: This reprint will introduce and study the most basic properties of three new variational problems which are suggested by applications to computer vision. In computer vision, a fundamental problem is to appropriately decompose the domain R of a function g (x,y) of two variables. This problem starts by describing the physical situation which produces images: assume that a three-dimensional world is observed by an eye or camera from some point P and that g1(rho) represents the intensity of the light in this world approaching the point sub 1 from a direction rho. If one has a lens at P focusing this light on a retina or a film-in both cases a plane domain R in which we may introduce coordinates x, y then let g(x,y) be the strength of the light signal striking R at a point with coordinates (x,y); g(x,y) is essentially the same as sub 1 (rho) -possibly after a simple transformation given by the geometry of the imaging syste. The function g(x,y) defined on the plane domain R will be called an image. What sort of function is g? The light reflected off the surfaces Si of various solid objects O sub i visible from P will strike the domain R in various open subsets R sub i. When one object O1 is partially in front of another object O2 as seen from P, but some of object O2 appears as the background to the sides of O1, then the open sets R1 and R2 will have a common boundary (the 'edge' of object O1 in the image defined on R) and one usually expects the image g(x,y) to be discontinuous along this boundary. (JHD)

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Optimal approximations by piecewise smooth functions and associated variational problems

Basic error estimates for elliptic problems

This article discusses finite element Galerkin schemes for a number of linear model problems in electromagnetism. The finite element schemes are introduced as discrete differential forms, matching the coordinate-independent statement of Maxwell's equations in the calculus of differential forms. The asymptotic convergence of discrete solutions is investigated theoretically. As discrete differential forms represent a genuine generalization of conventional Lagrangian finite elements, the analysis is based upon a judicious adaptation of established techniques in the theory of finite elements. Risks and difficulties haunting finite element schemes that do not fit the framework of discrete differential forms are highlighted.

/pdf/finite-elements-in-computational-electromagnetism-24rt8lrhj6.pdf

Finite elements in computational electromagnetism

Originally published in 2000, this is the second volume of a comprehensive two-volume treatment of quadratic optimal control theory for partial differential equations over a finite or infinite time horizon, and related differential (integral) and algebraic Riccati equations. Both continuous theory and numerical approximation theory are included. The authors use an abstract space, operator theoretic approach, which is based on semigroups methods, and which unifies across a few basic classes of evolution. The various abstract frameworks are motivated by, and ultimately directed to, partial differential equations with boundary/point control. Volume 2 is focused on the optimal control problem over a finite time interval for hyperbolic dynamical systems. A few abstract models are considered, each motivated by a particular canonical hyperbolic dynamics. It presents numerous fascinating results. These volumes will appeal to graduate students and researchers in pure and applied mathematics and theoretical engineering with an interest in optimal control problems.

Control Theory for Partial Differential Equations: Continuous and Approximation Theories

In the p-version of the finite element method, the triangulation is fixed and the degree p, of the piecewise polynomial approximation, is progressively increased until some desired level of precision is reached.In this paper, we first establish the basic approximation properties of some spaces of piecewise polynomials defined on a finite element triangulation. These properties lead to an a priori estimate of the asymptotic rate of convergence of the p-version. The estimate shows that the p-version gives results which are not worse than those obtained by the conventional finite element method (called the h-version, in which h represents the maximum diameter of the elements), when quasi-uniform triangulations are employed and the basis for comparison is the number of degrees of freedom. Furthermore, in the case of a singularity problem, we show (under conditions which are usually satisfied in practice) that the rate of convergence of the p-version is twice that of the h-version with quasi-uniform mesh. Inve...

V. A. Kondrat'ev

Papers

Boundary problems for elliptic equations in domains with conical or angular points