Objects deform in response to contact forces exerted on them. The deformation depends on material properties, the geometry of the object and external forces. This thesis develops a robotic system for automatically acquiring observations of a deforming object and for estimating a model of the deformation from these observations. Models of deformable objects are in wide-spread use in simulation, ...

Distributed networks have received much attention in the last year because of their flexibility and computational performance. The ability to coordinate agents is important in many real-world tasks where it is necessary for agents to exchange information with each other. Synchronization behavior among agents is found in flocking of birds, schooling of fish, and other natural systems. Work has b...

The goal of this paper is to propose a generalized signal-dependent noise model that is more appropriate to describe a natural image acquired by a digital camera than the conventional Additive White Gaussian Noise model widely used in image processing. This non-linear noise model takes into account effects in the image acquisition pipeline of a digital camera. In this paper, an algorithm for es...

in restructured power systems and in a wholesale power market, a distribution company as a market player intends to maximize its profit by utilizing its options. hence determining an optimal energy acquisition strategy for a distribution company is vital, for attaining to this goal. however an important challenge for determining these strategies is forecasting other competitors and generation c...

This study was conducted in a rural community, São João dos Queiróz, a township in the county of Quixadá, Ceará, Brazil, using a combination of participatory research and community education in compliance with the health promotion reference and principles of the 1986 Ottawa Charter. The project was joined by representatives of several local government institutions and organizations from the gra...

Temporal constraints play a fundamental role in clinical guidelines. For example, temporal indeterminacy, constraints about duration, delays between actions and periodic repetitions of actions are essential in order to cope with clinical therapies. This paper proposes a computer-based approach in order to deal with temporal constraints in clinical guidelines. Specifically, it provides the possi...