Course leader: Constantin Florin CARUNTU

Home Institution: Gheorghe Asachi Technical University of Iasi, Romania

Course Overview
The concept of Cyber-Physical-Systems (CPSs) appeared in the last decade due to the evolution of computer science and technology, automation and communications, global networks, together with the architectures of embedded systems in interaction with physical processes. Unlike conventional systems, which preserve the identity of each of the components, the CPS includes a process of incorporating them, ensuring new capabilities such as superior operational safety, lower costs, increased efficiency and interconnection capabilities in complex structures. CPSs, as systems with a high innovative potential, have applicability in all fields of human activity from autonomous vehicles to integrated transport systems, buildings, cities, enterprises and intelligent transport systems, smart grids, telemedicine and healthcare, in the business sector, in the economy of ecosystems, etc. They are collaborative, adaptable and characterized by interoperability on all levels of abstraction (technical, architectural and functional).
The essential factors that contribute to the development and expansion of CPSs in different fields of activity are:
• Embedded intelligent systems, mobile services and ubiquitous computing. Localized services and support functions already existing in many areas such as the automotive and aeronautical industries, telecommunications, automation and manufacturing will be expanded by increasing interactions, making cooperation through mobility services more versatile and complex;
• Internet-based business processes, in which “smart” and interconnected objects adapt flexibly to software-controlled business processes. Thus, embedded systems can be used as services via the Internet, which facilitates several web-based business models;
• Social and communication networks (web 2.0) that can access significant amounts of data, information and knowledge; these facilitate the development of groups of creators and developers of integrated, complex systems, with wide applicability in a knowledge-based economy.
The innovative potential of the CPS, based on the three essential factors, will lead to rapid changes in markets, in the industrial and business sectors, as well as changes in business models in the ecosystem economy. CPSs integrate sensors, actuators, physical processes (mechanical, hydraulic, thermal, electrical and others), electronic devices and software to such an extent that ICT, software engineering and manufacturing engineering allow the realization of highly interconnected systems with real emerging capabilities. The deeply interdisciplinary character, the cooperation within some communication networks and clusters dedicated to innovation supposes the comprehensive engineering of the systems through the corporate administration of the strategies and platforms of cooperation within an economic ecosystem.
CPS evolve by interconnecting existing infrastructures with information technology, embedded with the help of the Internet, mobile communications services and "cloud" solutions. The performance and complexity of the CPS are easy to highlight when interconnecting two or more domains. It should be noted that the user and open systems interact in an ad-hoc manner, which is a real challenge for the design of these systems.
The course serves as an introductory class for students interested in CPSs in general, and control and optimization of CPSs in specific. The fundamentals of CPSs are covered in the class, with emphasis on the control and the optimization aspects. Covered CPSs topics include: networked/distributed control systems, linear systems theory and design, state-estimators, and convex, multi-objective optimization. Various applications are discussed.
Learning Outcomes
At the end of the course, students are expected to have a good understanding of the basic principles governing CPSs’ operation and a reasonable depth related to a specific CPSs topic that relates to their projects.
Students who successfully complete this course will be able to:
✓ understand the basic principles behind the CPSs;
✓ develop models for CPSs;
✓ understand the semantics of a CPS model;
✓ reason rigorously about CPS models;
✓ check the CPS models at the appropriate scale;
✓ design specific controllers;
✓ identify the safety specifications and critical properties of the CPSs;
✓ understand abstraction and system architectures;
✓ learn how to design invariant systems;
✓ develop an intuition for operational effects.
Course Content
1. Introduction to cyber-physical systems
2. Hardware platforms
2.1. Processors (for implementing the designed controllers)
2.2. Sensors
2.3. Actuators
3. Communication networks
3.1. CAN
3.2. Ethernet
3.3. Wireless
4. Basic concepts of modeling physical systems
4.1. Continuous-time systems
4.2. Discrete-time systems
4.3. Finite state machines
4.4. Hybrid systems
5. Types of control structures
5.1. Networked control systems
5.2. Distributed control systems
5.3. Multi-agent systems
6. Wireless sensor networks
7. Control design techniques
7.1. Optimal control
7.2. Predictive control
8. Qualitative analysis
8.1. Stability
8.2. Robustness
8.3. Performance evaluation
9. Applications of cyber-physical systems and case studies:
9.1. Intelligent multi-modal transport
9.2. Production and distribution of electricity
9.3. Building automation
9.4. Smart cities/factories/agriculture
9.5. Medical systems
Instructional Method
The instructor will teach the topics of each chapter emphasizing how they related to the learning objectives. Lectures will have a presentation of topics by instructor, examples solution and active participation of students to those examples and discussion of the results.
At the end of each chapter, questions and problems will be assigned as homework. Computer software solution of those problems is a must. Some of the assigned problems especially those that need more time might be given as term projects too. Solutions of homework and term projects will be presented in a report format as well as a PowerPoint version.
One project per team (3-4 students) will be selected during the first lecture. The followings are expected from the project teams:
• Presentation of the selected real-world problems;
• Analysis of given data and information for the selected problems;
• Development of the model for the problem;
• Solving the problem using the model and interpreting the results;
• A report is expected for each project;
• Presentation is necessary using PowerPoint.
Required Course Materials
No textbook is required for the class. Lecture notes will be provided as handouts or presentation slides. However, students may need to refer to books on linear and nonlinear systems theory, optimization, cyber-physical systems, and networked control and estimation.
In what follows is a list of textbooks that might be useful for students interested in control and optimization of CPSs:
[1] Lee E.A. and S.A. Seshia (2017) Introduction to embedded systems: A cyber-physical systems approach. MIT Press.
[2] Alur R. (2015) Principles of Cyber-Physical Systems. MIT Press.
[3] Wolf M. (2014) High-Performance Embedded Computing: Applications in Cyber-Physical Systems and Mobile Computing. Elsevier.
[4] Hespanha J.P. (2009) Linear systems theory. Princeton University Press.
[5] Astrom K.J. and B. Wittenmark (2011) Computer-controlled systems: theory and design. 3rd Edition, Courier Corporation.
[6] Franklin G.F., J.D. Powell, and M.L. Workman (1998) Digital control of dynamic systems. 3rd Edition, Addison-Wesley.
[7] Wang F.Y. and D. Liu (2008) Networked Control Systems, Theory and Applications, Springer-Verlag.
[8] Boyd S. and L. Vandenberghe (2004) Convex Optimization, Cambridge University Press.
MATLAB and Simulink will be required for homework assignments and course projects.
Assessment
• Homework assignments and quizzes (20%)
• FInal Exam (30%)
• Project (40%) — divided as follows: initial proposal (20%), progress report (20%), final presentation (20%), final report (40%)
• Attendance and instructor evaluation (10%)