Automatic Control with Interactive Tools

Automatic Control with Interactive Tools is a textbook for undergraduate study of automatic control. Providing a clear course structure, and covering concepts taught in engineering degrees, this book is an ideal companion to those studying or teaching automatic control. The authors have used this text successfully to teach their students.

By providing unique interactive tools, which have been designed to illustrate the most important automatic control concepts, Automatic Control with Interactive Tools helps students overcome the potential barriers presented by the significant mathematical content of automatic control courses. Even when they have previously had only the benefit of an introductory control course, the software tools presented will help readers to get to grips with the use of such techniques as differential equations, linear algebra, and differential geometry.

Professor José Luis Guzmán received Computer Science Engineering and European Ph.D. degrees from the University of Almería, in 2002 and 2006 respectively. He is now a Full Professor of Automatic Control and Systems Engineering at the same university. His current research interests include the fields of control education, MPC techniques, PID control, and robust control with applications to agricultural processes, solar plants, and biotechnology. Prof. Guzmán has been a member of the Spanish Association in Automatic Control CEA-IFAC since 2003, the IEEE Control System Society since 2006, and the IFAC Technical Committee on Control Education and the IEEE Technical Committee on System Identification and Adaptive Control since 2008. He received the Extraordinary Doctorate Award from the University of Almería and the Medal of Agustín de Betancourt y Molina by the Spanish Royal Academy of Engineering for his research trajectory.

Ramon Costa-Castelló obtained his Masters degree in Computer Science in 1993 from UPC; in 2001, he obtained a PhD degree in Computer Science from the Advanced Automation and Robotics program at UPC, where he is now a Professor in the Automatic Control department. His teaching activity is related with different aspects in automatic control. His research is mainly focused on analysis and development of energy management (automotive and stationary applications) and the development of digital control techniques. He is a member of CEA, member of IFAC (EDCOM, TC 9.4 Committee, Automotive Control T.C. 7.1) and senior member of IEEE.

Professor Manuel Berenguel received his degree in Industrial Engineering and his Ph.D. (Hons.) from the University of Seville, Spain, in 1992 and 1996, respectively. He is currently a Professor of Automatic Control and Systems Engineering and head of the R&D group "Automatic Control, Robotics and Mechatronics" with the University of Almería, Spain. His current research interests include predictive, hierarchical, and robust control, with applications to solar energy systems, agriculture, and biotechnology. He was a  member of the board of Governors of the Comité Español de Automática (main Spanish Association in Automatic Control) from 2003 to 2008 and 2012 to 2016, and has been a member of IEEE Control System Society since 2000 (Senior Member since 2014) and member of the IFAC Technical Committees TC 8.01 Control in Agriculture, TC 6.3. Power and Energy Systems and TC 8.4 Biosystems and Bioprocesses.

Professor Sebastián Dormido has received a B.S. degree in Physics from Complutense University of Madrid (1968), a Ph.D. in Physics from the University of the Basque Country (1971), an Honorary Doctorate degree from the University of Huelva (2007) and an Honorary Doctorate degree from the University of Almería (2014). In 1981, he was an appointed Professor of Control Engineering at the National Distance Education University (UNED), where he is now Professor Emeritus. He has authored or co-authored more than 350 technical papers in international journals and conferences and has supervised more than 40 Ph.D. theses. His scientific activities include computer control of industrial processes, model-based predictive control, hybrid control, and web-based laboratories for distance education. From 2001 to 2006, he was the President of the Spanish Association of Automatic Control, CEA-IFAC, from 2014 to 2017 Chair of the Control Education Technical Committee of IFAC and from 2015 to 2016 Chair of the Control Education Technical Committee of the IEEE CSS. He received the National Automatic Control Award from the IFAC Spanish Automatic Control Committee (2008) and the IFAC Control Education Lifetime Achievement Award (2019).