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Electrical Engineering and Systems Science

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Friday 28 November

Image and Video Processing

Two-Dimensional Tomographic Reconstruction From Projections With Unknown Angles and Unknown Spatial Shifts

In parallel beam computed tomography (CT), an object is reconstructed from a series of projections taken at different angles. However, in some industrial and biomedical imaging applications, the projection geometry is unknown, completely or partially. In this paper, we present a technique for two-dimensional (2D) tomography in which both viewing angles and spatial shifts associated with the projections are unknown. There exists literature on 2D unknown view tomography (UVT), but most existing 2D UVT algorithms assume that the projections are centered; that is, there are no spatial shifts in the projections. To tackle these geometric ambiguities, we first modify an existing graph Laplacian-based algorithm for 2D UVT to incorporate spatial shifts, and then use it as the initialization for the proposed three-way alternating minimization algorithm that jointly estimates the 2D structure, its projection angles, and the corresponding shifts. We evaluate our method on noisy projections of ribosome images and demonstrate that it achieves superior reconstruction compared to the baseline that neglects shifts.
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Image and Video Processing

TokCom-UEP: Semantic Importance-Matched Unequal Error Protection for Resilient Image Transmission

Based on the provided LaTeX code, here is the metadata for the submission form: Title: TokCom-UEP: Semantic Importance-Matched Unequal Error Protection for Resilient Image Transmission Author(s): Kaizheng Zhang, Zuolin Jin, Zhihang Cheng, Ming Zeng, Li Qiao, Zesong Fei Abstract: Token communication (TokCom), an emerging semantic communication framework powered by Large Multimodal Model (LMM), has become a key paradigm for resilient data transmission in 6G networks. A key limitation of existing TokCom designs lies in the assumption of uniform token importance, which leads to the adoption of equal error protection (EEP). However, compressed one-dimensional (1D) token sequences inherently exhibit heterogeneous semantic importance hierarchies, rendering EEP schemes suboptimal. To address this, this paper proposes TokCom-UEP, a novel semantic importance-matched unequal error protection (UEP) framework designed for resilient image transmission. TokCom-UEP integrates rateless UEP coding with the non-uniform semantic importance of tokens by partitioning source tokens into nested expanding windows, assigning higher selection probabilities to windows containing critical tokens to ensure their prioritized recovery. Simulation results demonstrate that TokCom-UEP outperforms EEP schemes in terms of three core semantic restoration metrics and spectral efficiency under low-overhead conditions.
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All authors Kaizheng Zhang, Zuolin Jin, Zhihang Cheng, Ming Zeng, Li Qiao, Zesong Fei

Signal Processing

Embodied Intelligent Wireless (EIW): Synesthesia of Machines Empowered Wireless Communications

The evolution toward the sixth-generation (6G) and beyond mobile communication systems is marked by a fundamental shift from merely connecting devices to enabling pervasive and embodied intelligence. While recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI)-native wireless communication designs have achieved remarkable progress, the prevailing paradigm remains limited to static, modular AI substitutions. This approach fails to meet the core requirements of future wireless networks: the ability to continuously perceive, adapt to, and interact with the dynamic wireless environment. To bridge this gap, this paper introduces Embodied Intelligent Wireless (EIW), a novel communication paradigm inspired by embodied intelligence, which redefines the communication node as an active, environment-aware, and evolving entity. EIW is built around an observation-decision-action paradigm, comprising: multi-dimensional observations for comprehensive awareness of the environment and system states, a unified decision module for orchestrating multiple wireless agents in an interpretable manner, and actions where wireless agents exert practical effects on both the environment and communication systems. Furthermore, two enabling technologies, wireless world models as well as self-update and self-evolution mechanisms, are introduced to support training efficiency improvement, counterfactual evaluation, and better adaptation. Unlike existing communication systems, EIW envisions future communication systems not as passive data pipelines, but as intelligent entities that continuously interact with and co-evolve alongside their environments. Finally, through simulations, we showcase the advantages of the proposed EIW paradigm and its enabling techniques in shaping the design of wireless communication nodes.
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All authors Xiang Cheng, Weibo Wen, Haotian Zhang, Boxun Liu, Zonghui Yang, Jianan Zhang, Xuesong Cai

Systems and Control · Cross-listed from physics.soc-ph

Industrial overcapacity can enable seasonal flexibility in electricity use

In many countries, declining demand in energy-intensive industries (EIIs) such as cement, steel, and aluminum is leading to industrial overcapacity. Although industrial overcapacity is traditionally envisioned as problematic and resource-wasteful, it could unlock EIIs' flexibility in electricity use. Here, using China's aluminum smelting industry as a case study, we evaluate the system-level cost-benefit of retaining EII overcapacity for flexible electricity use in decarbonized energy systems. We find that overcapacity can enable aluminum smelters to adopt a seasonal operation paradigm, ceasing production during winter load peaks that are exacerbated by heating electrification and renewable seasonality. This seasonal operation paradigm could reduce the investment and operational costs of China's decarbonized electricity system by 23-32 billion CNY/year (11-15% of the aluminum smelting industry's product value), sufficient to offset the increased smelter maintenance and product storage costs associated with overcapacity. It may also create labor complementarities between the aluminum and thermal power sectors.
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All authors Ruike Lyu, Anna Li, Jianxiao Wang, Hongxi Luo, Yan Shen, Hongye Guo, Ershun Du, Chongqing Kang, Jesse Jenkins

Systems and Control

Power System Robust State Estimation As a Layer: An Optimization-embedded End-to-end Learning Approach

Serving as an essential prerequisite for modern power system operation, robust state estimation (RSE) could effectively resist noises and outliers in measurements. The emerging neural network (NN) based end-to-end (E2E) learning framework enables real-time application of RSE but potentially yields solutions that are statistically accurate yet physically inconsistent. To bridge this gap, this work proposes a novel E2E learning based RSE framework, where the convex-relaxed RSE problem is innovatively constructed as an explicit differentiable layer into an NN as the first trial. This optimization-embedded layer (termed as `Opt-Layer` in our work) serves as a solver of the RSE problem. Then, the relaxed solutions are recovered through post-processing layers. Through seamlessly embedding the underlying KKT conditions into the gradients during backward propagation, the physical consistency in the estimated states could be significantly enhanced, realizing lower measurement residuals. Also, the measurement weights are treated as learnable parameters of NN to enhance estimation robustness, enabling the Opt-Layer to actively denoise. A hybrid loss function is formulated to pursue accurate and physically consistent solutions. Extensive simulations have been carried out to demonstrate that the proposed framework can significantly improve the SE performance especially in terms of physical consistency on eight test systems, in comparison to classical E2E learning models, physics-informed NN (PINN) models, graph-based learning models, and conventional optimization-based approaches. The estimation performances under partial observability, severe noise contamination are systematically evaluated. Computational complexity and runtime analysis are also comprehensively demonstrated.
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All authors Yibo Ding, Wenzhuo Shi, Mengzhao Duan, Yuhong Zhao, Jiaqi Ruan, Jian Zhao, Zhao Xu

Thursday 27 November

Systems and Control

Kinematics Control of Electromagnetic Formation Flight Using Angular-Momentum Conservation Constraint

Electromagnetic formation flight (EMFF) uses the electromagnetic force to control the relative positions of multiple satellites without using conventional fuel-based propulsion. To compensate for the electromagnetic torque generated alongside the electromagnetic force, in most previous studies, all satellites were assumed to have reaction wheels (RWs) besides electromagnetic coils. However, the RW-loaded angular momentum becomes non-uniformly distributed among the satellites, because the electromagnetic torque usually differs between satellites. Without a proper control scheme, this deviation increases over time, and the RWs become saturated quickly, preventing the attitudes of the satellites from being controlled. In this study, a new controller is proposed that enables the electromagnetic force and torque to be controlled simultaneously. The EMFF kinematics derived from the conservation of angular momentum are used for the controller design. This controller can control $n$ satellites without saturating the RWs, and only one set of RWs is required among all satellites. The combination of the proposed controller with a simple unloading control exclusive to the chief satellite results in the elimination of the accumulation of angular momentum in the entire system. The effectiveness of the proposed controller is demonstrated through numerical simulations of the formation maintenance and formation reconfiguration of a five-satellite system.
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Audio and Speech Processing · Cross-listed from cs.SD

LocaGen: Sub-Sample Time-Delay Learning for Beam Localization

The goal of LocaGen is to improve the localization performance of audio signals in the 2-D beam localization problem. LocaGen reduces sampling quantization errors through machine learning models trained on realistic synthetic data generated by a simulation. The system increases the accuracy of both direction-of-arrival (DOA) and precise location estimation of an audio beam from an array of three microphones. We demonstrate LocaGen's efficacy on a low-powered embedded system with an increased localization accuracy with a minimal increase in real-time resource usage. LocaGen was demonstrated to reduce DOA error by approximately 67% even with a microphone array of only 10 kHz in audio processing.
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All authors Ishaan Kunwar, Henry Cantor, Tyler Rizzo, Ayaan Qayyum

Image and Video Processing · Cross-listed from cs.CV

TinyViT: Field Deployable Transformer Pipeline for Solar Panel Surface Fault and Severity Screening

Sustained operation of solar photovoltaic assets hinges on accurate detection and prioritization of surface faults across vast, geographically distributed modules. While multi modal imaging strategies are popular, they introduce logistical and economic barriers for routine farm level deployment. This work demonstrates that deep learning and classical machine learning may be judiciously combined to achieve robust surface anomaly categorization and severity estimation from planar visible band imagery alone. We introduce TinyViT which is a compact pipeline integrating Transformer based segmentation, spectral-spatial feature engineering, and ensemble regression. The system ingests consumer grade color camera mosaics of PV panels, classifies seven nuanced surface faults, and generates actionable severity grades for maintenance triage. By eliminating reliance on electroluminescence or IR sensors, our method enables affordable, scalable upkeep for resource limited installations, and advances the state of solar health monitoring toward universal field accessibility. Experiments on real public world datasets validate both classification and regression sub modules, achieving accuracy and interpretability competitive with specialized approaches.
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All authors Ishwaryah Pandiarajan, Mohamed Mansoor Roomi Sindha, Uma Maheswari Pandyan, Sharafia N

Signal Processing · Cross-listed from cs.AR

From RISC-V Cores to Neuromorphic Arrays: A Tutorial on Building Scalable Digital Neuromorphic Processors

Digital neuromorphic processors are emerging as a promising computing substrate for low-power, always-on EdgeAI applications. In this tutorial paper, we outline the main architectural design principles behind fully digital neuromorphic processors and illustrate them using the SENECA platform as a running example. Starting from a flexible array of tiny RISC-V processing cores connected by a simple Network-on-Chip (NoC), we show how to progressively evolve the architecture: from a baseline event-driven implementation of fully connected networks, to versions with dedicated Neural Processing Elements (NPEs) and a loop controller that offloads fine-grained control from the general-purpose cores. Along the way, we discuss software and mapping techniques such as spike grouping, event-driven depth-first convolution for convolutional networks, and hard-attention style processing for high-resolution event-based vision. The focus is on architectural trade-offs, performance and energy bottlenecks, and on leveraging flexibility to incrementally add domain-specific acceleration. This paper assumes familiarity with basic neuromorphic concepts (spikes, event-driven computation, sparse activation) and deep neural network workloads. It does not present new experimental results; instead, it synthesizes and contextualizes findings previously reported in our SENECA publications to provide a coherent, step-by-step architectural perspective for students and practitioners who wish to design their own digital neuromorphic processors.
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Systems and Control

Switching control of underactuated multi-channel systems with input constraints for cooperative manipulation

This work presents an event-triggered switching control framework for a class of nonlinear underactuated multi-channel systems with input constraints. These systems are inspired by cooperative manipulation tasks involving underactuation, where multiple underactuated agents collaboratively push or pull an object to a target pose. Unlike existing approaches for multi-channel systems, our method addresses underactuation and the potential loss of controllability by additionally addressing channel assignment of agents. To simultaneously account for channel assignment, input constraints, and stabilization, we formulate the control problem as a Mixed Integer Linear Programming and derive sufficient conditions for its feasibility. To improve real-time computation efficiency, we introduce an event-triggered control scheme that maintains stability even between switching events through a quadratic programming-based stabilizing controller. We theoretically establish the semi-global exponential stability of the proposed method and the asymptotic stability of its extension to nonprehensile cooperative manipulation under noninstantaneous switching. The proposed framework is further validated through numerical simulations on 2D and 3D free-flyer systems and multi-robot nonprehensile pushing tasks.
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Signal Processing

Moduli Selection in Robust Chinese Remainder Theorem: Closed-Form Solutions and Layered Design

We study the fundamental problem of moduli selection in the Robust Chinese Remainder Theorem (RCRT), where each residue may be perturbed by a bounded error. Consider $L$ moduli of the form $m_i = \Gamma_i m$ ($1 \le i \le L$), where $\Gamma_i$ are pairwise coprime integers and $m \in \mathbb{R}^+$ is a common scaling factor. For small $L$ ($L = 2, 3, 4$), we obtain exact solutions that maximize the robustness margin under dynamic-range and modulus-bound constraints. We also introduce a Fibonacci-inspired layered construction (for $L = 2$) that produces exactly $K$ robust decoding layers, enabling predictable trade-offs between error tolerance and dynamic range. We further analyze how robustness and range evolve across layers and provide a closed-form expression to estimate the success probability under common data and noise models. The results are promising for various applications, such as sub-Nyquist sampling, phase unwrapping, range estimation, modulo analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), and robust residue-number-system (RNS)-based accelerators for deep learning. Our framework thus establishes a general theory of moduli design for RCRT, complementing prior algorithmic work and underscoring the broad relevance of robust moduli design across diverse information-processing domains.
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All authors Wenyi Yan, Lu Gan, Hongqing Liu, Shaoqing Hu

Signal Processing

FPGA-Enabled Modulo ADC with x100 Dynamic-Range Expansion: Hardware Design and Performance Evaluation

Conventional analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) fail to capture high-dynamic-range (HDR) signals due to clipping. Modulo ADCs circumvent this limitation by folding the input prior to quantization and algorithmically reconstructing the original waveform. This work presents a field-programmable gate array (FPGA)-based modulo ADC platform for systematic HDR performance evaluation. The mixed-signal architecture integrates a precision analog front end with a 200-MHz FPGA control loop that incorporates multi-bit updates and digital under-compensation calibration, ensuring stable folding and accurate feedback generation. The system achieves more than a hundred-fold dynamic-range expansion within a 400-kHz bandwidth while maintaining fidelity comparable to that of a conventional ADC. A system-on-chip (SoC)-like implementation enables on-board real-time recovery and supports benchmarking of state-of-the-art reconstruction algorithms, providing a compact and practical framework for HDR signal acquisition and evaluation.
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All authors Zeyuan Li, Wenyi Yan, Lu Gan, Guoquan Li, Hongqing Liu

Image and Video Processing · Cross-listed from math.OC

A lasso-alternative to Dijkstra's algorithm for identifying short paths in networks

We revisit the problem of finding the shortest path between two selected vertices of a graph and formulate this as an $\ell_1$-regularized regression – Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator (lasso). We draw connections between a numerical implementation of this lasso-formulation, using the so-called LARS algorithm, and a more established algorithm known as the bi-directional Dijkstra. Appealing features of our formulation include the applicability of the Alternating Direction of Multiplier Method (ADMM) to the problem to identify short paths, and a relatively efficient update to topological changes.
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Systems and Control

Optimal Singular Perturbation-based Model Reduction for Heterogeneous Power Systems

Power systems are globally experiencing an unprecedented growth in size and complexity due to the advent of nonconventional generation and consumption technologies. To navigate computational complexity, power system dynamic models are often reduced using techniques based on singular perturbation. However, several technical assumptions enabling traditional approaches are being challenged due to the heterogeneous, and often black-box, nature of modern power system component models. This work proposes two singular perturbation approaches that aim to optimally identify fast states that shall be reduced, without prior knowledge about the physical meaning of system states. After presenting a timescale-agnostic formulation for singular perturbation, the first approach uses greedy optimization to sequentially select states to be reduced. The second approach relies on a nonlinear optimization routine allowing state transformations while obtaining an optimally reduced model. Numerical studies on a test system featuring synchronous machines, inverters, and line dynamics demonstrate the generalizability and accuracy of the developed approaches.
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Systems and Control

A Cyber-Physical Systems Framework for Tracking Post Thermal-Runaway Temperature and Smoke Dynamics in Underground Mines

Underground mining operations are actively exploring the use of large-format lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) to power their equipment. LIBs have high energy density, long cycle life, and favorable safety record. They also have low noise, heat, and emission footprints. This fosters a conducive workplace environment for underground mining personnel. However, many occurrences of LIB failure have resulted in dangerous situations in underground mines. The combustion products, including toxic emissions, can rapidly travel throughout the mine using the ventilation network. Therefore, it is critical to monitor the temperature and smoke concentration underground at all times to ensure the safety of the miners. High-fidelity models can be developed for specific scenarios of LIB failure, but are computationally prohibitive for large underground mine volumes, complex geometries, and long duration combustion events. To mitigate computation-related issues associated with high-fidelity models, we developed cyber-physical systems (CPS) models to examine temperature and smoke dynamics. The mine supervisory control center, acting as the cyber framework, operates in conjunction with the physical underground mine. The CPS models, trained on high-fidelity computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model data sets, present an exceptional estimate of the evolution of temperature and smoke concentration in the underground mine tunnel. Once implemented, the research results can help mine operators make informed decisions during emergencies.
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All authors Yukta Pareek, Khadija Omar Said, Satadru Dey, Ashish Ranjan Kumar

Systems and Control · Cross-listed from cs.RO

A Two Degrees-of-Freedom Floor-Based Robot for Transfer and Rehabilitation Applications

The ability to accomplish a sit-to-stand (STS) motion is key to increase functional mobility and reduce rehospitalization risks. While raising aid (transfer) devices and partial bodyweight support (rehabilitation) devices exist, both are unable to adjust the STS training to different mobility levels. Therefore, We have developed an STS training device that allows various configurations of impedance and vertical/forward forces to adapt to many training needs while maintaining commercial raising aid transfer capabilities. Experiments with healthy adults (both men and women) of various heights and weights show that the device 1) has a low impact on the natural STS kinematics, 2) can provide precise weight unloading at the patient's center of mass and 3) can add a forward virtual spring to assist the transfer of the bodyweight to the feet for seat-off, at the start of the STS motion.
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All authors Ian Lalonde, Jeff Denis, Mathieu Lamy, Camille Martin, Karina Lebel, Alexandre Girard

Signal Processing

Rethinking Signaling Design for ISAC: From Pilot-Based to Payload-Based Sensing

Integrated Sensing and Communications (ISAC) is emerging as a key enabler for 6G networks, with signaling design at the core of its evolution. This paper reviews the paradigm shift of ISAC signaling designs from pilot-aided sensing to data payload-based approaches, with a particular focus on how these techniques can be realized within existing 5G NR structures. We commence with the reuse of pilots and reference signals that exploit existing 5G New Radio (NR) structures for sensing. Then, we extend to more advanced approaches that integrate the data payload through novel constellation shaping, modulation bases, and pulse shaping filters. We highlight the opportunities and tradeoffs that arise when extending sensing from sparse pilot and reference signal resources to the full communication frame, emphasizing how constellation properties and modulation choices directly determine sensing performance. To illustrate practical feasibility, a case study on sensing-assisted NR Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I) networks demonstrates how exploiting both reference signals and payload echoes can reduce signaling overhead and enable proactive beam management and handover.
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All authors Yunxin Li, Ying Zhang, Christos Masouros, Sofie Pollin, Fan Liu

Audio and Speech Processing · Cross-listed from cs.SD

PURE Codec: Progressive Unfolding of Residual Entropy for Speech Codec Learning

Neural speech codecs have achieved strong performance in low-bitrate compression, but residual vector quantization (RVQ) often suffers from unstable training and ineffective decomposition, limiting reconstruction quality and efficiency. We propose PURE Codec (Progressive Unfolding of Residual Entropy), a novel framework that guides multi-stage quantization using a pre-trained speech enhancement model. The first quantization stage reconstructs low-entropy, denoised speech embeddings, while subsequent stages encode residual high-entropy components. This design improves training stability significantly. Experiments demonstrate that PURE consistently outperforms conventional RVQ-based codecs in reconstruction and downstream speech language model-based text-to-speech, particularly under noisy training conditions.
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All authors Jiatong Shi, Haoran Wang, William Chen, Chenda Li, Wangyou Zhang, Jinchuan Tian, Shinji Watanabe

Signal Processing

Advances in electromagnetic techniques for subsurface infrastructure detection: A comprehensive review of methods, challenges, and innovations

This review paper explores the state-of-the-art in non-intrusive methods for detecting and characterising buried infrastructure, focusing on Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT), Infrared Thermography (IRT), and magnetometry, along with data fusion techniques and mathematical estimators. ERT and IRT offer distinct advantages in subsurface imaging, while magnetometry provides omnidirectional measurements ideal for detecting ferrous targets. Despite these benefits, each method has inherent limitations, such as challenges in depth estimation and difficulties in distinguishing between various subsurface objects. The integration of multiple sensing techniques through data fusion approaches has shown significant promise in overcoming these limitations and improving detection accuracy. Additionally, mathematical estimators, including Kalman filters and particle filters, play a crucial role in reducing noise and enhancing the precision of geophysical surveys. This review discusses the strengths, limitations, and future research needs of these techniques, offering a comprehensive understanding of their current and potential applications in buried infrastructure detection. The paper concludes by emphasising the importance of optimising sensor performance, refining fusion algorithms, and exploring hybrid models for real-time data processing in future research.
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Signal Processing

Interference and Multipath Resilient ToA Estimation

We present a computationally-efficient algorithm for time-of-arrival (ToA) estimation that is robust under multipath propagation and strong interference. Our algorithm leverages multiple receive antennas to combine adaptive spatial filtering with autodifferentiation in order to super-resolve the tap of the first-arriving path at low computational complexity and without requiring model-order estimation. We use simulations with ray-traced indoor propagation channels to demonstrate significant performance improvements over conventional correlation-based ToA estimation methods and subspace techniques such as JADE.
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Image and Video Processing

Hard Spatial Gating for Precision-Driven Brain Metastasis Segmentation: Addressing the Over-Segmentation Paradox in Deep Attention Networks

Brain metastasis segmentation in MRI remains a formidable challenge due to diminutive lesion sizes (5-15 mm) and extreme class imbalance (less than 2% tumor volume). While soft-attention CNNs are widely used, we identify a critical failure mode termed the "over-segmentation paradox," where models achieve high sensitivity (recall > 0.88) but suffer from catastrophic precision collapse (precision < 0.23) and boundary errors exceeding 150 mm. This imprecision poses significant risks for stereotactic radiosurgery planning. To address this, we introduce the Spatial Gating Network (SG-Net), a precision-first architecture employing hard spatial gating mechanisms. Unlike traditional soft attention, SG-Net enforces strict feature selection to aggressively suppress background artifacts while preserving tumor features. Validated on the Brain-Mets-Lung-MRI dataset (n=92), SG-Net achieves a Dice Similarity Coefficient of 0.5578 +/- 0.0243 (95% CI: 0.45-0.67), statistically outperforming Attention U-Net (p < 0.001) and ResU-Net (p < 0.001). Most critically, SG-Net demonstrates a threefold improvement in boundary precision, achieving a 95% Hausdorff Distance of 56.13 mm compared to 157.52 mm for Attention U-Net, while maintaining robust recall (0.79) and superior precision (0.52 vs. 0.20). Furthermore, SG-Net requires only 0.67M parameters (8.8x fewer than Attention U-Net), facilitating deployment in resource-constrained environments. These findings establish hard spatial gating as a robust solution for precision-driven lesion detection, directly enhancing radiosurgery accuracy.
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Systems and Control · Cross-listed from cs.RO

BUDD-e: an autonomous robotic guide for visually impaired users

This paper describes the design and the realization of a prototype of the novel guide robot BUDD-e for visually impaired users. The robot has been tested in a real scenario with the help of visually disabled volunteers at ASST Grande Ospedale Metropolitano Niguarda, in Milan. The results of the experimental campaign are throughly described in the paper, displaying its remarkable performance and user-acceptance.
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All authors Jinyang Li, Marcello Farina, Luca Mozzarelli, Luca Cattaneo, Panita Rattamasanaprapai, Eleonora A. Tagarelli, Matteo Corno, Paolo Perego, Giuseppe Andreoni, Emanuele Lettieri

Systems and Control

A model predictive control framework with customer-priority tiers for virtual power plant resilience during extreme weather: A UK heatwave case study

Due to changes in frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, such as heatwaves and storms, power systems around the globe are having to deal with increased imbalance between demand and supply and additional risk of loss of supply, calling for advanced control strategies that strengthen system resilience. This paper develops a Model Predictive Control (MPC) framework for coordination of Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) that manages photovoltaic (PV) systems, batteries, and loads before, during, and after extreme weather events. A multi-objective mixed-integer quadratically constrained program is solved to enforce customer-priority tiers, serving critical loads first, while minimizing operating cost and PV curtailment under network and device constraints. Simulations on the IEEE 33-bus distribution network with real UK heatwave data show that, under realistic forecast errors and modeling uncertainties, MPC improves resilience by 11-20% relative to traditional full-horizon optimization. These results indicate the practical viability of receding-horizon coordination for resilient, low-carbon VPP operation during extreme weather.
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All authors Edward Moroshko, Weizhe Qin, Desen Kirli, Mohammed Qais, Sotirios Tsaftaris, Aristides Kiprakis

Signal Processing

Enabling Full-Duplex LEO Satellite Systems with Non-Reciprocal BD-RIS-Assisted Beamforming

Low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites are a promising technology for providing low-latency, high-data-rate, and wide-coverage communication services. However, with growing demand for data transmission, future non-terrestrial networks (NTNs) require high spectral efficiency especially with low-gain antennas at the ground devices. This motivates the adoption of in-band full-duplex (FD) systems. In addition, the potential imbalance between downlink (DL) and uplink (UL) transmissions necessitates flexibility in resource allocation. To overcome these challenges, we propose an FD LEO satellite system, where the non-reciprocal beyond-diagonal reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (NR-BD-RIS) and multiple transmit and receive antennas are attached to the LEO satellite. NR-BD-RIS reflects the DL and UL signals by passive beamforming. By incorporating non-reciprocal components into the impedance network of RIS, the NR-BD-RIS breaks channel reciprocity, facilitating simultaneous support for multiple beam directions. To cover a wide coverage, we propose a time-sharing scheduling framework in which the NR-BD-RIS simultaneously serves multiple DL and multiple UL ground devices within each time slot. An optimization problem is defined to maximize the weighted sum-rate over the entire scheduling period. Numerical results demonstrate that the proposed NR-BD-RIS significantly performs better than both conventional BD-RIS and diagonal RIS (D-RIS) with respect to DL and UL sum-rate performance under both single-user (SU) and multiple-user (MU) cases. Additionally, NR-BD-RIS requires less frequent reconfiguration compared to the other two types of RIS, making it more practical for implementation.
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Audio and Speech Processing · Cross-listed from cs.CL

Joint Speech and Text Training for LLM-Based End-to-End Spoken Dialogue State Tracking

End-to-end spoken dialogue state tracking (DST) is made difficult by the tandem of having to handle speech input and data scarcity. Combining speech foundation encoders and large language models has been proposed in recent work as to alleviate some of this difficulty. Although this approach has been shown to result in strong spoken DST models, achieving state-of-the-art performance in realistic multi-turn DST, it struggles to generalize across domains and requires annotated spoken DST training data for each domain of interest. However, collecting such data for every target domain is both costly and difficult. Noting that textual DST data is more easily obtained for various domains, in this work, we propose jointly training on available spoken DST data and written textual data from other domains as a way to achieve cross-domain generalization. We conduct experiments which show the efficacy of our proposed method for getting good cross-domain DST performance without relying on spoken training data from the target domains.
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All authors Katia Vendrame, Bolaji Yusuf, Santosh Kesiraju, Šimon Sedláček, Oldřich Plchot, Jan Černocký

Systems and Control

Learning the MPC objective function from human preferences

In Model Predictive Control (MPC), the objective function plays a central role in determining the closed-loop behavior of the system, and must therefore be designed to achieve the desired closed-loop performance. However, in real-world scenarios, its design is often challenging, as it requires balancing complex trade-offs and accurately capturing a performance criterion that may not be easily quantifiable in terms of an objective function. This paper explores preference-based learning as a data-driven approach to constructing an objective function from human preferences over trajectory pairs. We formulate the learning problem as a machine learning classification task to learn a surrogate model that estimates the likelihood of a trajectory being preferred over another. The approach provides a surrogate model that can directly be used as an MPC objective function. Numerical results show that we can learn objective functions that provide closed-loop trajectories that align with the expressed human preferences.
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All authors Pablo Krupa, Hasna El Hasnaouy, Mario Zanon, Alberto Bemporad

Signal Processing

Learning to Count Targets from Dual-Window: A CNN Approach for OFDM ISAC

Integrated Sensing and Communication (ISAC) with Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) waveforms is a key enabler for next-generation wireless systems. Recent studies show that Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) can estimate the number of targets from two-dimensional (2D) range-Doppler periodogram maps, yet accuracy often degrades as scenes become denser. One significant factor is the classical resolution-sidelobe attenuation trade-off, which limits performance when targets are weak or closely spaced. While windowing is routinely applied to shape this trade-off, the choice is typically static. This paper proposes a new CNN method that uses two windowed range-Doppler periodograms and learns to fuse complementary views: one window optimized for resolution and one window optimized for sidelobe suppression. The design explicitly targets the resolution-sidelobe attenuation trade-off by exposing the model to complementary windowed maps and letting it learn when each is most informative. Numerical experiments show consistent gains over single-window CNN baselines, with better scaling in target density and greater robustness across different noise levels.
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Signal Processing

Adaptive Dual-Windowing Strategies for Multi-Target Detection in OFDM ISAC

In Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) Integrated Sensing and Communication (ISAC) systems, a key challenge is balancing sidelobe attenuation and resolution for multi-target detection scenarios. While windowing functions are typically used to manage this trade-off, state-of-the-art methods rely on a single, fixed window followed by a predefined detection strategy (e.g., Binary Successive Target Cancellation (BSTC) (low complexity) or Coherent Successive Target Cancellation (CSTC) (high performance)). This paper proposes a novel dual-window periodogram-based algorithm that leverages two complementary windows: one optimized for resolution and the other for sidelobe suppression. Then, a low-complexity detection algorithm (e.g., BSTC) is applied to both, and a decision mechanism compares the outputs. When results align, the resolution-optimized estimates are directly used; otherwise, high performance algorithm (e.g., CSTC) is triggered to resolve ambiguities. This adaptive approach dynamically balances the detection performance and the complexity, addressing limitations in existing fixed strategies. The Numerical results confirm that the proposed method achieves high performance while reducing the complexity, especially at a high Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR).
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Systems and Control · Cross-listed from cs.LG

Improving Stochastic Action-Constrained Reinforcement Learning via Truncated Distributions

In reinforcement learning (RL), it is often advantageous to consider additional constraints on the action space to ensure safety or action relevance. Existing work on such action-constrained RL faces challenges regarding effective policy updates, computational efficiency, and predictable runtime. Recent work proposes to use truncated normal distributions for stochastic policy gradient methods. However, the computation of key characteristics, such as the entropy, log-probability, and their gradients, becomes intractable under complex constraints. Hence, prior work approximates these using the non-truncated distributions, which severely degrades performance. We argue that accurate estimation of these characteristics is crucial in the action-constrained RL setting, and propose efficient numerical approximations for them. We also provide an efficient sampling strategy for truncated policy distributions and validate our approach on three benchmark environments, which demonstrate significant performance improvements when using accurate estimations.
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Systems and Control

Distributed Koopman Operator Learning for Perception and Safe Navigation

This paper presents a unified and scalable framework for predictive and safe autonomous navigation in dynamic transportation environments by integrating model predictive control (MPC) with distributed Koopman operator learning. High-dimensional sensory data are employed to model and forecast the motion of surrounding dynamic obstacles. A consensus-based distributed Koopman learning algorithm enables multiple computational agents or sensing units to collaboratively estimate the Koopman operator without centralized data aggregation, thereby supporting large-scale and communication-efficient learning across a networked system. The learned operator predicts future spatial densities of obstacles, which are subsequently represented through Gaussian mixture models. Their confidence ellipses are approximated by convex polytopes and embedded as linear constraints in the MPC formulation to guarantee safe and collision-free navigation. The proposed approach not only ensures obstacle avoidance but also scales efficiently with the number of sensing or computational nodes, aligning with cooperative perception principles in autonomous navigation applications. Theoretical convergence guarantees and predictive constraint formulations are established, and extensive simulations demonstrate reliable, safe, and computationally efficient navigation performance in complex environments.
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