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In this paper we propose a novel algorithm to solve the discrete consensus problem, i.e., the problem of distributing evenly a set of tokens of arbitrary weight among the nodes of a networked system. Tokens are tasks to be executed by the nodes and the proposed distributed algorithm minimizes monotonically the makespan of the assigned tasks. The algorithm is based on gossip -like asynchronous local interactions between the nodes. The convergence time of the proposed algorithm is superior with respect to the state of the art of discrete and quantized consensus by at least a factor O ( n ) in both theoretical and empirical comparisons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The Prediction Error Method (PEM) is related to an optimization problem built on input/output data collected from the system to be identified. It is often hard to find the global solution of this optimization problem because the corresponding objective function presents local minima and/or the search space is constrained to a nonconvex set. The shape of the cost function, and hence the difficulty in solving the optimization problem, depends directly on the experimental conditions, more specifically on the spectrum of the input/output data collected from the system. Therefore, it seems plausible to improve the convergence to the global minimum by properly choosing the spectrum of the input; in this paper, we address this problem. We present a condition for convergence to the global minimum of the cost function and propose its inclusion in the input design. We present the application of the proposed approach to case studies where the algorithms tend to get trapped in nonglobal minima. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The main contribution of this paper is an algorithm to solve an extended version of the quantized consensus problem over networks represented by Hamiltonian graphs, i.e., graphs containing a Hamiltonian cycle, which we assume to be known in advance. Given a network of agents, we assume that a certain number of tokens should be assigned to the agents, so that the total number of tokens weighted by their sizes is the same for all the agents. The algorithm is proved to converge almost surely to a finite set containing the optimal solution. A worst case study of the expected convergence time is carried out, thus proving the efficiency of the algorithm with respect to other solutions recently presented in the literature. Moreover, the algorithm has a decentralized stop criterion once the convergence set is reached. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this paper, we study the identification of parametric Hammerstein systems with FIR linear parts. By a proper normalization and a clever characterization, it is shown that the average squared error cost function for identification can be expressed in terms of the inner product between the true but unknown parameter vector and its estimate. Further, the cost function is concave in the inner product and linear in the inner product square. Therefore, the identification of parametric Hammerstein systems with FIR linear parts is a globally convergent problem and has one and only one (local and global) minimum. This implies that the identification of such systems is a linear problem in terms of the inner product square and any local search based identification algorithm converges globally. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]