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In this paper, we consider an optimal distributed control problem for a reaction-diffusion-based SIR epidemic model with human behavioral effects. We develop a model wherein non-pharmaceutical intervention methods are implemented, but a portion of the population does not comply with them, and this noncompliance affects the spread of the disease. Drawing from social contagion theory, our model allows for the spread of noncompliance parallel to the spread of the disease. The quantities of interest for control are the reduction in infection rate among the compliant population, the rate of spread of noncompliance, and the rate at which non-compliant individuals become compliant after, e.g., receiving more or better information about the underlying disease. We prove the existence of global-in-time solutions for fixed controls and study the regularity properties of the resulting control-to-state map. The existence of optimal control is then established in an abstract framework for a fairly general class of objective functions. Necessary first--order optimality conditions are obtained via a Lagrangian based stationarity system. We conclude with a discussion regarding minimization of the size of infected and non-compliant populations and present simulations with various parameters values to demonstrate the behavior of the model.

We develop a discrete differential geometry for surfaces of non-constant negative curvature, which can be used to model various phenomena from the growth of flower petals to marine invertebrate swimming. Specifically, we derive and numerically integrate a version of the classical Lelieuvre formulas that apply to immersions of $C^{1,1}$ hyperbolic surfaces of non-constant curvature. In contrast to the constant curvature case, these formulas do not provide an explicit method for constructing an immersion but rather describe an immersion via an implicit set of equations. We propose an iterative method for resolving these equations. Because we are interested in scenarios where the curvature is a function of the intrinsic material coordinates, in particular, on the geodesic distance from an origin, we suggest a fast marching method for computing geodesic distance on manifolds. We apply our methods to generate surfaces of non-constant curvature and demonstrate how one can introduce branch points to account for the sort of multi-generational buckling and subwrinkling observed in many applications.

We present a semi-real-time algorithm for minimal-time optimal path planning based on optimal control theory, dynamic programming, and Hamilton-Jacobi (HJ) equations. Partial differential equation (PDE) based optimal path planning methods are well-established in the literature, and provide an interpretable alternative to black-box machine learning algorithms. However, due to the computational burden of grid-based PDE solvers, many previous methods do not scale well to high dimensional problems and are not applicable in real-time scenarios even for low dimensional problems. We present a semi-real-time algorithm for optimal path planning in the HJ formulation, using grid-free numerical methods based on Hopf-Lax formulas. In doing so, we retain the intepretablity of PDE based path planning, but because the numerical method is grid-free, it is efficient and does not suffer from the curse of dimensionality, and thus can be applied in semi-real-time and account for realistic concerns like obstacle discovery. This represents a significant step in averting the tradeoff between interpretability and efficiency. We present the algorithm with application to synthetic examples of isotropic motion planning in two-dimensions, though with slight adjustments, it could be applied to many other problems., Comment: 6 pages, 2 figures, submitted to American Control Conference 2024

We present a partial-differential-equation-based optimal path-planning framework for curvature constrained motion, with application to vehicles in 2- and 3-spatial-dimensions. This formulation relies on optimal control theory, dynamic programming, and Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equations. We develop efficient and scalable algorithms for solutions of high dimensional Hamilton-Jacobi equations which can solve these types of path-planning problems efficiently, even in high dimensions, while maintaining the Hamilton-Jacobi formulation. Because our method is rooted in optimal control theory and has no black box components, it has solid interpretability, and thus averts the tradeoff between interpretability and efficiency for high-dimensional path-planning problems. We demonstrate our method with several examples., Comment: 32 pages, 7 figures

Recent work from public health experts suggests that incorporating human behavior is crucial in faithfully modeling an epidemic. We present a reaction-diffusion partial differential equation SIR-type population model for an epidemic including behavioral concerns. In our model, the disease spreads via mass action, as is customary in compartmental models. However, drawing from social contagion theory, we assume that as the disease spreads and prevention measures are enacted, noncompliance with prevention measures also spreads throughout the population. We prove global existence of classical solutions of our model, and then perform R0-type analysis and determine asymptotic behavior of the model in different parameter regimes. Finally, we simulate the model and discuss the new facets which distinguish our model from basic SIR-type models.

We consider the problem of time-optimal path planning for simple nonholonomic vehicles. In previous similar work, the vehicle has been simplified to a point mass and the obstacles have been stationary. Our formulation accounts for a rectangular vehicle, and involves the dynamic programming principle and a time-dependent Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman (HJB) formulation which allows for moving obstacles. To our knowledge, this is the first HJB formulation of the problem which allows for moving obstacles. We design an upwind finite difference scheme to approximate the equation and demonstrate the efficacy of our model with a few synthetic examples.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, conflicting opinions on physical distancing swept across social media, affecting both human behavior and the spread of COVID-19. Inspired by such phenomena, we construct a two-layer multiplex network for the coupled spread of a disease and conflicting opinions. We model each process as a contagion. On one layer, we consider the concurrent evolution of two opinions -- pro-physical-distancing and anti-physical-distancing -- that compete with each other and have mutual immunity to each other. The disease evolves on the other layer, and individuals are less likely (respectively, more likely) to become infected when they adopt the pro-physical-distancing (respectively, anti-physical-distancing) opinion. We develop approximations of mean-field type by generalizing monolayer pair approximations to multilayer networks; these approximations agree well with Monte Carlo simulations for a broad range of parameters and several network structures. Through numerical simulations, we illustrate the influence of opinion dynamics on the spread of the disease from complex interactions both between the two conflicting opinions and between the opinions and the disease. We find that lengthening the duration that individuals hold an opinion may help suppress disease transmission, and we demonstrate that increasing the cross-layer correlations or intra-layer correlations of node degrees may lead to fewer individuals becoming infected with the disease.

We address the problem of optimal path planning for a simple nonholonomic vehicle in the presence of obstacles. Most current approaches are either split hierarchically into global path planning and local collision avoidance, or neglect some of the ambient geometry by assuming the car is a point mass. We present a Hamilton-Jacobi formulation of the problem that resolves time-optimal paths and considers the geometry of the vehicle.

We present a method for optimal path planning of human walking paths in mountainous terrain, using a control theoretic formulation and a Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation. Previous models for human navigation were entirely deterministic, assuming perfect knowledge of the ambient elevation data and human walking velocity as a function of local slope of the terrain. Our model includes a stochastic component which can account for uncertainty in the problem, and thus includes a Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation with viscosity. We discuss the model in the presence and absence of stochastic effects, and suggest numerical methods for simulating the model. We discuss two different notions of an optimal path when there is uncertainty in the problem. Finally, we compare the optimal paths suggested by the model at different levels of uncertainty, and observe that as the size of the uncertainty tends to zero (and thus the viscosity in the equation tends to zero), the optimal path tends toward the deterministic optimal path.

We present a fast sweeping method for a class of Hamilton-Jacobi equations that arise from time-independent problems in optimal control theory. The basic method in two dimensions uses a four point stencil and is extremely simple to implement. We test our basic method against Eikonal equations in different norms, and then suggest a general method for rotating the grid and using additional approximations to the derivatives in different directions in order to more accurately capture characteristic flow. We display the utility of our method by applying it to relevant problems from engineering.

Matrix completion is a classical problem in data science wherein one attempts to reconstruct a low-rank matrix while only observing some subset of the entries. Previous authors have phrased this problem as a nuclear norm minimization problem. Almost all previous work assumes no explicit structure of the matrix and uses uniform sampling to decide the observed entries. We suggest methods for selective sampling in the case where we have some knowledge about the structure of the matrix and are allowed to design the observation set., Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures

National parks often serve as hotspots for environmental crime such as illegal deforestation and animal poaching. Previous attempts to model environmental crime were either discrete and network-based or required very restrictive assumptions on the geometry of the protected region and made heavy use of radial symmetry. We formulate a level set method to track criminals inside a protected region which uses real elevation data to determine speed of travel, does not require any assumptions of symmetry, and can be applied to regions of arbitrary shape. In doing so, we design a Hamilton-Jacobi equation to describe movement of criminals while also incorporating the effects of patrollers who attempt to deter the crime. We discuss the numerical schemes that we use to solve this Hamilton-Jacobi equation. Finally, we apply our method to Yosemite National Park and Kangaroo Island, Australia and design practical patrol strategies with the goal of minimizing the area that is affected by criminal activity., Comment: 18 pages, 12 figures

We present a method for determining optimal walking paths in steep terrain using the level set method and an optimal control formulation. By viewing the walking direction as a control variable, we can determine the optimal control by solving a Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation. We then calculate the optimal walking path by solving an ordinary differential equation. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our method by computing optimal paths which travel throughout mountainous regions of Yosemite National Park. We include details regarding the numerical implementation of our model and address a specific application of a law enforcement agency patrolling a nationally protected area., Comment: 19 pages, 11 figures

We consider a spatially-heterogeneous generalization of a well-established model for the dynamics of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus-type 1 (HIV) within a susceptible host. The model consists of a nonlinear system of three coupled reaction-diffusion equations with parameters that may vary spatially. Upon formulating the model, we prove that it preserves the positivity of initial data and construct global-in-time solutions that are both bounded and smooth. Finally, additional results concerning the local and global asymptotic behavior of these solutions are also provided., Comment: 21 pages