Described herein are intraoral appliances with adaptive cellular materials and structures to provide enhanced mechanical properties and orthodontic functionality, and related methods. The described appliances may have higher Young's modulus and elongation rate than appliances made from conventional materials. Further, the described appliances may have desirable non-linear force/strain profiles. Additionally, the control provided by using cellular structures allow for increased customization for individual patients. Thus, the described appliances may be more effective, have longer appliance lifetimes and/or provide less discomfort to patients.

Methods and apparatus to define stages for multi-variate batch control analytics are disclosed. An example method includes determining, with the processor, a current stage in a current batch process based on a current value of a batch stage parameter. The current value of the batch stage parameter determined based on process control data associated with process parameters in the current batch process. The current stage determined independent of batch events defined by at least one of a start or an end of procedures, unit procedures, operations, or phases in a batch recipe. The example method further includes applying, with the processor, a model to the current batch process, the model corresponding to the current stage.

Algorithmic reasoning about a cutting tool assembly's space of feasible configurations can be effectively harnessed to construct a sequence of motions that guarantees a collision-free path for the tool assembly to remove each support structure in the sequence. A greedy algorithm models the motion of the cutting tool assembly through the free-spaces around the intermediate shapes of the part as the free-spaces iteratively reduce in size to the near-net shape to determine feasible points of contact for the cutting tool assembly. Each support beam is evaluated for a contact feature along the boundary of the near-net shape that constitutes a feasible point of contact. If a support beam has at least one feasible configuration at each point, the support beam is deemed accessible and a collection of tool assembly configurations that are guaranteed to be non-colliding but which can access all points of contact of each accessible support beam can be generated.

A controller of a process includes a resource consumption optimizer which receives sets of control actions for a plurality of actuators from an advanced process controller performing independent data processing with respect to the resource consumption optimizer, each set of control actions resulting in a set-specific combined control action effect. The resource consumption optimizer optimizes resource consumption associated with the sets of control actions by modifying at least one control action on the basis of resource consumption associated with the actuator performing the control action while keeping a difference between a combined control action effect of a modified control action set and a combined control action effect a received control action set set-specifically within an accepted range.

In certain embodiments, a control/optimization system includes an instantiated model object stored in memory on a model server. The model object includes a model of a plant or process being controlled. The model object comprises an interface that precludes the transmission of proprietary information via the interface. The control/optimization system also includes a decision engine software module stored in memory on a decision support server. The decision engine software module is configured to request information from the model object through a communication network via a communication protocol that precludes the transmission of proprietary information, and to receive the requested information from the model object through the communication network via the communication protocol.

A collaborative automation platform and associated method include a fault-tolerant control server hosting one or more virtual controllers, and a fault-tolerant input/output server hosting a virtual input/output system. The collaborative automation platform also includes a master autonomous process interface system connected to the virtual input/output system, via a local area input/output network. The collaborative automation platform also includes a plurality of distributed autonomous process interface systems connected to the master autonomous process interface system, wherein each distributed autonomous process interface system is hardwired to a plurality of field instruments. The collaborative automation platform also includes real-time DDS middleware configured for execution with the fault-tolerant control server, the fault-tolerant input/output server, the master autonomous process interface system, and the plurality of distributed autonomous process interface systems.

Described herein are intraoral appliances with adaptive cellular materials and structures to provide enhanced mechanical properties and orthodontic functionality, and related methods. The described appliances may have higher Young's modulus and elongation rate than appliances made from conventional materials. Further, the described appliances may have desirable non-linear force/strain profiles. Additionally, the control provided by using cellular structures allow for increased customization for individual patients. Thus, the described appliances may be more effective, have longer appliance lifetimes and/or provide less discomfort to patients.

Methods, systems, and apparatuses for developing linear process models to improve performance of components that make up operations in a plant are described herein. In some arrangements, a system may leverage one or more sensors and/or measurement devices to identify rates and compositions of feed and yield. The system may use one or more stoichiometric matrices and/or differential equations to identify molar and mass solutions for each feed component and predict the yield for reaction rates on a component-by-component basis. The system may further adjust the reaction rate coefficients to minimize the deviation between the yield results and the yield identified by system sensors and/or measuring devices. The resulting linear process models may be utilized to optimize plant processes in order to minimize reaction waste and maximize reaction yield.

An energy monitoring system includes a memory storing instructions to execute an energy modeling technique and processing circuitry for executing the instructions to operate the energy modeling technique. The energy modeling technique includes receiving energy data from a plurality of segments representative of one or more logical subgroups. The energy modeling technique includes categorizing the energy data of the logical subgroups into a plurality of segments. The energy modeling technique includes organizing the plurality of segments into a plurality of state-based hierarchical levels. The energy modeling technique includes calculating energy usage and factors associated with the plurality of state-based hierarchical levels via an energy model. The energy modeling technique includes outputting a visualization representative of the energy data corresponding to each of the segments to a monitoring and control system, resulting in a graphical representation accessible by a user-viewable screen.

In certain embodiments, a control/optimization system includes an instantiated model object stored in memory on a model server. The model object includes a model of a plant or process being controlled. The model object comprises an interface that precludes the transmission of proprietary information via the interface. The control/optimization system also includes a decision engine software module stored in memory on a decision support server. The decision engine software module is configured to request information from the model object through a communication network via a communication protocol that precludes the transmission of proprietary information, and to receive the requested information from the model object through the communication network via the communication protocol.