Emergence of modular structure in complex systems. Complex systems pervade our world, but are still poorly understood. Self-contained modules provide the most widespread and effective way of reducing and managing complexity, but the way they form in natural systems remains largely a mystery. This study investigates mechanisms that contribute to module formation in complex networks, including adaptation, clustering, enslavement, feedback, phase change and synchronisation. Outcomes will include in ....Emergence of modular structure in complex systems. Complex systems pervade our world, but are still poorly understood. Self-contained modules provide the most widespread and effective way of reducing and managing complexity, but the way they form in natural systems remains largely a mystery. This study investigates mechanisms that contribute to module formation in complex networks, including adaptation, clustering, enslavement, feedback, phase change and synchronisation. Outcomes will include insights into the organisation and functioning of many complex systems, including the Internet, ecological communities and genetic networks. Practical outcomes will include new modelling tools and applications both to evolutionary computation and the design and control of large information networks.Read moreRead less
Modelling, Identification and Control of Complex Networks. Australia has been well known for its leading research in systems and control and many real-world applications in, for instance, telecommunications, defence, power grids and life sciences. This project will further promote Australia's leading position in the emerging new research field - complex networks by theoretical breakthrough in modelling, identification and control of complex networks, and cutting-edge platform technology that can ....Modelling, Identification and Control of Complex Networks. Australia has been well known for its leading research in systems and control and many real-world applications in, for instance, telecommunications, defence, power grids and life sciences. This project will further promote Australia's leading position in the emerging new research field - complex networks by theoretical breakthrough in modelling, identification and control of complex networks, and cutting-edge platform technology that can help Australian energy industry to reduce greenhouse emissions. It will also result in education of the next generation research leaders in this emerging field.Read moreRead less
Control and safety monitoring systems for large scale irrigation networks. The water losses in irrigation channels in Australia are large, but they can be substantially reduced by employing advanced control and monitoring systems, leading to significant environmental benefits. Due to the large size of the irrigation networks, design of control and monitoring systems represents technical challenges for which there are currently no good methodologies. In this project we will develop design methodo ....Control and safety monitoring systems for large scale irrigation networks. The water losses in irrigation channels in Australia are large, but they can be substantially reduced by employing advanced control and monitoring systems, leading to significant environmental benefits. Due to the large size of the irrigation networks, design of control and monitoring systems represents technical challenges for which there are currently no good methodologies. In this project we will develop design methodologies, and in particular we will focus on issues relating to the communication constraints arising since data are transmitted over a radio network and the trade off between robustness and performance in centralised and decentralised designs.Read moreRead less
Dynamic Analysis and Control for Hybrid Systems and Networks. Hybrid systems are now accepted as the best way to model many high-tech situations in transport, energy management, networking, household and industrial automation. This project will develop the theoretical tools needed to ensure such systems operate stably and efficiently despite imperfections and outside disturbances.
Dynamical systems and iterative decoding of low-density parity-check codes. Modern telecommunication systems are increasingly built on principles of iteration and feedback. By contributing to the knowledge base of iterative telecommunication systems, this project addresses important fundamental problems in the area of telecommunications. The Federal Government has clearly indicated that it recognises the importance that information and communications technology (ICT) plays in the economic and so ....Dynamical systems and iterative decoding of low-density parity-check codes. Modern telecommunication systems are increasingly built on principles of iteration and feedback. By contributing to the knowledge base of iterative telecommunication systems, this project addresses important fundamental problems in the area of telecommunications. The Federal Government has clearly indicated that it recognises the importance that information and communications technology (ICT) plays in the economic and social fabric of Australia, through the recent Innovation Action Plan, Backing Australia's Ability. These technologies are key drivers of the information economy, the spawning of new businesses, the transformation of established industries, the opening up of new export markets, and the creation of new jobs.Read moreRead less
Smart coding for improved performance of complexity constrained devices. The technical innovations of this project have the potential to have an immediate impact on compression technology. The overall expected outcome of the project consists of new compression algorithms for the australian telecommunications industry. The novel outcomes of the project lead to better quality images in video mobile communications applications. As such, the project operates at the forefront of innovative next gener ....Smart coding for improved performance of complexity constrained devices. The technical innovations of this project have the potential to have an immediate impact on compression technology. The overall expected outcome of the project consists of new compression algorithms for the australian telecommunications industry. The novel outcomes of the project lead to better quality images in video mobile communications applications. As such, the project operates at the forefront of innovative next generation mobile video telephony.Read moreRead less
Coordination control of underactuated ocean vehicles for ocean forecasting. Australia is surrounded by oceans. Ocean forecasting is essential for effective and efficient operations on and within the ocean for a number of applications such as coastal zone management, military operations and scientific research. The successful completion of this project promises to put Australia in a leading position in this area. Due to the multi-disciplinary nature of this project, the project development will a ....Coordination control of underactuated ocean vehicles for ocean forecasting. Australia is surrounded by oceans. Ocean forecasting is essential for effective and efficient operations on and within the ocean for a number of applications such as coastal zone management, military operations and scientific research. The successful completion of this project promises to put Australia in a leading position in this area. Due to the multi-disciplinary nature of this project, the project development will also stimulate the development in many other areas such as new ocean vehicles, sensors and actuators, electronics and control.Read moreRead less
Fundamental Studies in System Identification. To operate a dynamic system such as a chemical process plant or an economy one needs two things; the equations describing the system; a way of regulating the system to provide desired outcomes. System identification provides the first; control engineering design provides the second. This proposal addresses three important problems in system identification and control. Firstly since the equations can never be known precisely we aim to determine what i ....Fundamental Studies in System Identification. To operate a dynamic system such as a chemical process plant or an economy one needs two things; the equations describing the system; a way of regulating the system to provide desired outcomes. System identification provides the first; control engineering design provides the second. This proposal addresses three important problems in system identification and control. Firstly since the equations can never be known precisely we aim to determine what is the best one can do? Secondly to provide then tight error bounds for the control design;
thirdly to develop new methods for some hitherto unresolved problems in system identification.Read moreRead less
Designing an Intelligent Process Operation Management System. The complexity and sophistication of current generation of industrial processes, and the growing need for autonomous agents that control physical systems, motivate the need for the development of an intelligent process operation management system. In this project, the innovative integration of theories from different scientific fields (computer systems, process engineering, systems and control engineering) provides an excellent platfo ....Designing an Intelligent Process Operation Management System. The complexity and sophistication of current generation of industrial processes, and the growing need for autonomous agents that control physical systems, motivate the need for the development of an intelligent process operation management system. In this project, the innovative integration of theories from different scientific fields (computer systems, process engineering, systems and control engineering) provides an excellent platform for development of a smart data management tool, to oversee the major operational tasks within the plant and help the operators and engineers to make more informed decisions. Direct application of the techniques developed in this study to a pilot case study, could be used as a benchmark to show the potential benefits that can be gained through smart information use and data management.Read moreRead less
Studying Discretisation Behaviours in Variable Structure Control Systems. Variable structure control is a technology that helps build very simple and effective switching control devices for dealing with environmental uncertainties, which are widely used, for example, in industrial control systems/processes. The outcomes from this research will help the understanding of control performance deterioration due to discretisation and developing effective measures for protection from possible ill beha ....Studying Discretisation Behaviours in Variable Structure Control Systems. Variable structure control is a technology that helps build very simple and effective switching control devices for dealing with environmental uncertainties, which are widely used, for example, in industrial control systems/processes. The outcomes from this research will help the understanding of control performance deterioration due to discretisation and developing effective measures for protection from possible ill behaviours of these control devices. This research will place Australia in the forefront of the development of this new technology, resulting in enhanced reliability of control devices, improved productivity and cost saving for industries, and consequent improvement in quality of life.Read moreRead less