Prof. Chenglong Fu

Southern University of Science and Technology, China

Biography: Prof. Chenglong Fu obtained his B.S. from the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Tongji University in 2002 and Ph.D. from the Department of Precision Instruments and Mechanology, Tsinghua University, in 2007. His research interests include dynamic walking, biped and humanoid robots, powered prosthesis, exoskeletons and SuperLimbs. He is the principal investigator of more than 30 research projects. He has published more than 140 papers and holds more than 30 granted patents.  He is an Associate Editor of Robotica (Cambridge University Press, Est. 1983) and workshop co-chair of IEEE-RAS Humanoids 2018-2020; co-organizer in IROS 2019 Workshop (Supernumerary Robotic Limbs); Local Chair, Special Session Chair, and Organizing Chair of IEEE ARM 2020-2023, Associate Editor of IROS 2021-2023; Publicity Committee Co-Chair of ICRA 2021 and Associate Editor of ICRA 2022. He received the Best Student Paper Award Finalist from 2019 IEEE Int. Conf. on Advanced Robotics and its Social Impacts, the Best Student Paper Award from 2020 IEEE Int. Conf. on Advanced Robotics and Mechatronics, the Best Conference Paper Finalist from 2021 IEEE Int. Conf. on Advanced Robotics and Mechatronics, and the Best Paper Award Finalist form 2021 IEEE Int. Conf. on Mechatronics and Machine Vision in Practice. He obtained 2022 First Prize of Shenzhen Science and Technology Progress Award, and 2022 Second prize of Science and Technology Progress Award of Chinese Association of Automation.

Speech Title: Wearable Centaur Robot for Load Carriage
Abstract: Existing wearable load-assistive robots typically enhance human capabilities by providing joint assistance or support forces but fail to expand the number of degrees of freedom (DoFs) or break through the bipedal load-carriage form of the human, resulting in inadequate human-robot coordination and inefficient metabolic performance. Our group recently presents an innovative human augmentation robot, the Centaur robot, that redefines the human-robot load-carriage paradigm by transitioning from bipedal to quadrupedal. The Centaur robot comprises two independent three-DoF robotic legs and a robotic torso, coupled with the human via a softening elastic mechanism, forming a human-Centaur quadruped system. This configuration optimizes vertical load distribution and provides horizontal forward interaction force at the center of mass during load-carriage walking. A compliant interaction model established through the elastic mechanism enables compliant decoupling and dynamics modeling of the human-Centaur system. To achieve coordinated locomotion and interaction force control, a novel loco-interaction control strategy is proposed. To further enhance the traversability to varying terrains, a terrain-adaptive swing leg controller is developed to generate a terrain-specific swing trajectory. Experimental evaluation results demonstrate that the Centaur robot effectively adapts to varying human walking directions and speeds while seamlessly collaborating with the human to traverse diverse terrains. In the load-carriage experiment, the Centaur robot achieved a load-sharing ratio of 52.22% ±15.52% and reduced the metabolic cost by 35.16% ±4.95% compared to a regular backpack when carrying a load of 20 kg, equivalent to 30% of the participants’ average body weight.

Prof. Dan Zhang

Zhejiang University of Technology, China

Biography: Dan Zhang received the B.E. degree in automation and the Ph.D. degree in Control Theory and Control Engineering from the Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou, China, in 2007 and 2013, respectively. He was a Research Fellow with Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, from 2013 to 2014, the National University of Singapore, Singapore, from 2016 to 2017, and the City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, from 2017 to 2019. He is now a full professor at the Department of Automation, Zhejiang University of Technology. Dr. Zhang’s current research interests are in the areas of industrial cyber-physical systems, cooperative control of multi-agent systems, artificial intelligence and fault diagnosis. Dr. Zhang serves as an Associate Editor of ISA Transactions, International Journal of Control, Automation, and Systems, International Journal of Uncertainty, Fuzziness and Knowledge-Based Systems, and Cyber-Physical Systems.

Speech Title: Secure Cooperative Control of Multi-Agent Systems in Complex Network Environments

Abstract: With the advancement of technologies such as artificial intelligence, distributed systems, and network communication, as well as significant improvements in onboard hardware, cooperative control of unmanned systems has received widespread attention from international scholars. As the cluster size expands, issues such as network communication resource constraints and complex cyber attacks become increasingly prominent. How to achieve efficient collaborative control of unmanned systems has become a hot research topic in the field of control society. This report will introduce some research achievements made by the research group in recent times, including the design of new event triggering mechanisms, modeling of complex cyber attacks, and finite-time secure control.

Prof. Xingjian JING

City University of Hong Kong

Biography: Prof. JING received his B.S. degree from Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China, M.S. degree and PhD degree in Robotics from Shenyang Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, China, respectively. Thereafter, he received a PhD degree in nonlinear systems and signal processing from the Department of Automatic Control and Systems Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, U.K. His current research interests are generally related to Nonlinear Dynamics, Vibration, and Control focusing on theory and methods for employing nonlinear benefits in engineering, including nonlinear frequency domain methods, nonlinear system identification or signal processing, vibration control, robust control, sensor technology, energy harvesting, nonlinear fault diagnosis or information processing, bio-inspired systems and methods, bio-inspired robotics and control etc.

Speech Title: Underwater Robots with Tunable Bi-stabile Propulsion
Abstract: High maneuverability and energy efficiency are essential for underwater robots in engineering applications. Aquatic species, through natural evolution, exhibit agile and efficient swimming capabilities that can be harnessed to enhance robotic swimmers. A key challenge in this domain is the design and control of an effective propulsion system. This study introduces a novel, high-ly flexible, and controllable bistable nonlinear mechanism, referred to as a "fishtail." This mechanism integrates an elastic spine with a lightweight parallel linkage system. By actively controlling the endpoint of the elastic spine, the compliant tail achieves exceptional controlla-bility and tunable bi-stability, resulting in a highly efficient and precisely controlled bistable elastic propulsion system. Experimental results indicate that this new bistable fishtail can at-tain a speed of up to 0.8 m/s, with a cost of transport as low as 9 J/m/kg, and an average turning speed of up to 107°/s with a turning radius of just 0.31 body lengths. This study offers a viable and efficient approach to designing nonlinear compliant propulsion systems for underwater ve-hicles by leveraging nonlinear dynamics.

Prof. Hengyun Zhang

Shanghai University of Engineering Science, China

Biography: Dr. Hengyun Zhang is a Professor of Shanghai University of Engineering Science, Adjunct Professor of Wuhan University of Technology, Senior Member of IEEE, Senior Member of China Automotive Society, Vice Chairman of ICEMAT2023 International Conference Organizing Committee, and Member of Thermal Management Committee of China Electronics Standards Commission. He obtained PhD from Nanyang Technological University and worked at Singapore Institute of Microelectronics and Advanced Micro Devices before joining the university. He has led and mainly participated in 4 National Natural Science Foundation projects, 4 provincial and ministerial level projects, and more than a dozen of industrial research and development projects. His main research interests include measurements of thermal and electrical control and characterization for automotive power batteries and thermal management technologies. He published over 150 papers, with more than 40 papers ranked in Tier one journals, and one national key book. He has been granted more than a dozen of invention patents, and won the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Award from the China Invention Association. He has been elected as one of Top 2% Scientists in the world and one of the Highly Cited Scholar in China.

Speech Title: Thermal Characterization of Lithium-Ion Batteries: Measurement Control and Thermal Management Methods with Heat Spreader and Heat Pipe Structure

Abstract: As the major power source and energy storage components of new energy vehicles, lithium-ion batteries have been developed rapidly in recent years. However, their operational performance and safety states are greatly affected by temperature. With the gradual growth of power battery capacity and energy density, the problem of battery temperature control and thermal safety has become increasingly prominent, which is also affected by factors such as thermal parameters and heat generation under varying conditions and their experimental characterization. However, thermal characterization of realistic thermal parameters and heat generation characteristics of the battery is confronted with the unsynchronized temperature of the battery cells.  In this report, the calibration calorimetry is introduced to overcome the unsynchronized temperature profile in the battery to obtain accurate thermal parameters such as specific heat and heat generation. The advantages of the proposed methods such as good accuracy and easy implementation will be examined and discussed. Based on the measured parameters, a new thermal management structure is proposed to integrate the heat spreading structure with heat pipes for thermal control of the battery module at high C-rates. The design, fabrication and performance of the thermal management structure will be presented and discussed in detail.