Mycorrhizal Networks (MNs) facilitate the exchange of resources including energy, water, nutrients, and information between trees and plants in forest ecosystems. This work explored MNs as an inspiration for new market models in transactive energy networks, which similarly involve exchanges of energy and information between buildings in local communities. Specific insights from the literature on the structure and function of MNs were translated into an energy model with the aim of addressing challenges associated with the proliferation of distributed energy resources (DERs) at the grid edge and the incorporation of DER aggregations into wholesale energy markets. First, a systematic review of bio-inspired computing interventions applied to microgrids and their interactions with modern energy markets established a technical knowledge base within the context of distributed electrical systems. Second, a bio-inspired design process built on this knowledge base to yield a structural and functional blueprint for a computational mycorrhizal energy market simulation. Lastly, that computational model was implemented and simulated on a blockchain-compatible, multi-agent software platform to determine the effect that mycorrhizal strategies have on transactive energy market performance. The structural translation of a mapped ectomycorrhizal network of Douglas-firs in Oregon, USA called the 'wood-wide web' created an effective framework for the organization of a novel mycorrhizal energy market model that enabled participating buildings to redistribute percentages of their energy assets on different competing exchanges throughout a series of week-long simulations. No significant changes in functional performance –- as determined by economic, technical, and ecological metrics – were observed when the mycorrhizal results were compared to those of a baseline transactive energy community without periodic energy asset redistribution. Still, the model itself is determined to be a useful tool for further exploration of innovative, automated strategies for DER integration into modern energy market structures and electrical infrastructure in the age of Web3, especially as new science emerges to better explain trigger and feedback mechanisms for carbon exchange through MNs and how mycorrhizae adapt to changes in the environment. This dissertation concludes with a brief discussion of policy implications and an analysis applying the ecological principles of robustness, biodiversity, and altruism to the collective energy future of the human species. / Doctor of Philosophy / Beneath the forest floor, a network of fungi connects trees and plants and allows them to exchange energy and other resources. This dissertation compares this mycorrhizal network (mycorrhiza = fungus + root) to a group of solar-powered buildings generating energy and exchanging it in a local community marketplace (transactive energy markets). In the analogy, the buildings become the plants, the solar panels become the leaves, and the electrical grid represents the mycorrhizal network. Trees and plants produce their own energy through photosynthesis and then send large portions of it down to the roots, where they can trade it or send it to neighbors via the mycorrhizal network. Similarly, transactive energy markets are designed to allow buildings to sell the energy they produce on-site to neighbors, usually at better rates. This helps address a major infrastructure challenge that is arising with more people adding roof-top solar to their homes. The grid that powers our buildings is old now and it was designed to send power from a central power plant out to its edges where most homes and businesses are located. When too many homes produce solar power at the same time, there is nowhere for it to go, and it can easily overload the grid leading to fires, equipment failures, and power outages. Mycorrhizal networks solve this problem in part through local energy balancing driven by cooperative feedback patterns that have evolved over millennia to sustain forest ecosystems. This work applies scientific findings on the structure and function of mycorrhizal networks (MNs) to energy simulation methods in order to better understand the potential for building bio-inspired energy infrastructure in local communities. Specifically, the mapped structure of a MN of douglas-fir trees in Oregon, USA was adapted into a digital transactive energy market (TEM) model. This adaptation process revealed that a single building can connect to many TEMs simultaneously and that the number of connections can change over time just as symbiotic connections between organisms grow, decay, and adapt to a changing environment. The behavior of MNs in terms of when those connections are added and subtracted informed the functionality of the TEM model, which adds connections when community energy levels are high and subtracts connections when energy levels are low. The resulting 'mycorrhizal' model of the TEM was able to change how much energy each connected household traded on it by changing the number of connections (more connections mean more energy and vice versa). Though the functional performance of the mycorrhizal TEM did not change significantly from that of a typical TEM when they were the context of decentralized computer networks (blockchains) and distributed artificial intelligence. A concluding discussion addresses ways in which elements of this new model could transform energy distribution in communities and improve the resilience of local energy systems in the face of a changing climate.

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Nous nous intéressons à la conception des mains mécaniques anthropomorphes destinées à manipuler des objets dans un environnement humain. Via l'analyse du mouvement de sujets humains lors d'une tâche de manipulation de référence, nous proposons une méthode pour évaluer la capacité des mains robotiques à manipuler les objets. Nous montrons comment les rapports de couplage angulaires entre les articulations et les limites articulaires, influent sur l'aptitude à manipuler dynamiquement des objets. Nous montrons également l'impact du poignet sur les tâches de manipulation rapides. Nous proposons une stratégie pour calculer les forces de manipulation en bout de doigts et dimensionner les moteurs d'un tel préhenseur. La méthode proposée est dépendante de la tâche visée et s'adapte à tout type de mouvement dès lors qu'il peut être capturé et analysé. Dans une deuxième partie, consacrée aux robots manipulateurs, nous élaborons des algorithmes de commande optimale. En considérant l'énergie cinétique du robot comme une métrique, le modèle dynamique est formulé sous forme tensorielle dans le cadre de la géométrie Riemannienne. La discrétisation temporelle est basée sur les Éléments Finis d'Hermite. Nous intégrons les équations de Lagrange du mouvement par une méthode de perturbation. Des exemples de simulation illustrent la superconvergence de la technique d'Hermite. Le critère de contrôle est choisi indépendant des paramètres de configuration. Les équations de la commande associées aux équations du mouvement se révèlent covariantes. La méthode de commande optimale proposée consiste à minimiser la fonction objective correspondant au critère invariant sélectionné. / We focus on the design of anthropomorphous mechanical hands destined to manipulate objects in a human environment. Via the motion analysis of a reference manipulation task performed by human subjects, we propose a method to evaluate a robotic hand manipulation capacities. We demonstrate how the angular coupling between the fingers joints and the angular limits affect the hands potential to manipulate objects. We also show the influence of the wrist motions on the manipulation task. We propose a strategy to calculate the fingertip manipulation forces and dimension the fingers motors. In a second part devoted to articulated robots, we elaborate optimal control algorithms. Regarding the kinetic energy of the robot as a metric, the dynamic model is formulated tensorially in the framework of Riemannian geometry. The time discretization is based on the Hermite Finite Elements.A time integration algorithm is designed by implementing a perturbation method of the Lagrange's motion equations. Simulation examples illustrate the superconvergence of the Hermite's technique. The control criterion is selected to be coordinate free. The control equations associated with the motion equations reveal to be covariant. The suggested control method consists in minimizing the objective function corresponding to the selected invariant criterion.

A recently emerging engineering design approach entails studying the brilliant design solutions found in nature with an aim to develop design strategies that mimic the remarkable efficiency found in biological systems. This novel engineering approach is referred to as bio-inspired design. In this context, the present study quantifies the structure-property relations in bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) horn keratin, qualitatively characterizes the effects of a tapered spiral geometry (the same form as in a ram’s horn) on pressure wave and impulse mitigation, describes the stress attenuation capabilities and features of a ram’s head, and compares the structures and mechanical properties of some energy absorbent natural materials. The results and ideas presented herein can be used in the development of lightweight, energy absorbent, bio-inspired material designs. Among the most notable conclusions garnered from this research include: Horn keratin behaves in an anisotropic manner similar to a long fiber composite. Moisture content dominates the material behavior of horn keratin more than anisotropy, age, and stress-state. This makes moisture content the most influential parameter on the mechanical behavior of horn keratin. Tapered geometries mitigate the impulse generated by a stress wave due to the convergent boundary and a continually decreasing cross sectional area such that greater uniaxial stresses and subsequent axial deformation arises. Furthermore, the tapered geometry introduces small shear stresses that further decrease the impulse. Spiral geometries attenuate the impulse generated by a stress wave by the introduction of shear stresses along the length of the spiral. These shear stresses introduce transverse displacements that function to lessen the impulse. When both a taper and spiral geometry are used in a design, their synergistic effects multiplicatively reduce the impulse Tough natural materials have a high porosity, which makes them light-weight, while increasing their compressive energy absorption ability. Biomaterials whose functions include protection and energy absorption feature a multiscale, hierarchical, composite structure. The constituent materials are arranged in such ways to achieve a synergistic effect, where the properties of the composite exceed the properties of its constituents. Biological materials are therefore not confined to the law of mixtures.