Related papers: The grasshopper problem
Learning motion planners to move robot from one point to another within an obstacle-occupied space in a collision-free manner requires either an extensive amount of data or high-quality demonstrations. This requirement is caused by the fact…
In this paper we analyze the relaxed form of a shape optimization problem with state equation $\{{array}{ll} -div \big(a(x)Du\big)=f\qquad\hbox{in}D \hbox{boundary conditions on}\partial D. {array}.$ The new fact is that the term $f$ is…
For a given polygonal region $P$, the Lawn Mowing Problem (LMP) asks for a shortest tour $T$ that gets within Euclidean distance 1 of every point in $P$; this is equivalent to computing a shortest tour for a unit-disk cutter $C$ that covers…
We develop a variational formalism in order to study the structure of low energy spectra of frustrated quantum spin systems. It is first applied to trial wavefunctions of ladders with one spin-1/2 on each site. We determine energy minima of…
In this paper, we introduce a trajectory planning problem for a marsupial robotics system consisting of a ground robot, a drone, and a taut tether of bounded length connecting the two robots. This problem can be framed within the context of…
We present filling as a type of spatial subdivision problem similar to covering and packing. Filling addresses the optimal placement of overlapping objects lying entirely inside an arbitrary shape so as to cover the most interior volume. In…
We give a new proof for the area law for general 1D gapped systems, which exponentially improves Hastings' famous result \cite{ref:Has07}. Specifically, we show that for a chain of d-dimensional spins, governed by a 1D local Hamiltonian…
We revisit the traveling salesman problem with neighborhoods (TSPN) and propose several new approximation algorithms. These constitute either first approximations (for hyperplanes, lines, and balls in $\mathbb{R}^d$, for $d\geq 3$) or…
A great advantage of legged robots is their ability to operate on particularly difficult and obstructed terrain, which demands dynamic, robust, and precise movements. The study of obstacle courses provides invaluable insights into the…
The aim of this paper is to justify in dimensions two and three the ansatz of Caracciolo et al. stating that the displacement in the optimal matching problem is essentially given by the solution to the linearized equation i.e. the Poisson…
As a profound example of spontaneous motion, we analyze the motion of a camphor particle on a water surface. The motion is modeled as an initial-boundary value problem for a coupled nonlinear system of a diffusion equation and an ordinary…
One of the most common problem-solving heuristics is by analogy. For a given problem, a solver can be viewed as a strategic walk on its fitness landscape. Thus if a solver works for one problem instance, we expect it will also be effective…
In this paper, we investigate an optimal design problem motivated by some issues arising in population dynamics. In a nutshell, we aim at determining the optimal shape of a region occupied by resources for maximizing the survival ability of…
A linear arrangement is a mapping $\pi$ from the $n$ vertices of a graph $G$ to $n$ distinct consecutive integers. Linear arrangements can be represented by drawing the vertices along a horizontal line and drawing the edges as semicircles…
Insects and birds are often faced by opposing requirements for agile and stable flight. Here, we explore the interplay between aerodynamic effort, maneuverability, and stability in a model system that consists of a $\Lambda$-shaped flyer…
The matching problem is a notorious combinatorial optimization problem that has attracted for many years the attention of the statistical physics community. Here we analyze the Euclidean version of the problem, i.e. the optimal matching…
We study a new search problem on the plane involving a robot and an immobile treasure, initially placed at distance $1$ from each other. The length $\beta$ of an arc (a fence) within the perimeter of the corresponding circle, as well as the…
We present a scalable combinatorial algorithm for globally optimizing over the space of geometrically consistent mappings between 3D shapes. We use the mathematically elegant formalism proposed by Windheuser et al. (ICCV 2011) where 3D…
We study the saddle-points of the $p$-spin model -- the best understood example of a `complex' (rugged) landscape -- when its $N$ variables are complex. These points are the solutions to a system of $N$ random equations of degree $p-1$. We…
Planning for legged-wheeled machines is typically done using trajectory optimization because of many degrees of freedom, thus rendering legged-wheeled planners prone to falling prey to bad local minima. We present a combined sampling and…