Systems & Control

Impact

We undertake fundamental research into the theory of automatic systems and control. Our team develops fundamental theories as well as novel principles and methodologies to create new opportunities in a range of control systems engineering areas. These include unmanned vehicles, power systems, atomic force microscopy and quantum control systems. 

We deliver world-class research in the areas of:  

  • control theory  
  • quantum control engineering  
  • applied mathematics 
  • quantum optics 
  • machine learning 
  • control systems engineering 

Research Strengths

  • Estimation and control theory to improve the precision and reliability of quantum optical systems 
  • Robust control of flexible structures and atomic force microscopy 
  • Optimisation and distributed control of power and renewable energy systems 
  • Distributed estimation in large scale networks 
  • Optimisation methods for coherent quantum signal processing estimation and filtering 
  • Efficient and High-precision System Identification in Quantum Cybernetics 
  • Efficient Parameter Identification and Robust Control of Quantum Systems 

The Systems and Control group at UNSW Canberra is known internationally for its contributions to the quantum, robust, and stochastic control and filtering theories. Recognised as world-class these theories have applications across power engineering, atomic force microscopy, and quantum optics.

The group hosts a node of the UNSW led ARC Centre of Excellence for Quantum Computation & Communication Technology (CQC2T). Our research is supported by funding from the Australian Research Council and US Office for Naval Research. The group mentors a number of junior researchers and PhD students and regularly hosts international visitors.

We host a regular seminar program that attracts high profile national and international speakers who are world leaders in systems and control. We also jointly organise activities with the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) ACT - Systems, Man and Cybernetics Society Chapter and IEEE ACT/NSW - Control Systems Society Chapter.  

We are active in governance, publication, and conference activities within the IEEE, the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM), and the International Federation of Automatic Control (IFAC). Professor Valeri Ougrinovski is Senior Editor of the IEEE Control Systems Letters (L-CSS) and is an Associate Editor of the IEEE Control Systems Society Conference Editorial Board, Automatica (IFAC) and SIAM Journal on Control and Optimization. He is a member of the Organising Committee for the IEEE Conference on Decision and Control 2020.  Associate Professor Daoyi Dong is a member of the Board of Governors of the IEEE Systems, Man, and Cybernetics Society (SMCS).