Market based control of structural movement

• US 7,191,137 B1
• Filed: 09/24/1999
• Issued: 03/13/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/24/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Berlin, Andrew A., Jackson, Warren B., Hogg, Tad H., Guenther, Oliver
• Primary Examiner(s): ELISCA, PIERRE E
• Application Number:
  US09/404,729
• Time in Patent Office: 2,727 Days
• Field of Search: 705/1, 705/7, 705/10, 705/18, 705/20, 705/36, 434/118
• US Class Current: 705/1.1
• CPC Class Codes: G09F 9/372 the positions of the elements being controlled by the application of an electric field

Abstract

A distributed market based control assembly used in conjunction with fixed or movable structures. Typically multiple actuators are attached to the structure, with each of the multiple actuators having an actuator controller to control actuator applied force. Sensors are used for measuring structure movement, and a marketwire is connected to each actuator controller to convey price information to the actuator controllers by analog fluctuations in electrical characteristics of the marketwire. Actuators can be used to stabilize a fixed structure against movement, or alternatively can be used to control movement of movable structures from defined first positions to second positions (e.g. moving a robotic arm so its tip moves from point A to point B).

Claims

1. A distributed market based control assembly for applying a force to a structure comprising:

multiple actuators, each of the multiple actuators having an actuator controller that is responsive to an electrical signal representative of price information to control an applied force produced by the actuator on the structure; and

an electrical conductor for transmitting voltage and accumulating charge, referred to as a marketwire;

the price information being represented on the marketwire by analog fluctuations in an electrical characteristic of the marketwire;

the price information being dependent on the applied force produced by each actuator on the structure;

the marketwire being connected to each actuator controller to convey the price information to the actuator controllers without requiring any one of the actuators to communicate directly with any other one of the actuators.

2. The distributed market based control assembly for a structure of claim 1, wherein the analog fluctuations in the electrical characteristic of the marketwire are voltage changes.

3. The distributed market based control assembly for a structure of claim 1, wherein the analog fluctuations in the electrical characteristic of the marketwire are current changes.

4. The distributed market based control assembly of claim 1 for applying a force to a structure, wherein the price information is a continuously provided electrical signal;

the marketwire immediately transmitting changes in price information to the actuators.

5. A distributed market based control assembly for a mobile structure comprising:

multiple actuators, each of the multiple actuators having an actuator controller that is responsive to an electrical signal representative of price information to control an applied force produced by the actuator to collectively promote movement of a structure from a first position to a second position,

a sensor for measuring the movement of the structure from the first position to the second position, the sensor producing an input measurement; and

an electrical conductor for transmitting voltage and accumulating charge, referred to as a marketwire;

the marketwire being connected to each actuator controller and to the sensor;

the price information being represented on the marketwire by analog fluctuations in an electrical characteristic of the marketwire;

the price information being dependent on the applied force produced by each actuator on the structure and on the input measurement produced by the sensor;

the marketwire conveying the price information to the actuator controllers and the sensor.

6. The distributed market based control assembly for a mobile structure of claim 5, wherein the analog fluctuations in the electrical characteristic of the marketwire are voltage changes.

7. The distributed market based control assembly for a mobile structure of claim 5, wherein the analog fluctuations in the electrical characteristic of the marketwire are current changes.

8. The distributed market based control assembly for a mobile structure of claim 5, wherein the multiple actuators are air jets, and the structure is a sheet of paper;

the actuator controllers being responsive to price information to control the applied forces of the air jets to collectively promote movement of the sheet of paper from a first position to the second position in a paper path.

9. The distributed market based control assembly for a mobile structure of claim 5, wherein the mobile structure is a robotic arm formed by struts interconnected by rotational elements;

wherein the actuator controllers responsive to price information control the applied forces of the multiple actuators to collectively promote movement of at least one of the struts from a first position to a second position.

10. The distributed market based control assembly for a mobile structure of claim 5 further including multiple sensors, wherein each actuator controller is connected to a sensor by the marketwire;

wherein the analog fluctuation in the electrical characteristic of the marketwire caused by the input measurement produced by each sensor provides a demand level for applied forces to be produced by the actuators on the structure;

the demand level being a component of the price information on the marketwire;

wherein the analog fluctuation in the electrical characteristic of the marketwire caused by the applied forces produced by the actuators on the structure provides a supply level for input measurements produced by the sensors;

the supply level being a component of the price information on the marketwire; and

wherein operation of the actuators and the sensors is a function of the demand and supply levels seeking equilibrium.

11. A distributed market based control assembly for damping structure movement comprising:

multiple actuators, each of the multiple actuators having an actuator controller that is responsive to an electrical signal representative of price information to control an applied force produced by the actuator to collectively counter movement of a structure from a first position to a second position,

a sensor for measuring movement of the structure from the first position to the second position, the sensor producing an input measurement; and

an electrical conductor for transmitting voltage and accumulating charge, referred to as a marketwire;

the marketwire being connected to each actuator controller and to the sensor;

the price information being represented on the marketwire by analog fluctuations in an electrical characteristic of the marketwire;

the price information being dependent on the applied force produced by each actuator on the structure to counter the movement of the structure and on the input measurement produced by the sensor;

the marketwire conveying the price information to the actuator controllers and the sensor without requiring any one of the actuators to communicate directly with the sensor.

12. The distributed market based control assembly for damping structure movement of claim 11, wherein the analog fluctuations in the electrical characteristic of the marketwire are voltage changes.

13. The distributed market based control assembly for damping structure movement of claim 11, wherein the analog fluctuations in the electrical characteristic of the marketwire are current changes.

14. A market based control system for controlling movement of a structure comprising:

multiple producing units for applying forces to the structure to effect the movement;

multiple consuming units for sensing the movement of the structure; and

an electrical conductor connecting the multiple producing units to the multiple consuming units;

operation of each of the multiple producing units and the multiple consuming units causing an analog fluctuation in an electrical characteristic of the conductor;

the electrical conductor transmitting and receiving market price information encoded as measurable analog fluctuations in the electrical characteristic of the conductor;

operation of the producing units to effect movement of the structure being determined in response to the market price information.