Partial Travel Support for US Researchers to Attend 2003 IEEE/ASME Advanced Intelligent Mechatronics Conference (AIM03)

认识到在产品和工艺的设计和制造中机械工程与电子和智能计算机通信和控制的协同集成的需求，1997年，电气和电子工程师学会（IEEE）和美国机械工程师学会（ASME）联合批准了一个新的国际高级智能机电一体化会议（AIM）。自1997年在东京首次举办以来，ieee /ASME AIM会议每两年举行一次，在日本（AIM'97），美国（AIM'99），欧洲（AIM'01）之间轮流举办，并在未来，其他亚太地区国家也是如此。本次会议由IEEE工业电子学会（IES）、IEEE机器人与自动化学会（RAS）和美国机械工程师学会（ASME）动态系统与控制分部（DSCD）共同主办。会议主题的重大现实意义使过去三届AIM会议取得了成功，并且会议已经大大扩大，从东京AIM'97的主要亚洲参与者到亚特兰大AIM'99的美国科学家和工程师的良好代表，以及意大利科莫AIM'01的欧洲参与者。今年的会议将于2003年7月20日至24日在日本神户举行。会议将为来自全球的研究人员、工程师和工业参展商提供一个独特的场所，他们对推进机电一体化的最新技术感兴趣，并讨论推动机电一体化作为21世纪新兴工程技术和新学科的有效方法。为了实现会议的目标，汇集来自世界各地的机械工程（ME）、电气工程和计算机科学（EECS）领域的研究人员，美国国家科学基金会要求提供部分资金，以帮助美国研究人员在AIM'03上贡献和发表论文。预计这样的部分支持不仅可以鼓励美国研究人员积极参与会议，促进全球合作，而且由于会议的以下特点，可以长期推动美国机电一体化教育和研究：(i)主办国日本在机电一体化方面一直表现出色，（ii）会议将根据已接受的论文吸引来自26个国家的全球参与者，（iii）将首次开发创新的互动会议形式，展示各种真正的机电一体化系统，以及（iv）日本组织者为会议参与者安排了独特的工业参观，以展示该学科的实际应用。

Recognizing the needs for a synergistic integration of mechanical engineering with electronicsand intelligent computer communication and control in the design and manufacture of productsand processes, a new International Conference on Advanced Intelligent Mechatronics (AIM) wasjointly approved by the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) and the AmericanSociety of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) in 1997. Since its first inception in 1997 in Tokyo, theIEEE/ASME AIM Conference has been held biennial, rotating the host country among Japan(AIM'97), the United States (AIM'99), Europe (AIM'01), and, in the future, other Asian Pacific-Rimnations as well. The conference has been co-sponsored by the IEEE Industrial ElectronicsSociety (IES), the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society (RAS), and the ASME DynamicSystems and Control Division (DSCD).The great practical significance of the conference theme has made past three AIM conferences asuccess and the conference has been expanded significantly from predominantly Asiansparticipants in AIM'97 in Tokyo to a good representation of US scientists and engineers inAIM'99 in Atlanta, and the European participants in AIM'01 in Como, Italy. This year, theconference will be held in Kobe, Japan, in July 20-24, 2003. The conference will provide aunique venue where researchers, engineers and industrial exhibitors from the globe who areinterested in advancing the state-of-the-art of mechatronics gather and discuss effective ways toadvance mechatronics as an emerging engineering technology and a new discipline in the 21stcentury. In order to achieve the conference goal of bring together researchers from the globe inthe fields of mechanical engineering (ME) and electrical engineering and computer science(EECS), partial funding is requested from the National Science Foundation to assist USresearchers to contribute and present papers in the AIM'03. It is expected that such a partialsupport will not only encourage the active participation of US researchers in the conference topromote global collaborations, but also advance the US mechatronics education and research in along run due to the following unique features of the conference: (i) the host country, Japan, hasbeen excelling in Mechatronics, (ii) the conference will draw worldwide participation from 26countries based on the accepted papers, (iii) an innovative format of interactive sessions will bedeveloped the first time in demonstrating various real mechatronics systems, and (iv)uniqueindustrial visits have been arranged by the Japanese organizers for conference participants inshowing the practical applications of the discipline.