PROGRAM

António Pascoal
Laboratory of Robotics and Engineering Systems (LARSyS),
Institute for Systems and Robotics (ISR) / Instituto Superior Técnico (IST),
University of Lisbon, Portugal

Title : United they Stand: the Beauty and Power of Cooperative Marine Robotic Systems

Abstract :The last decade has witnessed tremendous progress in the development of marine technologies that are steadily affording scientists advanced equipment and methods for ocean exploration and exploitation. Recent advances in marine robotics, sensors, computers, communications, and information systems are being applied to the development of sophisticated technologies that will lead to safer, faster, and far more efficient ways of exploring the ocean frontier, especially in hazardous conditions. As part of this trend, there has been a surge of interest worldwide in the development of autonomous marine vehicles (AMVs) capable of roaming the oceans freely and collecting data at the surface of the ocean and underwater on unprecedented scales. Representative examples of AMVs include autonomous surface craft (ASC), autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), and underwater Gliders. The mission scenarios envisioned call for the operation of the latter acting in cooperation to execute challenging tasks without close supervision of human operators.

This talk is rooted in the general topic of cooperative motion planning, navigation, and control of marine vehicles, both from a theoretical and a practical perspective. The presentation builds upon practical developments and experiments. Examples of scientific missions with ASCs, AUVs, and Gliders acting in cooperation, set the stage for the main contents of the presentation, which is strongly motivated by a number of challenging and timely problems that arise in the development and operation of autonomous vehicles for scientific ocean studies, habitat mapping in complex 3D scenarios, geotechnical surveying, ocean radioactivity mapping, and localization and tracking of marine megafauna. From a theoretical standpoint, illustrative problems are introduced in the general area of networked systems subjected to stringent communication constraints. Namely, i) cooperative motion control, ii) cooperative navigation, and iii) range /bearings-based multiple target localization and tracking. Some of the results obtained are documented with videos from actual field tests with multiple marine robots exchanging information over acoustic and optical networks.

The core materials presented in this talk were obtained in the scope of the following EU-funded projects:

• MORPH (https://cordis.europa.eu/project/rcn/101726/factsheet/en)
• WiMUST (http://www.wimust.eu/)
• H2020 EU Marine Robotics Research Infrastructure Network (https://www.eumarinerobots.eu/)
• RAMONES (https://ramones-project.eu/)
• BlueRoses ( https://bluerosesproject.wixsite.com/home)

Bio : PhD in Control Science from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA, 1987. Associate Professor of Control and Robotics at IST, University of Lisbon, Portugal. Member, Scientific Council of the Institute for Systems and Robotics (ISR). Founder, Dynamical Systems and Ocean Robotics Lab (DSORLab) of ISR. Coordinator, Thematic Area “Technologies for Ocean Exploration and Exploitation” of the Associate Laboratory of Robotics and Engineering Systems (LARSyS). He has been an Adjunct Scientist, National Institute of Oceanography (NIO), Goa, India and a Visiting Faculty, Department of Ocean Engineering, IIT Madras, Chennai and Birla Institute of Technology Science, Pilani (BITS Pilani), Goa, under the Indian Sparc Programme. Expertise in Dynamical Systems Theory, Marine Robotics, Navigation, Guidance, and Control of Autonomous Vehicles, and Networked Control and Estimation with applications to air and underwater robots. His long-term goal is to contribute to the development of advanced robotic systems for ocean resources exploration and exploitation.
He has coordinated and participated in a large number of international projects that have led to the design, development, and field-testing of single and multiple autonomous marine and air vehicles and systems in cooperation with partners in India (National Institute of Oceanography, Goa), USA (Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA), Korea (KAIST, Daejeon), and various countries in Europe. Director, FCT PhD program on Networked Interactive Cyber Physical Systems (NETSyS) and Member, Editorial Board of the Springer Intelligent Systems, Control and Automation Book Series, and Elected Chair, IFAC Technical Committee Marine Systems, from 2008-2014. Member, International Program Committees of numerous conferences on dynamical systems and control as well as marine and aerial robotics. He has published a total of 113 books, book chapters, and peer reviewed journal papers and 300 conference papers (14936 Citations, h-index 64, i10-index 279 / Google Scholar). He is a co-author of the monograph Time-Critical Cooperative Control of Autonomous Air Vehicles, authors I. Kaminer; A. Pascoal, E. Xargay, N. Hovakimyan, V. Cichella, and V. Dobrokhodov, Elsevier B. Heinemann,  August 2017. He received the IEEE OES AUV Distinguished Lifetime Technical Achievement Award in 2020.

Marco Lovera
Politecnico di Milano (IT)

Title : Model identification for aerospace systems: methods, tools and results

Abstract : Accurate model identification is essential for developing robust control strategies for aerospace systems. This talk presents the identification of Linear Time-Invariant (LTI) and Linear Time-Periodic (LTP) models, along with Linear Parameter-Varying (LPV) modeling, for aerospace systems, with a focus on small-scale and full-scale rotorcraft.
We discuss continuous-time subspace identification using Laguerre and Hermite bases, enhanced by Bayesian optimization for hyperparameter tuning and model structuring, and introduce virtual reference predictor-based control for data-driven design.
Experimental results on multirotor systems demonstrate the effectiveness of these techniques for LTI and LTP model identification and data-driven control. A case study on helicopter model identification is also presented, covering the complete process of LTI model identification, as well as LPV modeling.
This presentation underscores strong synergies between education and research and joint work with collaborators from academia and industry.

Bio :

Reza Moheimani,
University of Texas at Dallas (USA)

Title : From Imaging to Lithography: Control-Enabled Advancements in Scanning Tunneling Microscopy

Abstract : The scanning tunneling microscope (STM), a Nobel Prize-winning invention, has revolutionized surface science with its ability to image and manipulate matter at the atomic scale.  While STM has traditionally been used for topographic imaging and spectroscopy, recent advances have expanded its applications to include atomically precise lithography, crucial for the development of future quantum electronic devices.  Despite these advancements, the fundamental feedback control loop that governs STM operation has remained largely unchanged for the past 40 years.  This presentation delves into the intricate interplay between STM feedback control and surface physics, exploring how innovative modifications to the control system can unlock new modes of imaging, spectroscopy, and lithography. Reimagining the STM’s control system is the key to pushing the boundaries of STM capabilities and opening new frontiers in nanoscale science and engineering.

Bio : Reza Moheimani is a Professor and James Von Ehr Distinguished Chair in Science and Technology in the Department of Systems Engineering at the University of Texas at Dallas with affiliate appointments in Electrical and Computer Engineering and Mechanical Engineering Departments. He is the past Editor-in-Chief of Mechatronics, and a past associate editor of IEEE Transactions on Control Systems Technology, IEEE Transactions on Mechatronics and Control Engineering Practice. He received the Industrial Achievement Award (IFAC, 2023), Nyquist Lecture Award (ASME DSCD, 2022), Charles Stark Draper Innovative Practice Award (ASME DSCD, 2020), Nathaniel B. Nichols Medal (IFAC, 2014), IEEE Control Systems Technology Award (IEEE CSS, 2009) and IEEE Transactions on Control Systems Technology Outstanding Paper Award (IEEE CSS, 2007 and 2018). He is a Fellow of IEEE, IFAC, ASME and Institute of Physics (UK). Moheimani received the Ph.D. degree in Electrical Engineering from University of New South Wales, Australia in 1996. His current research interests include applications of control and estimation in high-precision mechatronic systems, high-speed scanning probe microscopy and advanced atomically precise manufacturing.

Valentina Breschi,
LCSL (IT)

Title : To model or not to model, is that the question?

Abstract : Data-driven control is getting the spotlight, promising to enable control design directly from raw data while avoiding what is arguably the most time-consuming phase of the control design pipeline, modeling. Comparing and contrasting existing approaches for data-driven predictive control with a focus on LPV systems, this talk will accompany the audience on a journey toward recent advances in the field, unveiling the role of modeling assumptions and key connections with system identification.

Bio : Valentina Breschi received her B.Sc. in Electronic and Telecommunication Engineering and her M.Sc. in Electrical and Automation Engineering from the University of Florence (Italy) in 2011 and 2014, respectively. She received her Ph.D. in Control Systems from IMT School for Advanced Studies Lucca (Italy) in 2018, being a visiting scholar at the University of Michigan (USA). From 2018 to 2023, she was with Politecnico di Milano (Italy), first as a post-doctoral researcher and then as a junior assistant professor from 2020 to 2023. In 2023, she joined the Department of Electrical Engineering at Eindhoven University of Technology (The Netherlands) as an Assistant Professor. Her main research interests include data-driven control, system identification, collaborative learning, and fairness in decision-making.

Ramon Costa Castelló,
Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (SP)

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