofei Li, Hua Xiong, Yunjie Wu

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: To address the problem of multi-vehicle cooperative strike against maneuvering targets, a cooperative guidance method considering impact time control and terminal area sealing was proposed. The distributed disturbance observer was utilized to estimate target maneuvers. Based on the consensus errors of the impact time, the cooperative guidance law in the line-of-sight direction was proposed to achieve simultaneous hits on targets at a specified time. By considering the motion states of targets, the instructions of the terminal area sealing were designed to construct the sliding mode surface and design the line-of-sight guidance law, so as to ensure the convergence of …

Optimization Of Service Caching And Computation Offloading In Digital Twin Cloud-Edge Networks, Jiayu Zheng, Zhuxue Mai, Zheyi Chen

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: In mobile edge computing (MEC), to satisfy diverse user demands by jointly optimizing service caching and computation offloading and address low-efficiency resource utilization caused by irrational resource allocation, this paper proposed a novel joint optimization of service caching and computation offloading with a convex-optimization-enabled deep reinforcement learning (JCO-CR) method. Additionally, a new model for digital twin cloud-edge networks (DTCEN) was constructed. The joint optimization of service caching and computation offloading was decoupled into two sub-problems, which were solved by an improved deep reinforcement learning method and convex optimization theory, respectively. Simulation experiments demonstrate that the proposed JCO-CR method …

Attitude Control Of Quadrotor Uav Based On Disturbance Observer And Command Filtering, Boning Li, Ming Chen, Shuchang Qi, Haoran Meng, Lei Wang

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: A finite-time fault-tolerant control scheme based on backstepping was proposed for the attitude tracking control problem of quadrotor UAVs. A finite-time neural network disturbance observer was designed, which could quickly compensate for the impacts of actuator failures and external disturbances, thereby enhancing the system's robustness. A first-order command filter and a compensation mechanism were introduced, which could avoid the computational complexity caused by differentiating the virtual control law and eliminate the influence of filtering errors. The hyperbolic tangent function was selected as the constraint function for the input torque, which restricted the input signal to prevent excessive magnitude …

Research On Cgf-Oriented Natural Language Interaction Framework, Xinmeng Li, Kai Xu, Yue Hu, Hesong Huang, Quanjun Yin

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: To address the mismatch between existing natural language interaction frameworks and training tasks in simulation-based military training, which limits smooth interaction between trainees and Computer Generated Forces (CGF), this paper proposes a Natural Language Interaction framework for Computer Generated Forces (NLI4CGF). The framework analyzes the logic and functional requirements of natural language interaction between trainees and CGF, and establishes an interaction architecture tailored for military simulation training scenarios. It supports semantic parsing and knowledge query tasks within a prototype system developed for infantry squad simulation training. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed model performs effectively, meets the requirements of …

Parking Space Reasoning Model For Complex Scenarios, Congling Zhou, Chunpeng Wang, Qiwei Xie, Yongqiang Wang, Lijun Shen

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: In the industrialization process of the combined driving assistance system, complex parking environments bring many challenges, such as occlusion of parking spaces, uneven lighting, and missed and false detections. To address these issues, a parking space reasoning model named PIPS-Net was proposed through PINet optimization. In terms of network architecture design, the model deeply integrated the stacked hourglass network with the recurrent feature-shift aggregator (RESA) to construct a context feature extraction architecture, which enhanced the feature reasoning ability in complex scenarios. Meanwhile, it reconstructed the output to meet the requirements of parking space detection tasks, thereby jointly improving the …

Research On Vehicle Path Optimization Algorithms For Urban Logistics And Distribution, Zhenpeng Ma, Hanyang Jiao, Zhe Zhang, Cheng Liu, Bo Jiang, Lin Wang

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: Existing optimization algorithms for solving the vehicle routing problem with time windows (VRPTW) are prone to fall into local optimal solutions and have slow convergence speed. To address this issue, a K-means clustering algorithm and improved large neighborhood search algorithm (K-means-ILNSA) was proposed. A strategy of clustering before optimization was adopted, and the K-means algorithm was adopted to group the customers to be delivered, so as to improve the optimization efficiency. The genetic algorithm was adopted to optimize each group of customers generated by clustering separately to initially plan the distribution routes. The large neighborhood search (LNS) algorithm was …

Bayesian Network Parameter Learning Based On Ahp-Dst Fusion Of Expert Prior Knowledge, Haiyang Chen, Hongkai Lin, Zhifang Ren, Jing Liu, Jing Zhang

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: Aiming at the problem of low accuracy of BN parameter learning due to the uncertainty of a single expert prior knowledge under the condition of small sample data set, a BN parameter learning method based on AHP-DST fusion expert prior knowledge was designed. The synthetic prior knowledge of experts was calculated by using the thought of analytic hierarchy process combined with the rules of evidence theory synthesis. The expert comprehensive prior knowledge was added to the normal distribution and combined with the monotonicity constraint to obtain the virtual sample information. The virtual sample information was added to the Bayesian …

Research On Path Smoothing Processing Of Mobile Robot Based On Improved A* Algorithm, Mengyuan Chen, Guifang Qiao, Xu Zou, Jiayu Cao, Lei Tian

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: Traditional bidirectional A* algorithm has many path inflection points, undergoes smoothness, and faces diagonal obstacles in path traversing. Therefore, an improved bidirectional A* algorithm was proposed. Local path constraint search was added to the forward search and backward search, respectively to solve the problem of planning paths traversing diagonal obstacles, and the effectiveness of the improved bidirectional A* algorithm to avoid traversing diagonal obstacles was verified through simulations. The path inflection points were optimized by introducing the cubic B-spline curve, and the paths before and after smoothing were tracked and controlled, respectively by using the differential-driven mobile robot. The …

Boolean Network Model Optimization Based On Neural Network And Genetic Programming, Jinlin Tang, Yan Wang, Xiang Liu, Tuanjie Wang, Zhicheng Ji

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: To address the issues of complex node relationships and low accuracy in large-scale Boolean network inference, a new optimization algorithm integrated with long short-term memory (LSTM) networks and genetic programming was proposed. An enhanced LSTM network combined with a self-attention mechanism was designed to extract potential regulatory nodes from time-series data. These nodes were utilized as terminals of the syntax tree for the design of the genetic programming algorithm, and new operators were introduced to optimize Boolean function search. Experimental results have demonstrated that the proposed method significantly outperforms the most advanced existing algorithms in inference accuracy. The Boolean …

Self-Calibrating Passenger Flow Simulation And Spatial Optimization For Public Building Based On Gru-Sa, Jinglin Xu, Qianru Chen, Yang Peng, Fangqiang Yu

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: Real-time and precise passenger flow simulation provides critical data support for the optimal allocation of resources in public building facilities and the rational design of spatial layouts. This study proposed a self-calibrating passenger flow simulation and spatial optimization method for public buildings based on the GRU-simulated annealing algorithm. A simulation model incorporating spatial structures and flow lines was constructed using Anylogic. A self-calibrating passenger flow simulation method for public buildings was designed based on the GRU-simulated annealing algorithm and applied to the outpatient department of a hospital in Shanghai for passenger flow simulation. The effectiveness of the method was …

Image Feature Point Matching Algorithm Based On Attention And Hierarchical Features, Na Chen, Jiajia Bai, Qiyin Zhou, Jialin Li

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: Feature point detection and matching is one of the core technologies in the field of intelligent driving. Aiming at the lack of consistency and continuity of feature points extracted by the existing algorithms, as well as the problem of easily ignoring the contextual semantic information when matching, this paper proposes an image feature point matching algorithm based on attention and hierarchical features (AHMF). In the feature point detection stage, differential interaction attention module (DIAM) is proposed to enhance the model's attention to the salient regions so as to improve the robustness of the feature points; further introduction of hierarchical …

Evolutionary Reinforcement Learning Based On Elite Instruction And Random Search, Jian Di, Xue Wan, Limei Jiang

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: Evolutionary reinforcement learning currently suffers from low sample efficiency, a single coupling method, and poor convergence, which can affect its performance and scaling. To address this issue, an improved algorithm based on elite gradient instruction and double random search was proposed. The direction of the reinforcement strategy gradient update was corrected by introducing elite strategy gradient guidance carrying evolutionary information during reinforcement strategy training. Double stochastic search was used to replace the original evolutionary component, reducing the complexity of the algorithm while making the policy search meaningful and controllable in the parameter space. The introduction of complete replacement information …