eess.SYOct 14, 2024

Automated Discovery of Operable Dynamics from Videos

Authors: Kuang HuangDong Heon ChoBoyuan Chen

Organizations: Department of Applied Physics and Applied Mathematics, Columbia University, 500 W. 120th Street, New York, 10027, NY, USA. · Department of Computer Science, Duke University, 308 Research Dr., Durham, 27705, NC, USA. · Department of Mechanical Engineering and Material Science, Duke University, 121 Hudson Hall, Durham, 27708, NC, USA. · Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Duke University, 100 Science Dr., Durham, 27708, NC, USA.

Abstract

Dynamical systems form the foundation of scientific discovery, traditionally modeled with predefined state variables such as the angle and angular velocity, and differential equations such as the equation of motion for a single pendulum. We introduce a framework that automatically discovers a low-dimensional and operable representation of system dynamics, including a set of compact state variables that preserve the smoothness of the system dynamics and a differentiable vector field, directly from video without requiring prior domain-specific knowledge. The prominence and effectiveness of the proposed approach are demonstrated through both quantitative and qualitative analyses of a range of dynamical systems, including the identification of stable equilibria, the prediction of natural frequencies, and the detection of chaotic and limit cycle behaviors. The results highlight the potential of our data-driven approach to advance automated scientific discovery.

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