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The Control Systems Specialty Area

Summary
Control systems are electronic circuitry that precisely and robustly control machines, equipment, and even entire industrial plants.  The following are some typical applications of control systems.

1. Airplane Autopilots - An airplane autopilot controls the plane's control surfaces to keep the plane flying steadily.  Control systems may one day automatically land airplanes.  Unmanned drones are controlled mainly by automatic control systems.
2. Stability Control in Automobiles - Stability control circuitry controls the brakes on all four wheels of a car in such a way that the car is prevented from spinning out of control on sharp curves and turns.  It uses single wheel braking to help the car go where the driver wants it to go without spinning out of control.
3. Image Stabilization - Image stabilization in a video camera controls the motion of a tiny mirror in the camera so that it compensates for jitter in the hands holding the camera.  Image stabilization in a camera looking down on a football game from a blimp compensates for the motion of the blimp in the wind.
4. Autofocusing of Cameras - The autofocus circuitry in a camera controls the motion of the lense to bring the image into sharp focus.
5. Position Control in robotics & other Industrial Equipment - The positions of tools and grippers in industrial equipment must often be precisely controlled.
6. Chemical Plants - Automatic control systems control such variables as temperature & flow rate in chemical plants to achive optimum performance.

Control Systems Research at the Univerrsity of Arkansas
The following Electrical Engineering faculty are doing control systems research.  Details on their research and their labs can be seen by clicking on their names.

1. Juan Balda does research in power systems and motion control.
2. Roy McCann's main research focus is control systems.  His research interests include decentralized and embedded control systems, sensor networks, transportation systems and automotive electronics, electric machine controls, and power electronic drives.

Courses for the Control Systems Specialty Area
Recommended Undergraduate  Elective Courses
MATH 3083  Linear Algebra
ELEG 4403  Control Systems
ELEG 4463L  Control Systems Lab
ELEG 5653  Artificial Neural Networks

Additional Graduate & Undergraduate Courses
ELEG 5113  Stochastic Digital Signal Processing System Design
ELEG 5153  Real-Time Data Acquisition Systems
ELEG 5413  Stochastic Control Systems
ELEG 5423  Optimal Control Systems
ELEG 5433  Digital Control Systems
ELEG 5443  Nonlinear Analysis and Control
ELEG 5453  Adaptive Filtering and Control
ELEG 5473  Intelligent Transportation Systems