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Control Systems

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The field of control systems has changed dramatically in the last 30 years. The advent of low cost microprocessors has enabled control algorithms to be embedded in almost every conceivable type of technology. The development of sophisticated computer aided design software has enabled analysis and controller design for complex multivariable systems. The needs of society for improved transportation safety and a cleaner environment have posed challenges that can only be solved with feedback control. Faculty and students are applying their expertise in control systems to transportation systems, biological systems, networks, production lines, robotics, and much more. Our research advances the state of the art and the classes we teach make these new concepts accessible to students.

Specialties

  • Bio-inspired Control
  • Cyber-Physical Systems
  • Discrete Event and Hybrid Systems
  • Linear Feedback Control
  • Modeling and Control of Automotive Powertrain Systems
  • Nonlinear Control
  • Production Systems Engineering
  • Stochastic Control

ECE Faculty

Achilleas Anastasopoulos

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Jason Corso

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Vladimir Dvorkin

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Jim Freudenberg

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Inigo Incer

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Stéphane Lafortune

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Jing Shuang (Lisa) Li

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Johanna Mathieu audio icon

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Samet Oymak

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Necmiye Ozay

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Peter Seiler

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Liyue Shen

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Vijay Subramanian

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Lei Ying

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Pei Zhang

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CSE Faculty

Affiliated Faculty

Dmitry Berenson

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Robert Gregg

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Anna Stefanopoulou

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Dawn Tilbury

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News Feed

Andrew Wintenberg awarded Predoctoral Fellowship to support research impacting the safety of smart systems

Wintenberg is developing computer algorithms and tools to improve the security of cyber and cyber-physical systems.

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Task Force report on grid stability concepts receives IEEE PES Prize Paper Award

The rapid growth of renewable energy led to an international task force to study its impact on the stability of worldwide power systems.

New textbook provides streamlined guide for undergrads studying Signals and Systems

The textbook, authored by Prof. Stéphane Lafortune, covers the main material students need to know for continuous-time signals and systems with a focus on linear time-invariant systems and their response to different classes of input signals.

Research on modeling time-variant systems earns Brockett-Willems Outstanding Paper Award

Prof. Peter Seiler co-authored the paper that focuses on reachability analysis for a variety of systems, including aircraft control and autonomous vehicles.

The NAE invites Necmiye Ozay to symposium to advance the engineering frontier

Prof. Ozay presented on her research that is relevant to cybersecurity and the future of space exploration.

$7.5M MURI to make dynamic AI smarter and safer

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New DOE project aims to convert a traditional engine into a hybrid OP engine with the help of control algorithms

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Glen Chou receives the NDSEG Fellowship to improve the safety of autonomous systems

PhD student Glen Chou is focused on ensuring that autonomous systems, including cars and robots, never threaten human safety.

New research for the future of sustainable power and energy

Take a look at some of the exciting new projects that will help define the next evolution of sustainable power and energy.

Stéphane Lafortune named N. Harris McClamroch Professor of EECS

Lafortune’s research in discrete event systems includes multiple problem domains, with applications to computer and software systems.

Xiang Yin receives honorable mention for ProQuest Distinguished Dissertation Award

Yin researched cyber-physical systems and discrete-event systems.

Sijia Geng awarded Towner Prize for Distinguished Academic Achievement

A PhD student in electrical engineering, Geng researches trajectory sensitivity and renewable energy in microgrids.

Game theory for electric vehicle charging

Dmitry Berenson receives NSF CAREER Award to advance a robot’s ability to handle soft objects

Berenson works to improve the ability of autonomous robots to handle soft, deformable objects.

Necmiye Ozay receives ONR Young Investigator Award to advance research in autonomous systems

Research will focus on how autonomous vehicles adapt to wide-ranging changes.

Stéphane Lafortune receives Research Excellence Award from College of Engineering

The award honors his contributions to system and control theory.

Getting people moving – Walking exoskeletons could mobilize disabled patients

Prof. Jessy Grizzle has long said that his work in robotics could one day be used to help the disabled. Now he and his group, alongside French company Wandercraft, are working to make that claim a reality in the form of walking exoskeletons.

Latest two-legged walking robot arrives at Michigan

Built to handle falls, and with two extra motors in each leg, the new robot will help U-M roboticists take independent robotic walking to a whole new level.

Elmer Gilbert: A Life in Control

Elmer Gilbert reflects on his illustrious career in Control

Necmiye Ozay receives Nonlinear Analysis: Hybrid Systems paper prize

The authors demonstrated that it is possible to synthesize provably-correct robust feedback controllers that can handle various types of imperfections in the models or measurements.

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Shai Revzen part of a new five-institution MURI focused on the control of dynamic systems

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New walking robot based on birds

Necmiye Ozay receives NASA Early Career Faculty Award for research in cyber-physical systems

Prof. Ozay’s award-winning work will be used in future space missions

Stéphane Lafortune named Fellow of the International Federation of Automatic Control (IFAC)

Prof. Lafortune has been a leading researcher in the field of discrete event systems (DES) for the last 25 years. His fundamental work covers the gamut from modeling, analysis, diagnosis, control, and optimization.

MARLO makes initial attempt at the Wave Field

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MARLO, the free-standing two-legged robot, conquers terrain with innovative control algorithms

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Students receive prizes for simulating the best landing of a rocket booster

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Lights Out

The power goes out. The aurorae stretch to the tropics. Could a major solar storm mean a year without electricity?

Xiang Yin earns Pre-Doc Fellowship for research in cyber-physical systems

Xiang’s research focuses on developing new methods to synthesize different control and sensing strategies in a discrete-event system.

Necmiye Ozay receives CAREER award for research in cyber-physical systems

Cyber-physical systems are smart, networked systems with embedded sensors, processors, and actuators that are designed to interact with the physical world.

Demosthenis Teneketzis earns George S. Axelby Outstanding Paper Award for solution to a class of fundamental control problems

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Engineering a better future for Ethiopia

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Stephanie Crocker earns NSF Graduate Research Fellowship to bring sustainable energy to the grid

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ECE welcomes new engineering robotics center

The center, to be built on North Campus, will offer state-of-the-art facilities in a 3-story, 100,000 square foot building.

HEV fuel economy meets drivability in Outstanding Control Systems Paper

The research aimed to find a happy medium between fuel economy and drivability in hybrid electric vehicles.

Necmiye Ozay awarded DARPA Young Faculty Award for research in cyber and physical systems

Prof. Ozay’s research interests lie at the broad interface of dynamical systems, control, optimization and formal methods with applications in system identification, verification and validation, autonomy and vision.

Research in production systems engineering is recognized with Best Paper Award

“The paper introduces a new management paradigm: ensure the desired lead time while maximizing the throughput.”

Translating animal movement into better robotic design

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Hongwei Liao, EE Systems Grad Student, awarded Rackham Predoctoral Fellowship

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Best Paper Award in Automation Research

The award was given at the IEEE Conference on Automation and Engineering. Congratulations, Lindsay!

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