Xunyuan Yin

Zhaojian Li, Tianshu Chu, Ilya V. Kolmanovsky et al.

There is a rapidly growing interest in the use of cloud computing for automotive vehicles to facilitate computation and data intensive tasks. Efficient utilization of on-demand cloud resources holds a significant potential to improve future vehicle safety, comfort, and fuel economy. In the meanwhile, issues like cyber security and resource allocation pose great challenges. In this paper, we treat the resource allocation problem for cloud-based automotive systems. Both private and public cloud paradigms are considered where a private cloud provides an internal, company-owned internet service dedicated to its own vehicles while a public cloud serves all subscribed vehicles. This paper establishes comprehensive models of cloud resource provisioning for both private and public cloud- based automotive systems. Complications such as stochastic communication delays and task deadlines are explicitly considered. In particular, a centralized resource provisioning model is developed for private cloud and chance constrained optimization is exploited to utilize the cloud resources for best Quality of Services. On the other hand, a decentralized auction-based model is developed for public cloud and reinforcement learning is employed to obtain an optimal bidding policy for a "selfish" agent. Numerical examples are presented to illustrate the effectiveness of the developed techniques.

Xiaojie Li, Xunyuan Yin

In this paper, we propose a data-enabled moving horizon estimation (MHE) approach for a class of nonlinear systems without explicit modeling, by leveraging Koopman operator theory and Willems fundamental lemma. Specifically, the nonlinear system is lifted to a linear parameter-varying Koopman surrogate, in which the lifting functions and scheduling mappings are learned directly from data using neural networks. Willems fundamental lemma is then employed to construct a trajectory-based representation of the Koopman surrogate, which bypasses the explicit identification of the matrices of the Koopman surrogate. Based on this representation, we formulate a convex data-enabled MHE design, which provides real-time estimates of the Koopman surrogate states, from which the states of the original nonlinear system are reconstructed. Sufficient conditions are derived to ensure the stability of the estimation error. The effectiveness of the proposed method is illustrated using a simulated membrane-based biological wastewater treatment process.

Yan Qin, Chau Yuen, Xunyuan Yin et al.

As a significant ingredient regarding health status, data-driven state-of-health (SOH) estimation has become dominant for lithium-ion batteries (LiBs). To handle data discrepancy across batteries, current SOH estimation models engage in transfer learning (TL), which reserves apriori knowledge gained through reusing partial structures of the offline trained model. However, multiple degradation patterns of a complete life cycle of a battery make it challenging to pursue TL. The concept of the stage is introduced to describe the collection of continuous cycles that present a similar degradation pattern. A transferable multi-stage SOH estimation model is proposed to perform TL across batteries in the same stage, consisting of four steps. First, with identified stage information, raw cycling data from the source battery are reconstructed into the phase space with high dimensions, exploring hidden dynamics with limited sensors. Next, domain invariant representation across cycles in each stage is proposed through cycling discrepancy subspace with reconstructed data. Third, considering the unbalanced discharge cycles among different stages, a switching estimation strategy composed of a lightweight model with the long short-term memory network and a powerful model with the proposed temporal capsule network is proposed to boost estimation accuracy. Lastly, an updating scheme compensates for estimation errors when the cycling consistency of target batteries drifts. The proposed method outperforms its competitive algorithms in various transfer tasks for a run-to-failure benchmark with three batteries.

Lixian Zhang, Xunyuan Yin, Junnan Shen et al.

In this work, we investigate a state estimation problem for a full-car semi-active suspension system. To account for the complex calculation and optimization problems, a vehicle-to- cloud-to-vehicle (V2C2V) scheme is utilized. Moving horizon estimation is introduced for the state estimation system design. All the optimization problems are solved in a remotely-embedded agent with high computational ability. Measurements and state estimates are transmitted between the vehicle and the remote agent via networked communication channels. The effectiveness of the proposed method is illustrated via a set of simulations.

Jiajia Li, Mingle Xu, Lirong Xiang et al.

The past decade has witnessed the rapid development and adoption of ML & DL methodologies in agricultural systems, showcased by great successes in agricultural applications. However, these conventional ML/DL models have certain limitations: they heavily rely on large, costly-to-acquire labeled datasets for training, require specialized expertise for development and maintenance, and are mostly tailored for specific tasks, thus lacking generalizability. Recently, large pre-trained models, also known as FMs, have demonstrated remarkable successes in language, vision, and decision-making tasks across various domains. These models are trained on a large amount of data from multiple domains and modalities. Once trained, they can accomplish versatile tasks with just minor fine-tuning and minimal task-specific labeled data. Despite their proven effectiveness and huge potential, there has been little exploration of applying FMs to agriculture AI. Thus, this study aims to explore the potential of FMs in the field of smart agriculture. In particular, conceptual tools and technical background are presented to help the understanding of the problem space and uncover new research directions. To this end, recent FMs in the general CS domain are reviewed, and the models are categorized into four categories: language FMs, vision FMs, multimodal FMs, and reinforcement learning FMs. Then, the steps of developing agriculture FMs (AFMs) are outlined and potential applications in smart agriculture are discussed. Moreover, challenges and risks associated with developing AFMs are discussed, including model training, validation, and deployment. In summary, the advancement of AI in agriculture is explored by introducing AFMs as a promising paradigm that can significantly mitigate the reliance on extensive labeled datasets and enhance the efficiency, effectiveness, and generalization of agricultural AI systems.

Song Bo, Xunyuan Yin, Jinfeng Liu

Reinforcement learning (RL) is an area of significant research interest, and safe RL in particular is attracting attention due to its ability to handle safety-driven constraints that are crucial for real-world applications of RL algorithms. This work proposes a novel approach to RL training, called control invariant set (CIS) enhanced RL, which leverages the benefits of CIS to improve stability guarantees and sampling efficiency. The approach consists of two learning stages: offline and online. In the offline stage, CIS is incorporated into the reward design, initial state sampling, and state reset procedures. In the online stage, RL is retrained whenever the state is outside of CIS, which serves as a stability criterion. A backup table that utilizes the explicit form of CIS is obtained to ensure the online stability. To evaluate the proposed approach, we apply it to a simulated chemical reactor. The results show a significant improvement in sampling efficiency during offline training and closed-loop stability in the online implementation.

Jiajia Li, Kyle Lammers, Xunyuan Yin et al.

Fruit harvesting poses a significant labor and financial burden for the industry, highlighting the critical need for advancements in robotic harvesting solutions. Machine vision-based fruit detection has been recognized as a crucial component for robust identification of fruits to guide robotic manipulation. Despite considerable progress in leveraging deep learning and machine learning techniques for fruit detection, a common shortfall is the inability to swiftly extend the developed models across different orchards and/or various fruit species. Additionally, the limited availability of pertinent data further compounds these challenges. In this work, we introduce MetaFruit, the largest publicly available multi-class fruit dataset, comprising 4,248 images and 248,015 manually labeled instances across diverse U.S. orchards. Furthermore, this study proposes an innovative open-set fruit detection system leveraging advanced Vision Foundation Models (VFMs) for fruit detection that can adeptly identify a wide array of fruit types under varying orchard conditions. This system not only demonstrates remarkable adaptability in learning from minimal data through few-shot learning but also shows the ability to interpret human instructions for subtle detection tasks. The performance of the developed foundation model is comprehensively evaluated using several metrics, which outperforms the existing state-of-the-art algorithms in both our MetaFruit dataset and other open-sourced fruit datasets, thereby setting a new benchmark in the field of agricultural technology and robotic harvesting. The MetaFruit dataset and detection framework are open-sourced to foster future research in vision-based fruit harvesting, marking a significant stride toward addressing the urgent needs of the agricultural sector.

Jiajia Li, Xinda Qi, Seyed Hamidreza Nabaei et al.

Plant phenotyping plays a pivotal role in understanding plant traits and their interactions with the environment, making it crucial for advancing precision agriculture and crop improvement. 3D reconstruction technologies have emerged as powerful tools for capturing detailed plant morphology and structure, offering significant potential for accurate and automated phenotyping. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the 3D reconstruction techniques for plant phenotyping, covering classical reconstruction methods, emerging Neural Radiance Fields (NeRF), and the novel 3D Gaussian Splatting (3DGS) approach. Classical methods, which often rely on high-resolution sensors, are widely adopted due to their simplicity and flexibility in representing plant structures. However, they face challenges such as data density, noise, and scalability. NeRF, a recent advancement, enables high-quality, photorealistic 3D reconstructions from sparse viewpoints, but its computational cost and applicability in outdoor environments remain areas of active research. The emerging 3DGS technique introduces a new paradigm in reconstructing plant structures by representing geometry through Gaussian primitives, offering potential benefits in both efficiency and scalability. We review the methodologies, applications, and performance of these approaches in plant phenotyping and discuss their respective strengths, limitations, and future prospects (https://github.com/JiajiaLi04/3D-Reconstruction-Plants). Through this review, we aim to provide insights into how these diverse 3D reconstruction techniques can be effectively leveraged for automated and high-throughput plant phenotyping, contributing to the next generation of agricultural technology.

Jiajia Li, Dong Chen, Xunyuan Yin et al.

Effective weed control plays a crucial role in optimizing crop yield and enhancing agricultural product quality. However, the reliance on herbicide application not only poses a critical threat to the environment but also promotes the emergence of resistant weeds. Fortunately, recent advances in precision weed management enabled by ML and DL provide a sustainable alternative. Despite great progress, existing algorithms are mainly developed based on supervised learning approaches, which typically demand large-scale datasets with manual-labeled annotations, which is time-consuming and labor-intensive. As such, label-efficient learning methods, especially semi-supervised learning, have gained increased attention in the broader domain of computer vision and have demonstrated promising performance. These methods aim to utilize a small number of labeled data samples along with a great number of unlabeled samples to develop high-performing models comparable to the supervised learning counterpart trained on a large amount of labeled data samples. In this study, we assess the effectiveness of a semi-supervised learning framework for multi-class weed detection, employing two well-known object detection frameworks, namely FCOS and Faster-RCNN. Specifically, we evaluate a generalized student-teacher framework with an improved pseudo-label generation module to produce reliable pseudo-labels for the unlabeled data. To enhance generalization, an ensemble student network is employed to facilitate the training process. Experimental results show that the proposed approach is able to achieve approximately 76\% and 96\% detection accuracy as the supervised methods with only 10\% of labeled data in CottenWeedDet3 and CottonWeedDet12, respectively. We offer access to the source code, contributing a valuable resource for ongoing semi-supervised learning research in weed detection and beyond.

Minghao Han, Xunyuan Yin

Shipboard carbon capture is a promising solution to help reduce carbon emissions in international shipping. In this work, we propose a data-driven dynamic modeling and economic predictive control approach within the Koopman framework. This integrated modeling and control approach is used to achieve safe and energy-efficient process operation of shipboard post-combustion carbon capture plants. Specifically, we propose a deep neural Koopman operator modeling approach, based on which a Koopman model with time-varying model parameters is established. This Koopman model predicts the overall economic operational cost and key system outputs, based on accessible partial state measurements. By leveraging this learned model, a constrained economic predictive control scheme is developed. Despite time-varying parameters involved in the formulated model, the formulated optimization problem associated with the economic predictive control design is convex, and it can be solved efficiently during online control implementations. Extensive tests are conducted on a high-fidelity simulation environment for shipboard post-combustion carbon capture processes. Four ship operational conditions are taken into account. The results show that the proposed method significantly improves the overall economic operational performance and carbon capture rate. Additionally, the proposed method guarantees safe operation by ensuring that hard constraints on the system outputs are satisfied.

Minghao Han, Kiwan Wong, Adrian Wing-Keung Law et al.

In this work, we propose a meta-learning-based Koopman modeling and predictive control approach for nonlinear systems with parametric uncertainties. An adaptive deep meta-learning-based modeling approach, called Meta Adaptive Koopman Operator (MAKO), is proposed. Without knowledge of the parametric uncertainty, the proposed MAKO approach can learn a meta-model from a multi-modal dataset and efficiently adapt to new systems with previously unseen parameter settings by using online data. Based on the learned meta Koopman model, a predictive control scheme is developed, and the stability of the closed-loop system is ensured even in the presence of previously unseen parameter settings. Through extensive simulations, our proposed approach demonstrates superior performance in both modeling accuracy and control efficacy as compared to competitive baselines.

Song Bo, Bernard T. Agyeman, Xunyuan Yin et al.

Reinforcement learning (RL) is an area of significant research interest, and safe RL in particular is attracting attention due to its ability to handle safety-driven constraints that are crucial for real-world applications. This work proposes a novel approach to RL training, called control invariant set (CIS) enhanced RL, which leverages the advantages of utilizing the explicit form of CIS to improve stability guarantees and sampling efficiency. Furthermore, the robustness of the proposed approach is investigated in the presence of uncertainty. The approach consists of two learning stages: offline and online. In the offline stage, CIS is incorporated into the reward design, initial state sampling, and state reset procedures. This incorporation of CIS facilitates improved sampling efficiency during the offline training process. In the online stage, RL is retrained whenever the predicted next step state is outside of the CIS, which serves as a stability criterion, by introducing a Safety Supervisor to examine the safety of the action and make necessary corrections. The stability analysis is conducted for both cases, with and without uncertainty. To evaluate the proposed approach, we apply it to a simulated chemical reactor. The results show a significant improvement in sampling efficiency during offline training and closed-loop stability guarantee in the online implementation, with and without uncertainty.