CEng, MIET, SMIEEE
Personal Chair
- About
-
- Email Address
- s.aphale@abdn.ac.uk
- Telephone Number
- +44 (0)1224 274479
- Office Address
Room 373 Fraser Noble Building
King's College
University of Aberdeen
Aberdeen
AB24 3UE
Scotland, UK- School/Department
- School of Engineering
Biography
Career Summary
- Professor, School of Engineering, University of Aberdeen, UK : August 2022 - present
- Reader, School of Engineering, University of Aberdeen, UK : August 2021 - July 2022
- Senior Lecturer, School of Engineering, University of Aberdeen, UK : June 2016 - July 2021
- Lecturer, School of Engineering, University of Aberdeen, UK : June 2009 - May 2016
- Research Fellow, School of Engineering, University of Aberdeen, UK (RED Project) : June 2008 - June 2009
- Research Academic B, ARC Center for Complex Dynamic Systems and Control, University of Newcastle, Australia : September 2005 - May 2008
- Research and Teaching Assistant, Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Wyoming, USA: July 2000 - June 2005
- Research Engineer, RDSI Pvt. Ltd., Pune, India : May 1999 - June 2000
I am a registered Chartered Engineer with the IET. I also volunteer as a Professional Registration Advisor (PRA) and as a Professional Registration Interviewer (PRI) for prospective IEng and CEng applicants for the IET.
My non-academic interests are trekking, nature and wildlife photography, travelling and martial arts.
Qualifications
- BEng Electrical Engineering1999 - University of Pune, IndiaFirst Class with Distinction (Top 5 in the University Graduating Class)
- MS Electrical Engineering (Robotics and Control)2003 - University of Wyoming, USAOn resolving motion commands for precise pointing using position and velocity limits of stacked Gough-Stewart Platforms
- PhD Electrical Engineering (Robotics and Control)2005 - University of Wyoming, USAOn the robust fault-tolerant designs of Gough-Stewart Platforms
Memberships and Affiliations
- Internal Memberships
-
- Elected Member of the Senatus Academicus (2022 - 2024)
- Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Lead for School of Engineering
- School Management Group (School of Engineering)
- School Executive Committee (School of Engineering)
- School Education Committee (School of Engineering)
- External Memberships
-
Associate Editor
- IEEE Control Systems Letters (2021 - 2023)
- International Journal of Advanced Robotic Systems (Guest - Special Issue on Parallel Manipulators)
- Frontiers in Mechanical Engineering - Mechatronics Section (2015 - present)
- Actuators (Guest - Special Issue on Actuators and Dampers for Vibration Control)
- Applications of Modelling and Simulation (2017 - present)
- IEEE Multi-Conference on Systems and Control, Sydney, Australia (2015)
- Shock and Vibration (2015 - 2022)
Editorial Board Member
- International Journal of Advanced Robotic Systems (2012 - 2015)
Technical / Programme Committee Member
- International Conference on Robotics and Automation Sciences (ICRAS), since 2020.
- International Conference on Robotics, Computer Vision and Intelligent Systems (ICRAI) 2020, 2021, 2023.
Reviewer For
- UKRI Leadership Fellowships
- IEEE Transactions on Nanotechnology
- IEEE Transactions on Robotics
- IEEE Transactions on Control Systems Technology
- IEEE Transactions on Mechatronics
- IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man and Cybernetics
- IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics
- IEEE Transactions on Automation Science and Engineering
- IET Control Theory and Applications
- IOP Smart Materials and Structures
- Mechanical Systems and Signal Processing
- Asian Journal of Control
- Review of Scientific Instruments (AIP)
- Control Engineering Practice
- Journal of Sound and Vibration.
- Sensors and Actuators (Elsevier)
- Sensors (MDPI)
- Mechatronics
- Robotics and Computer Integrated Manufacturing
- Journal of Mechanical Engineering Science
- IEEE Conference on Decision and Control
- IFAC World Congress
- IEEE International Conference for Robotics and Automation
- IEEE International Conference on Automation Science and Engineering
- IEEE/ASME International Conference on Advanced Intelligent Mechatronics
- American Control Conference
- European Control Conference
- International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems
- Springer Publishing Co.
- Cambridge University Press
External Examiner
- Robert Gordon University, UK
- University of Castilla - La Mancha, Spain
- Polytechnic University of Madrid, Spain
- University of Adelaide, Australia
- ADFA@UNSW, Australia
- Indian Institute of Technology - Chennai, India
- Vellore Institute of Technology - Chennai, India
Prizes and Awards
- Principal's Excellence Award for Outstanding Postgraduate Research Supervisor - 2023
- Best Paper Award, AsiaSim - 2017
- Best Paper Award Finalist, Advanced Intelligent Mechatronics - 2008
- Tau Beta Pi - Engineering Honors Society - 2003
- Top 5 UG GPA - 1999
- Research
-
Research Overview
I am the Founder and Director of the Artificial intelligence, Robotics and Mechatronic Systems Group (ARMS).
I specialize in the expansive realms of Robotics, Mechatronics, and Applied Control. My passion lies in the creation, experimentation, measurement, and enhancement of novel system designs, sensing strategies, and control algorithms. These innovations consistently result in significant performance advancements across diverse technology-driven domains, including parallel manipulators, flexible and soft robots, scanning probe microscopes, nanopositioning devices, biomedical systems, smart structures, precise multi-system alignment, drill-strings, and optical focusing equipment, among others.
My approach revolves around the development of straightforward, practical, and implementable solutions for seemingly intricate challenges. I actively seek opportunities for both industrial and academic collaborations, aiming to enrich, facilitate, and advance my research. As a Chartered Engineer, I've leveraged my expertise through various consultancies, collaborating with high-tech and Oil and Gas companies to foster technology development and seamless knowledge transfer.
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. My work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Research Areas
Accepting PhDs
I am currently accepting PhDs in Engineering.
Please get in touch if you would like to discuss your research ideas further.
Research Specialisms
- Control Systems
- Mechatronics and Robotics
- Dynamics
- Acoustics and Vibration
- Systems Analysis and Design
Our research specialisms are based on the Higher Education Classification of Subjects (HECoS) which is HESA open data, published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
Current Research
My current research / consultancy projects focus on:
- Novel control designs for a wide range of systems including (but not limited to):
- Nanopositioners
- Soft Robots (Dielectric Elastomer as well as Pneumatically actuated)
- Self-balancing wheeled and multi-legged robots
- Flexible / lightweight pick and place robots
- Active Vibration Isolation / Control (AVI / AVC)
- Structural Vibration Mitigation
- Renewable and Traditional Electrical Power Systems
- MEMS
- Drill-strings and other highly nonlinear systems
- Sensing, Instrumentation, Control and Automation for O&G and wider industry focussing on:
- Digital twins for specific sensors / subsystems
- Signal Processing and Data Analysis
- Novel actuator / sensor design
- Dynamic analysis and feasibility studies
I am always interested in probing new ideas. It is quite possible that I may not know of your work but, if you think a collaboration is possible, please drop me an email.
External Examiner at:
- Robert Gordon University, UK
- University of Adelaide, Australia
- University of New South Wales, Australia
- University of Castilla-La Mancha, Spain
- Polytechnic University of Madrid, Spain
- Indian Institute of Technology, Chennai, India
Visitors:
- Mr Chiweta Emmanuel Abunike (Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Nigeria): March 2022 - February 2023
- Dr Geng Wang (Henan Polytechnic University, China): January 2020 - January 2021
- Ms Linlin Li (Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China): 1st May - 31st October 2019
- Mr Paul Antoine (ENSTA Paris Tech, France) : June - July 2017
- Dr Andres San-Millan (University of Castilla-La Mancha, Spain) : 1st May - 30th July 2016
- Dr Andres San-Millan (University of Castilla-La Mancha, Spain) : 1st May - 30th July 2014
- Prof. Paul Reynolds (University of Exeter, UK) : May 2012
- Prof. Andrew J. Fleming (University of Newcastle, Australia) : July 2011
- Dr Emiliano Pereira Gonzales (University of Castilla-La Mancha, Spain) : May - June 2010
Past Research
- Control of Gough-Stewart Platforms (Hexapods)
- Robust Kinematic Design of fault-tolerant Gough-Stewart Platforms (Octopods)
- Energy Harvesting via smart materials
Knowledge Exchange
- Successfully delivered ~10 Interface projects for local industries
- Led industrial consultancy projects for Aker, BP, Proserv, Baker Hughes, Swire energy Services, Aramco Overseas, etc
- Leading a KTP project aimed at new electrical technology for subsea applications
- Contributing to a KTP project aimed at using explainable AI to improve industrial decision making.
Collaborations
- Prof. Paul Reynolds, Vibration Engineering Section, Exeter University, UK.
- Prof. Quan Zhu, UWE-Bristol, UK.
- Prof. Vicente Feliu Batlle, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Spain.
- Prof. Andrew J. Fleming, Precision Mechatronics Lab, University of Newcastle, Australia.
- Prof. Guoying Gu, Robotics Institute, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China.
- Prof. Limin Zhu, State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Systems and Vibration, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China.
- Dr. Emiliano Pereira Gonzalez, University of Alcala, Spain.
- Assoc. Prof. Bharath Bhikkaji, Indian Institute of Technology - Chennai, India.
- Prof. Abdus Samad, Indian Institute of Technology - Chennai, India.
- Prof. Antoine Ferreira, LVR ENSI de Bourges, France.
- Prof. Santosh Devasia, University of Washington, Seattle, USA.
- Prof. Kam K. Leang, University of Utah - Salt Lake City, USA.
Supervision
My current supervision areas are: Engineering.
Current Students
Lead Supervisor for:
- Adamu Adamu : Ph.D. student (Expected Graduation: August 2024)
- Shakiru Kassim : Ph.D. student (Expected Graduation: August 2025)
- Krisjanis Visnevski : Ph.D. student (Expected Graduation: September 2025)
- Emembong Livinus : Ph.D. student (Expected Graduation: January 2026)
- Chiweta Abunike : Ph.D. student (Expected Graduation: January 2026)
- Hassan Ibrahim : Ph.D. student (Expected Graduation: January 2027)
Co-supervisor for:
- Mohsen Lalehparvar : Ph.D. student (Expected Graduation : January 2025)
- Aldo M. Martel: Ph.D. student (Expected Graduation : September 2025)
- Salman Badkubi : Ph.D. student (Expected Graduation : December 2024)
- Gareth Holmes (part-time): Ph.D. student (Expected Graduation : February 2029)
- Luis Carvalho: Ph.D. student (Expected Graduation: July 2026)
- Petar Avramov: Ph.D. student (Expected Graduation: September 2026)
- Alex Bristow Gutierrez: Ph.D. student (Expected Graduation: July 2027)
Graduated Students
- Adedayo K. Babarinde - Ph.D. 2023 (Funded by TETFund Nigeria).
- James D. Maclean - Ph.D. 2022.
- Stefan Kovacevic (with Prof. D. Jovcic) - Ph.D. 2021 (Funded by RTE France).
- Suoda Chu (with Dr. K. Nakkeeran) - Ph.D. 2020.
- Ibukunolu Oladunjoye - Ph.D. 2019.
- Mohammed Altaher - Ph.D. 2019 (Funded by Elphinstone Scholarship, University of Aberdeen).
- Douglas Russell - Ph.D. 2018 (Funded by EPSRC DTA Scholarship).
- Mohammad Namavar - Ph.D. 2015 (Funded by Elphinstone Scholarship, University of Aberdeen).
Funding and Grants
- Innovate UK (Leap Automation LTD as Lead, M. & W. Mack LTD and Dr A. San-Millan): An imitation learning robotics platform to create low-cost adaptable automation solutions for agricultural processing (£1.2M) - Apr 2024 - Mar 2025.
- Consultancy (with A. San-Millan) - FSD Active Ltd - (£10380) 2024.
- Innovate UK and Test Inc. (with Dr Starkey): Design of a digital inspection service using AI (£201K) - Feb 2023 - Jan 2025.
- ETP PhD Studentship (with Dr. K. Ahmed, University of Strathclyde and Scottish Power Ltd) - (£30000) 2022 - 2025.
- Commonwealth Scholarship for Mr Chiweta Emmanuel Abunike - (£38500) 2022.
- Consultancy - Aramco Overseas - (£6900) 2022 - 2023.
- Innovate UK and Impaq Technologies Ltd (with Dr Jamshidi Far): Design and manufacturing of a high power rated modular DC/DC converter for subsea applications (£185K) - Oct 2022 - Sept 2024.
- SFC, Advanced Innovation Voucher with Impaq Technologies Ltd (with Dr Jamshidi Far): Investigation of the impact of long DC cables on the performance of a medium voltage AC drive for subsea applications (£40K) - Dec 2021 - March 2022.
- SFC, Standard Innovation Voucher (with Vanora Robotics) - (£5000) 2021.
- ETP Project with Frisco eBikes (with Drs Syed and Jamshidi Far): Contactless eBike charging port (£9825) 2021.
- Pump-Prime Interdisciplinary Research and Impact Award (with Drs Broche and Jamshidi Far): Fast Field Cycling prototype improvements (£9770) 2021.
- Pump-Prime Interdisciplinary Research and Impact Award (ARMS Group and Prof. Bach): Human-Robot Interaction Network (£10000) 2021.
- SFC, Standard Innovation Voucher (with Glenn Buchan Engg, Drs Syed and Vairi) - (£5000) 2021.
- SFC, Standard Innovation Voucher (with Don Energy and Dr Vaziri) - (£5000) 2021.
- Knowledge Exchange and Commercialisation (KEC) Award (with Desire Hygiene and Dr. Giannaccini): (£7015) 2021.
- Consultancy (with Dr. Vaziri) - Baker Hughes UK - (£4574) 2021.
- SFC, Standard Innovation Voucher (with Desire Hygine and Dr. Giannaccini) - (£5000) 2020.
- SFC, Standard Innovation Voucher (with AFB Racing and Dr. Thevar) - (£5000) 2020.
- Consultancy (with Dr. K. Nakkeeran) - Swire Oilfield Services - (£11904) - 2020.
- Consultancy (with Dr A. Jamshidi Far) - BP PLC (UK) - (£42360) 2019 - 2020.
- NSFC (P.R. China) Grant No: 51975375 (Jan 2020 - Dec 2023) - Control of ultrafast AFM nanopositioners using delayed feedback and general internal model principle, Co-investigator, with Principal Investigator Prof. L M Zhu - (RMB 600K).
- DUO-India Research Fellowship (with Assoc. Prof. Abdus Samad, IIT-M) - (€6000) - 2020.
- SFC, Standard Innovation Voucher (with Aashraya Ltd and Dr Maheri) - (£5000) 2019.
- SFC, Standard Innovation Voucher (with TWEFDA Ltd and Dr Jamshidi Far) - (£5000) 2019.
- SFC, Standard Innovation Voucher (with SteerSafe) - (£5000) 2018.
- Consultancy - Proserv (UK). (£7080) 2018.
- Visiting Research Fellowship (Binks Trust Fund) : The State Key Laboratory of Mechanical Systems and Vibrations, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China. (£4135) 2018.
- Consultancy - Proserv (UK). (£4324) 2018.
- Reseau de Transport d’electricite (RTE, France): LCC and MCC HVDC Dynamic Interactions in Subsynchronous domain, (1 January 2017 - 30 June 2020). Co-investigator, with Principal Investigator Prof. Dragan Jovcic. (£114K).
- Consultancy (with Dr T. Thevar) - McGregor Tech (UK) Ltd. (£17000) 2016.
- Spanish Ministry of Education Pre-doctoral Mobility Grant for Mr Andres San-Millan (€3000) 2016.
- Scoping Project - Aker Subsea Ltd. (£9500) 2015.
- Spanish Ministry of Economics and Competitiveness: Development of novel damping systems for pedestrian structures. (2014 - 2016) Co-investigator, with Principal Investigator Iván Muñoz Díaz and co-investigators Francisco Martínez Cutillas, Juan Carlos Mosquera Feijóo, Rafael Fernández Díaz-Munío, Emiliano Pereira González, Jesús de Sebastián Sanz, Paul Reynolds, Carlos Zanuy Sanchez, José Rodellar Benede, Pablo de la Fuente Martín (€54450)
- Principal's Excellence Fund (£500) 2014
- Spanish Ministry of Education Pre-doctoral Mobility Grant for Mr Andres San-Millan (€3000) 2014.
- ITI Energy: Resonance Enhanced Drilling - Phase 1, (Oct 2009 - Sept 2011). Co-investigator, with Principal Investigator Prof. M. Wiercigroch and co-investigators Dr E. Pavlovskaia and Dr D Hendry. (£1.01M).
- NESTech Grant: Development of an apparatus and method for neuromuscular stimulation, (2009 - 2011). Co-investigator, with Dr. Richard Neilson and Dr. Marco Cardinale. (£144K).
- Spanish Ministry of Education Post-Doctoral Fellowship for Dr Emiliano Pereira Gonzales (€43500) 2009-2011.
- University of Newcastle, Australia: Travel Grant for SPIE Smart Structures / NDE 2007: 1700$.
- University of Newcastle, Australia: ECR Encouragement Award 2007: 1000$
- Teaching
-
Programmes
- Undergraduate, 4 year, September start
- Undergraduate, 4 year, September start
- Undergraduate, 5 year, September start
- Undergraduate, 5 year, September start
- Undergraduate, 5 year, September start
- Undergraduate, 5 year, September start
- Undergraduate, 5 year, September start
- Postgraduate, 3 stage, September start
Teaching Responsibilities
Courses
- EE3053 - 3rd year Signals, Systems and Signal Processing
- EE501T - 5th year Advanced Control Engineering
Thesis Supervision
- MEng / BEng in EEE / Mech+Elec
- MSc in Subsea / Renewable Energy / Industrial Robotics
Non-course Teaching Responsibilities
- Programme Leader - MSc in Robotics & Artificial Intelligence (2024 - present)
- Programme Leader - MSc in Industrial Robotics (2021 - present)
- Personal Tutor for ~20 UG students (2014 - present)
- Programme Leader UG Electrical and Electronic Engineering (2020 - 2022)
- Deputy Programme Leader UG Electrical and Electronic Engineering (2015 - 2020)
- Examination Officer (PGT Programmes), School of Engineering (2014 - 2021)
- Publications
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Q-Learning-Based Dumbo Octopus Algorithm for Parameter Tuning of Fractional-Order PID Controller for AVR Systems
MathematicsContributions to Journals: ArticlesNovel Frequency-Domain Inertia Mapping and Estimation in Power Systems using Wavelet Analysis
IEEE Transactions on Power SystemsContributions to Journals: ArticlesA Switching Scheme with Proportional Resonant Controller for Cross-Coupling Compensation in AFM Sinusoidal Scanning
IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and MeasurementContributions to Journals: ArticlesDesign and Implementation of a MIMO Integral Resonant Control for Active Vibration Control of Pedestrian Structures
Applied Sciences, vol. 14, no. 15, 6784Contributions to Journals: ArticlesThermo-electro-mechanical vibration analysis for piezoelectric plates under two-parameter elastic foundation with general boundary conditions
International Journal of Engineering Science, vol. 201, 104057Contributions to Journals: ArticlesAn explainable neural network integrating Jiles-Atherton and nonlinear auto-regressive exogenous models for modeling universal hysteresis
Engineering Applications of Artificial Intelligence, vol. 136, no. Part A, 108904Contributions to Journals: ArticlesButterworth Pattern-based Integral Resonant Controller Design for Nanopositioning Systems with internal delay
Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Conference Proceedings- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/CONTROL60310.2024.10531821
Time Delay Effect in Suppressing Drill-String Stick-Slip Vibration
Contributions to Conferences: PapersQuantifying the Performance Enhancement Facilitated by Fractional-Order Implementation of Classical Control Strategies for Nanopositioning
ISA Transactions, vol. 147, pp. 153-162Contributions to Journals: Articles2023 8th International Conference on Robotics and Automation Engineering Quantifying the Performance of Deep Neural Networks in Predicting Curvature and Force Output Response of a Pneumatic Soft Actuator
Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Conference Proceedings