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CSE hosts Early Career Workshop 2019

Aiming to provide opportunities for early career researchers in automation and control to establish international research linkages and promote their research, a two-day workshop was held during Nov 28-29, 2019 at Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China. College of Control and Science Engineering (CSE) of Zhejiang University, which is one of the leading “A+” institute in control and automation area in China, hosted this event.   This is the first workshop since Automation and Control Global Research Network is established in August 2019, which is a new collaboration between five of the leading research institutions in the field of automation and control, including: The University of Newcastle (UoN), Australia; Zhejiang University (ZJU), China; KTH Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Sweden; Nanyang Technolog ical University (NTU), Singapore; and The University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), USA. The objective of the global research network is to promote joint research activities among these universities through joint program, academic publication, conference and workshop and so on. This workshop is one of the activities fulfilling the above objective, which contains several conference style presentations for the first day, followed by some networking events and laboratory visits in the next day. The workshop starts with an opening remark addressed by Prof. CHEN Jiming who is one of the general chairs of this workshop. Speaking on the occasion, Prof. Chen said “This will be an excellent opportunity for the early career researchers to establish international research collaboration as well as to interact with local students here.” He is also very grateful for the great support from Prof. Andrew Fleming from UoN and all the other steering members, such as Prof. Lihua Xie from NTU, Prof. Andrew Teel from UCSB and Prof. Hakan Hjalmarsson from KTH. Following the opening remark, there are four sessions of talks throughout the first day as detailed below. In the first session, Dr. ZHAO Chengcheng gave a presentation on “Data Privacy-Preserving Consensus-Based Distributed Energy Management (DEM) in Smart Grids”, where the vulnerability of consensus-based DEM algorithm due to data disclosure is discussed and the strategies based on secret function (i.e., adding some vanishing noise), is used to enhance the security level of the strategy. A final year PhD student, Yipeng Pang from NTU, then spoke on “Gradient-Free Distributed Optimization”, where he talked about how to solve the distributed optimization problem when only the local measurement of the cost functions is available. He also mentioned that they have implemented their algorithms in HVAC systems for verification purpose. After this, Dr. Sindri Magnússon, from KTH, further presented a talk on “On the Convergence of Distributed Optimization under Limited Communication”, where he showed that a constant number of bits is sufficient for a general distributed algorithm to maintain the linear convergence rate. He also discussed about the specific tradeoff between the communication cost and the convergence performance for a class of distributed algorithms. In the second session, a PhD student, Nathan Bartlett from UoN, delivered a talk on “Extended Target Tracking with Random Matrices”, where he proposed a random matrix model and a corresponding closed-form solution to estimate the kinematics of a target such as position, velocity, and acceleration, as well as the shape, size, and orientation of the target body. He also talked about the potential extension of this method to multi-target tracking problems arising in mail delivery robotic systems. Then, another PhD student, Kun Cao from NTU, presented a work on “Relative Docking and Formation Control via Range and Odometry Measurements”, where he proposed a scheme to not only localize but navigate a robot to a desired docking position relative to a fixed landmark, whose position is unknown, based on merely range and odometry measurements. Besides, he also discussed about the potential application to multi-robot systems for formation control at both spatial and temporal dimensions. Dr. Dario Paccagnan from UCSB, then gave a presentation on “Control of Socio-technical Systems: Traffic Routing, Congestion Pricing, and Beyond”, where he proposed an effective and robust way to solve a class of congestion games so as to make efficient use of the existing technological infrastructure, such as transportation system and power networks, based on proper toll design leveraging only local information. He also showed that the optimal toll designed based on local information is surprisingly comparable with that based on full information. In the third session, Dr. WANG Mengzhi from ZJU, delivered a talk on “Stabilization of Perturbed Continuous-time Systems Using Event-triggered Model Predictive Control”, where he introduced two event-triggered control schemes for model predictive control of (EMPC) of continuous-time nonlinear systems with bounded disturbances. He showed that event-triggering conditions can be properly designed in order to balance the computation and communication cost and the inter-event time should be bounded below to avoid the zeno behavior. He also provided the conditions of recursive feasibility for the proposed triggering strategies in terms of the prediction horizon, the triggering level and the disturbance bound. Dr. Keith Paarporn from UCSB, then spoke on the topic of “Risk-Security Tradeoffs in Networked Systems”, where he discussed the mitigation strategies for a distributed networked system against adversarial attacks. He also characterizes the level of vulnerability of the system to the attacks and the operator's fundamental trade-off between security against worst-case broad attacks and vulnerability from focused attacks. Besides, he highlighted the design challenges a system operator may face in maintaining resilience of networked distributed systems.After this, Prof. Uday Tupakul from UoN, delivered a brief lecture on “SDN-based Security for Critical Information Infrastructures”, where he first gave an overview of cyber security research at Advanced Cyber Security Engineering Research Centre (ACSRC), The University of Newcastle, Australia, and presented some opportunities at ACSRC for further collaboration. He then briefly discussed his current research work which makes use of Software Defined Networking for securing Critical Information Infrastructures, aiming to enable secure and dependable computing information systems and services.In the final session, Dr. Michael Ruppert from UoN, presented a talk on “Design and Control of Microelectromechanical Systems”, where he discussed new advances in integrating actuation and sensing at chip level onto the micro-cantilever, a key component in a variety of instruments for manipulation and interrogation at nanoscale (e.g., atomic force microscopes), so as to improve the dynamics and control performance of the micro-cantilever especially when interacting with nonlinear forces arising at the micro- and nano-scale. He also demonstrated the ability to control the quality factor in order to manipulate the cantilever tracking bandwidth and tip-sample dissipation. Dr. Mohamed Rasheed Hilmy Abdalmoaty from KTH, then spoke on the topic of “System Identification of Stochastic Nonlinear Models Using Estimating Functions”, where he introduced a prediction error method based on suboptimal predictors for system identification of stochastic nonlinear models. He said the proposed method is relatively simple compared to estimators based on sequential Monte Carlo smoothing algorithms as it does not compute the likelihood function. He also described a more general identification framework to systematically construct optimal estimators based on the estimating functions approach. Finally, Dr. Riccardo Sven Risuleo from KTH, delivered a talk on “Bayesian approaches in learning dynamical systems”, where he introduced a universal modeling tool based on Gaussian-process model for complex structured systems that can be modeled as static nonlinear blocks and linear dynamical blocks. He also showcased the approach on a blind problem of occupancy estimation from CO2 data with tractable approximate inference leveraging Markov Chain Monte Carlo approach and the expectation-maximization method.After a fruitful presentation day, the next day mainly covers some networking events and laboratory visits. Prof. CHENG Peng, the other chair of this workshop, first delivered a lecture introducing Zhejiang University, College of Control and Science Engineering as well as the Networked Sensing and Control Group led by Prof. CHEN Jiming. Then, it is followed by a bunch of laboratory visits prescheduled to allow attendees have a concrete view of the research here in a form of demonstration and report, which include unmanned systems lab, industrial control security lab as well as the network sensing lab.In summary, the workshop was basically designed to bring the early career researchers from automation and control area on a single platform and share their research experiences and also career plans, promoting research collaboration. The workshop attracts around 80 researchers (including faculties and students) for participation from the control and automation area. The workshop was organized jointly by Zhejiang University, Faculty of Information Technology, College of Control Science and Engineering, State Key Laboratory of Industrial Control Technology, and Networked Sensing and Control Group. It was, again, an excellent opportunity for all attendees to establish international research linkages, promote their research as well as seek potential collaboration and, of course, enjoy one of the most beautiful city in China.Finally, the organizers would like to thank all the attendees for making this workshop successful and wish all of them a promising career future!

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Prof. CHEN Jiming invited as Associate Editor of two IEEE transactions

Recently, Professor CHEN Jiming was invited as an Associate Editor to serve two major international publications in network study -- IEEE Transactions on Network Science and Engineering, and IEEE Transactions on Cognitive Communications and Networking.CHEN Jiming also served as an editorial borad member for multiple IEEE publications including IEEE Transactions on Control of Network Systems (2013-2016), IEEE Networks (2012-2015), IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics (2011-2015) , etc. In 2018, he was elevated as an IEEE Fellow for his contributions to "resource allocation and optimization in wireless sensor networks".IEEE Transactions on Network Science and Engineering:https://www.comsoc.org/publications/journals/ieee-tnseIEEE Transactions on Cognitive Communications and Networking:https://www.comsoc.org/publications/journals/ieee-tccnReporter: REN TongEditor: WANG Jing

Prof. HE Shibo's Group published an article about multilayer networks in PNAS

Recently, Professor HE Shibo’s research group published an article about multilayer networks in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS): A tensor-based framework for studying eigenvector multicentrality in multilayer networks.WU Mincheng, the first author, is a doctoral student at Zhejiang University. The research is led by the ZJU State Key Lab of Industrial Control Technology, jointly completed by Princeton University and other international research institutions.  Abstract:Centrality is widely recognized as one of the most critical measures to provide insight into the structure and function of complex networks. While various centrality measures have been proposed for single-layer networks, a general framework for studying centrality in multilayer networks (i.e., multicentrality) is still lacking. In this study, a tensor-based framework is introduced to study eigenvector multicentrality, which enables the quantification of the impact of interlayer influence on multicentrality, providing a systematic way to describe how multicentrality propagates across different layers. This framework can leverage prior knowledge about the interplay among layers to better characterize multicentrality for varying scenarios. Two interesting cases are presented to illustrate how to model multilayer influence by choosing appropriate functions of interlayer influence and design algorithms to calculate eigenvector multicentrality. This framework is applied to analyze several empirical multilayer networks, and the results corroborate that it can quantify the influence among layers and multicentrality of nodes effectively.To Read the Full Article: A tensor-based framework for studying eigenvector multicentrality in multilayer networksReporter: REN TongEditor: WANG Jing

ZJU Cost-Effective Crowdsensing System for detecting and localizing drones reported by IEEE Spectrum

    Led by Professor SHI Zhiguo and Professor CHEN Jiming of  IT Faculty, the Anti-aerial-robotics Team of Networked Sensing and Control Group of Zhejiang University proposed an intriguing way to track unfamiliar drones through crowdsensing. Recently, it was published in IEEE Transactions on Mobile Computing and reported by IEEE Spectrum.Tracking drones would be especially helpful in situations where the devices were being used for ill-intentioned purposes, such as for peeping in at someone or to transport illegal substances. Traditional approaches of detecting drones, especially in urban environments however, are of huge cost."The team sought to find a cheaper method. They realized that most drones use Wi-Fi technology to communicate with ground control stations. At the same time, virtually all smartphones can detect Wi-Fi signals and phones are abundant, especially in urban settings," as IEEE Spectrum reported.YANG Guang, the first author, is a doctoral student at Zhejiang University. The research is funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, the Research Service of Zhejiang University and the State Key Laboratory of Industrial Control Technology. IEEE Spectrum Report：https://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-talk/robotics/drones/harnessing-the-publics-smartphones-to-track-dronesFull Artical in IEEE Transactions on Mobile Computing:https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/8734002Reporter: REN Tong

Again in RoboCup 2019! ZJU won world championship of Small Size League & runner-up of Humanoid League Kid-size!

At 14:30 on July 7, 2019, local time in Australia, under the direction of  Professor XIONG Rong from College of Control Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University's team ZJUNlict defended the Championship in the 2019 RoboCup Small-Size Soccer League Division A Soccer Competition by defeating Germany's Er Force Team 1-0, and ZJUDancer won the Runner-up of Humanoid League Kid-Size Soccer Competition. Champion Award Ceremony of Small-Size Soccer League Division A Soccer Competition for ZJUNlictThe Runner-up Award Ceremony of Humanoid League Kid-Size Soccer Competition For ZJUDancerLive SceneScore BoardReported by: YU HongxiangEditor: WANG Jing

We are with you -- the State Key Laboratory of Industrial Control and Technology opened to public

Adhering to the concept of integrating science and education, the State Key Laboratory of Industrial Control and Technology held its annual public open day on May 19th, 2019. It was offered free of charge to the entire society, since the key is to spread ideas and promote public awareness of science and technology. Videos, models, prototypes and real robots were brought to the scene by CSE researchers, and they were introduced in a plain and vivid way to make the public of all ages accessible to technological innovation.The day was divided into two sessions by the lunch break. The morning section included themes of Aerial Robots, Bicycle Elfectronic Fences, Mobile Phone Indoor Navigation, as well as Nature and Robots. In the afternoon, the piano robots and painting robots created a different art experience for the guests.The research of aerial robot mainly focuses on the control navigation and image processing technology. This team realizes the autonomous navigation and landing of the drone. By installing the four-rotor to the drone, they make vertical take-off and landing come true. Taking off vertically, the drone will then switch to the normal horizontal flight mode, and the computer carried by the drone will plan a path for flying. Later when the mission is completed, the drone will look for the landing field with QR code using a camera, and then switch back to the vertical mode for descending.When it comes to bionic robots, Dr. REN Qinyuan opened the gate of his robotic zoo by animals like squid, snake and spider. Traditional bionic robots have relatively weak perception and adaptability of environment, as Dr. Ren introduced, but we can learn from real animals. By designing artificial mechanical systems that are similar to biological systems, researchers use controlled algorithms to transfer the ability of animals to artificial machinery. Take the mechanical snake as an example, it could quickly advance according to the specified route and avoid obstacles at the same time. As for the mechanical fish that could swim steadily in water, building a high-speed camera system to capture the movement of real koi fish by three-dimensional reconstruction is essential. He also showed the environmentally-adaptive hexapod mechanical spider made by his team.Dr. Ren asked if anyone wanted to try it out for himself, and with the voice many young viewers highly raised their hands one after another.With special gloves, the viewers were able to control the movement of the spider. It seems that Iron Man is not far away from us, isn’t it?!In the afternoon, piano-performing robot and painting robot made CSE more of an amusement park. The piano robot performed with two fingers actuated by robotic arms, which were controlled to perform the musical composition by parsing the musical score into a series of key sequences.On the other side, as soon as the viewers complete their works on a tablet, the painting robot would drive a pen to reproduce the painting, attracting many viewers to line up for a try.In addition, 5G communication, the cutting-edge technology at the moment, participated in the show. 5G communication is characterized by broad bandwidth and fast speed, which makes the realization of remote driving possible. Usually the real-time requirement for driving is extremely high, and half a second in promotion of reaction time may avoid a traffic accident. Remote driving vehicles are often cursed by safety problems due to excessive control delay, however, the emergence of 5G brings the dawn of long-distance driving.Under the instruction, children were driving a car 10-km away on a square.According to the host, the day attracted more than 600 groups of applicants to sign up in merely two days after the notice was released. Besides ZJU faculty, employees of sci-tech enterprises like Supcon and Insigma also actively bring their children to visit and learn. “Indeed, it reflects the charm of the interdisciplinary study”, a professor of the ZJU Ocean College came here all the way with his children and said he himself got inspired a lot. For instance, the aerial robot may be applied in multiple ways to protect marine resources, and one of them is inspection during the forbidden fishing period. The CSE college was founded in 1956. For more than 60 years, CSE people have built a history of excellence in education and discovery, and the college is now one of the most prestigious research and education bases in the area of industrial process control in China. By the open-day event, it hopes to motivate the young generation and inspire the public to know the charm of science and technology. “Green comes from blue, but it excels blue.” Like the old Chinese saying goes, it looks forward to more sci-tech explorers to join. Reporter: YU Hongxiang, WANG ZhichengEditor: WANG Jing