Brian Paden

Teaching undergraduate control systems course; Doctoral research related to autonomy, motion planning, and optimal control.

My role during this Summer internship was to design, integrate, and test the trajectory tracking control system for an autonomous vehicle prototype.

My role during this Summer internship was to develop prototype control software for autonomous helicopter landings.

My role was to lead the design, fabrication, and testing of an electro-mechanical engine valve actuation system.

My PhD studies have been focused on robotics, control theory, and optimization. In contrast to my prior studies in control I have become more interested in higher level decision making and autonomy. My dissertation research has been focused on search-based methods for real-time global trajectory optimization.

My studies focused on dynamical systems and nonlinear phenomena together along with classical control theory (linear systems theory, model reduction techniques, robust control, etc.). My thesis research was focused on the optimal codesign of an electromechanical system and its controller.

My undergraduate studies focused on classical mechanical engineering (solid/fluid/classical mechanics, heat transfer, vibrations, control of mechanical systems, etc.). Elective courses included a two courses in partial differential equations, one course in ordinary differential equations, and one course in nonlinear phenomena. My capstone project was the design and fabrication of an atmospheric dispersion corrector.