Robert R. Bitmead

Distinguished Professor Emeritus

Mechanical & Aersopace Engineering

University of California San Diego

rbitmead@ucsd.edu

+1-858-822-3477

Education

PhD, Electrical Engineering, University of Newcastle, Australia, 1980

Convergence properties of discrete-time stochastic estimation algorithms

ME, Electrical Engineering, University of Newcastle, Australia, 1977

Matrix tranfer function descriptions of linear systems

BSc (Hons I), Applied Mathematics, Sydney University, Australia, 1976

Problems concerning stability in a sector for deterministic control systems: the problems of Lur'e and Aizerman

Contact Me

+1 858 822 3477

Bob is currently in Germany

rbitmead@ucsd.edu

University of California, San Diego

MAE Department MS-0411

Jacobs Hall, Room 1609

9500 Gilman Drive

La Jolla CA 92093-0411

USA

Bob at IEEE Conference on Decision and Control, Nice France, December 2019 towards the conclusion of his term as President of the IEEE Control Systems Society. He is sporting a Kalman FC scarf; they lost to Lyapunov United that year. COVID-19 put paid to the 2020 Control Systems Cup; Kalman FC would have won for sure

Areas of Expertise:

Control Systems: Model Predictive Control, stochastic control, network control

Modeling & System Identification: experiment design, applications

State Estimation: Kalman filtering, nonlinear filtering, Bayesian filtering

Signal Processing: filter design, quantized systems

Telecommunications:  network congestion, coding, MIMO wireless

Industrial applications of control, modeling & estimation: process control, aerospace, ore griding, combustion instabiltiies, steel, sugar, mobile communications, natural gas, helicopters, photolithography

Leadership positions

2024 Alexander von Humboldt Research Award

2021 IEEE Control Systems Society Distinguished Member

2015 IEEE Control Systems Society Transition to Practice Award for advanced control applications in a range of industry sectors where each has involved innovation in theory to achieve the practical outcome

2014 ASME Rufus T. Oldenburger Medal for sustained contributions, in both theory and application, to joint system modeling and control design; and for work that has had major impact on model predictive control and controller certification based on experimental data

2002 IFAC Outstanding Service Award for sustained outstanding performance in major leadership positions in IFAC

2001-2006 IEEE Control Systems Society Distinguished Lecturer

2005 Fellow of the International Federation of Automatic Control

1999 Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences & Engineering

1994 Australian National University Vic-Chancellor's Awards for Excellence in Teaching

1991 Fellow of the Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers

1989 Austalian Telecommunications and Electronics Research Board Medal

Gongs

IEEE Control Systems Society: Immediate Past President 2020, President 2019, President Elect 2018, Vice-president for Financial Activities 2015-16, common or garden member 1976-2015, 2017, 2021-present

Editor-in-Chief IFAC Journal of Systems & Control from foundation in 2017 to 2022

UCSD Associate Vice-Chancellor for Academic Personnel 2006-2009

Cooperative Research Centre for Robust & Adaptive Systems, Australia, Executive Director, 1992-1999

International Federation of Automatic Control (IFAC): Council member 1996-2002, Fellow Search Committee chair 2017-2020, Fellow Selection Committee chair 2014-2017, member 2011-2014

Defunct websites

Bob's old site

Update: Bob retired from UCSD on June 30, 2024 and is still active

Unfortunately, he is not looking for new PhD students or postdocs

September 2024 - January 2025 at Institute for Systems Theory & Automatic Control

University of Stuttgart, Germany