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

认识到机械工程与电子和智能计算机通信和控制在设计和制造产品和过程中的协同集成的需要，一个新的高级智能机电一体化国际会议（AIM）于1997年由电气和电子工程师协会（IEEE）和美国机械工程师协会（ASME）联合批准。自1997年在东京首次举办以来，IEEE/ASME AIM会议每两年举行一次，轮流在日本（AIM'97），美国（AIM'99），欧洲（AIM'01）以及未来的其他亚太地区举办。该会议由IEEE工业电子学会（IES），IEEE机器人与自动化学会（RAS），ASME动力系统与控制分部（DSCD）会议主题的重大现实意义使过去三届AIM会议取得了成功，会议的规模从1997年东京AIM'97的主要亚洲与会者扩大到美国科学家的良好代表，在亚特兰大举行的AIM '99的工程师和在意大利科莫举行的AIM'01的欧洲参与者。今年的会议将于2003年7月20日至24日在日本的科比举行。该会议将提供一个独特的场所，来自地球仪的研究人员，工程师和工业参展商，他们对推进机电一体化的最新技术感兴趣，并讨论有效的方法来推进机电一体化作为一种新兴的工程技术和21世纪的新学科。为了实现会议的目标，汇集来自地球仪在机械工程（ME）和电气工程和计算机科学（EECS）领域的研究人员，部分资金要求从国家科学基金会，以帮助美国研究人员贡献和提交的AIM'03论文。预计这种部分支持不仅将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独特功能，将推动美国机电一体化教育和研究沿着运行：（i）东道国日本在机电一体化方面一直表现出色，（ii）会议将吸引来自全球26个国家的参与，（iii）将首次开发交互式会议的创新形式，以展示各种真实的机电一体化系统，及（iv）日本主办机构为与会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.