Control Systems
Our researchers in control systems analyze and design algorithms that shape the behaviour of dynamical systems, guiding them to optimal performance.
Our control systems researchers are dedicated to analyzing and designing algorithms that optimize the behavior of dynamical systems. This highly interdisciplinary field sees our experts applying their knowledge across a wide range of domains.
Our department emphasizes both fundamental theoretical challenges and the diverse practical applications of control systems. Students are encouraged to engage with core theoretical problems while also exploring how these systems can be effectively implemented in real-world scenarios.
Possible Careers
- Controls engineer
- Automation engineer
- Instrumentation and control engineer
- Robotics control engineer
- Autonomous systems engineer
- Guidance, navigation and control engineer
- Grid modernization engineer
Areas of Specialization
Control systems is a fundamental discipline in electrical and computer engineering that focuses on the design and analysis of systems that automatically regulate their own behavior. The goal is to make a system perform a desired task with stability and precision. This field uses principles of feedback to create systems that can maintain a specific state or track a moving target, from the cruise control in your car to the autopilot on an airplane. Control theory is highly mathematical, blending concepts from differential equations and linear algebra. It's the engineering discipline that gives machines the ability to manage themselves, making them reliable and predictable.
Theoretically Oriented Research
Theoretically oriented research for control systems in electrical and computer engineering focuses on developing the fundamental mathematical and computational principles that underpin how we control dynamical systems. It's the "why" and "how" behind the practical application of control systems. This type of research explores new models, algorithms, and frameworks to solve complex control problems, often without an immediate, specific application in mind. It's distinct from applied research, which focuses on implementing existing theories to solve a particular engineering challenge, including:
- mathematical system theory
- optimal control
- fault detection and fault-tolerant control
- nonlinear control and observer design
- networked control systems
- multirate control systems
- control of distributed parameter systems
- sampled-data nonlinear control systems
- system identification and process control
- teleoperation control
Application-oriented research
Application-oriented research for control systems in electrical and computer engineering focuses on translating theoretical principles into practical, real-world solutions for specific engineering problems. This research is driven by the needs of an application, such as making a drone fly autonomously, a power grid more stable, or a robotic arm performing a precise task. Instead of creating a new mathematical theory, researchers in this area select, adapt and combine existing control techniques to meet the unique challenges of a system. Some ares include:
- monitoring and control of wide-area power systems
- machine condition monitoring of steam turbine engines
- nonlinear control of power converters
- nonlinear control of biomedical systems
- decentralized control and fault detection of cogeneration systems
- nonlinear control of active magnetic bearings and self-bearing motors
- unmanned rotary-wing aerial vehicles
- GPS-aided inertial navigation and nonlinear control
- medical robotics