Keynote Speakers

Prof. Hong Wang, Fellows of IEEE, IET, InstMC, and AAIA
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, USA

Hong Wang (Fellows of IEEE, IET, InstMC, and AAIA received the master’s and Ph.D. degrees from the Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China, in 1984 and 1987, respectively. He was a Research Fellow with Salford University, Salford, U.K., Brunel University, Uxbridge, U.K., and Southampton University, Southampton, U.K., before joining the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UMIST), Manchester, U.K., in 1992. He was a Chair Professor in process control of complex industrial systems with the University of Manchester, U.K., from 2002 to 2016, where he was the Deputy Head of the Paper Science Department, the Director of the UMIST Control Systems Centre from 2004 to 2007, which is the birthplace of Modern Control Theory established in 1966. He was a University Senate member and a member of general assembly during his time in Manchester. From 2016 to 2018, he was with the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA, USA, as a Laboratory Fellow and Chief Scientist, and was the Co-Leader and the Chief Scientist for the Control of Complex Systems Initiative. He joined the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in January 2019 as a senior distinguished scientist at corporate fellow grade, US Department of Energy. He originated the stochastic distribution control theory to control the shape of the probability density functions for generic stochastic systems in 1996, and his research focuses on stochastic control, fault diagnosis and tolerant control, and intelligent controls with applications to several engineering practices including transportation system area, and has published more than 200 journal papers and 6 books together with numerous awards. He is an Associate Editor of IEEE Transactions on Neural Networks and Learning Systems, and was an Associate Editor of the IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, the IEEE Transactions on Control Systems Technology, and the IEEE Transactions on Automation Science and Engineering. He is also a member for three Technical Committees of International Federation of Automatic Control (IFAC).
 

Prof. Teresa Zielinska
Warsaw University of Technology, Poland

Full professor in technical sciences, deputy-director of the Institute of Aeronautics and Applied Mechanics of Warsaw University of Technology (WUT). She graduated from the Faculty of Electronics and Information Technology of WUT (M.Sc.), received Ph.D. from the Faculty of Power and Aeronautical Engineering of WUT and habilitation from the Institute of Biocybernetics and Biomedical Engineering of the Polish Academy of Sciences. She is employed by WUT and is a member of the Committee of Automatic Control and Robotics of the Polish Academy of Sciences, vice-chair of the Polish IEEE Robotics and Automation Section (2016-2019) and Secretary General of International Federation for the Promotion of Mechanism and Machine Science (IFToMM) (2011-2019) .

 

 

Invited Speakers

 

Prof. Qinggang Meng, Loughborough University, UK

Qinggang Meng is a Professor in Robotics and AI at the Department of Computer Science, Loughborough University, UK. His research spans both the theoretical aspects of AI and robotics and their practical applications in addressing real-world problems across various domains, including agriculture, driverless vehicles, service robotics, underwater robotics and net zero. He has successfully secured numerous grants for interdisciplinary research through collaborations with a diverse network of academics and industry partners. Additionally, he contributes to the academic community through various roles, including serving as an Associate Editor for the IEEE Transactions on Cybernetics and ICRA.

 

Prof. Benoit Clement, Ensta Bretagne, France

Prof. Benoit Clement is a full professor at ENSTA Bretagne, France, while also serving as an Adjunct Professor at Flinders University. he currently spearheads the Information Science and Technology Department at ENSTA Bretagne, following his tenure as Deputy Head of the renowned Lab-STICC (CNRS UMR 6285) and his leadership of the Ocean Sensing and Mapping Department at ENSTA Bretagne. Presently situated in Adelaide, South Australia, Prof. Clement occupies the role of CNRS Researcher at CROSSING IRL CNRS 2010, where he engages in collaborative research endeavors with CNRS, Naval Group, Flinders University, University of Adelaide, and University of South Australia. His expertise and contributions extend beyond academia by his membership in IFAC technical committees on Robust Control and Marine Systems. Prof. Clement's academic journey is characterised by a commitment to excellence and scholarly inquiry. He earned his Master of Science degrees in Automatic Control and Signal Processing from University Paris-Saclay and in Automatic Control and Systems from CentraleSupelec in 1998. Subsequently, he pursued his Ph.D. at CentraleSupelec, awarded of a Ph.D. degree in Physics from the University Paris-Saclay in 2001. In 2015, he furthered his academic credentials with the attainment of the “Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches” (HDR) degree in Automatic Control from the University of Brest. Currently, Prof. Clement's research endeavors focus on the integration of artificial intelligence with traditional approaches in maritime robotics Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GNC) algorithms. This research is supported by the French Defence Agency, the French Research Agency (CNRS), and collaborative efforts with industrial partners. Prof. Clement's dedication to advancing knowledge and innovation underscores his significant contributions to the field of control systems and maritime robotics.

 

Prof. Manuel F. Silva, Polytechnic of Porto, Portugal

M. F. Silva was born in April 11, 1970. He graduated, received the MSc. and the PhD. degrees in electrical and computer engineering from the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto, Portugal, in 1993, 1997 and 2005, respectively. Presently he is Coordinator Professor at the Institute of Engineering of the Polytechnic Institute of Porto, Department of Electrical Engineering, and Senior Researcher at the Centre for Robotics in Industry and Intelligent Systems of INESC TEC. He is the author or more than 150 publications in international journals and conferences and has been involved in several R&D projects. He has also been actively involved in the organization of several international conferences, belongs to the CLAWAR Association Management Team and was President of the Portuguese Robotics Society. His research focuses on modelling, simulation, robotics, biological inspired robots, control and education in robotics and control.