Contact Professor Argyrios Zolotas

Areas of expertise

  • Autonomous Systems
  • Instrumentation, Sensors and Measurement Science
  • Mechatronics & Advanced Controls
  • Systems Engineering
  • Vehicle Health Management

Background

Professor Zolotas is a key academic at Cranfield University's Centre for Autonomous and Cyber-Physical Systems, internationally known for his expertise in Systems and Control. He has spent more than two decades researching and developing engineering applications for dynamically complex systems in the transportation and aerospace industries.

He has received multiple awards, including a visiting professorship with Grenoble INP (FR) in 2018, and secured substantial amounts in research funding (both as PI, Co-I). He is collaborating with various industrial and academic partners, as well as research organisations. He has designed and manages several taught courses, and led the successful MSc AVDC accreditation with RAeS as Course Director. Prof Zolotas is Senior Member IEEE ('11), he was awarded a Fellow(HEA) in 2013, and he was admitted as Fellow of the Institute of Measurement and Control (InstMC) in 2023. He is elected member on the InstMC Council since Jun. 2023. He has been admitted as Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS) in 2024.

Professor Zolotas was recipient (together with co-authors) of IMECHE's Railway Division John Jarrett Davis Prize 2015 for the research paper 'Passive suspensions for ride quality improvement of two-axle railway vehicles'. Also is recipient (together with co-authors) of ICSAE 2016's Best Paper Award -in topic Control Systems Engineering- for paper title 'Improved PID control for Tilting Trains'.

Prof Zolotas, to date, has published 150+ publications (incl. peer-reviewed papers, book / book chapters, and industrial reports).

Professor Zolotas was Associate Editor on the IEEE Transactions Control Systems Technology (for 6-year term, 2012-2018), on IET Proceedings Control Theory and Applications (5-year term, 2013-2018), on IEEE CSS Letters (4-year term, 2017-2021). He has received the IET Proceedings IET Control Theory & Applications Certificate (05/2018) for exceptional contribution to IET Control Theory & Applications by serving as an Associate Editor. He is currently Associate Editor on the journals of Sustainability (MDPI) and Vibration (MDPI). He is Member of the IEEE CSS Technical Committee on Smart Cities, and of the IEEE CSS Technical Committee on Robust and Complex Systems. He is Member of the SAE Automation of Aircraft Exterior Inspection standards committee G-38.

Prof Zolotas heads the Autonomous Systems Dynamics and Control research group and he is developing an innovative research program in Autonomous Systems and Robotics as a Service (ASRaaS) promoting net-zero standards.

Professor Zolotas promotes reducing the gender gap in STEM and increase the number of women engineers, already supervised to completion a number of female students (now in successful academic and professional careers themselves, further promoting gender balance in STEM).

Note: Prof Zolotas's background is strongly engineering-related, however he has a small Erdo's number = 4 (which is a more mathematics related distance linking authors to Paul Erdos). This distance metric is due to Professor Zolotas (4) having co-authored with Prof Malcolm C. Smith (3), who co-authored with Prof Ciprian Ilie Foias (2), who co-authored with Prof Jacques Dixmier (1), who coauthored with Paul Erdo's.

Research opportunities

There are available opportunities for postgraduate research studies in the following thematic areas:

- Autonomous systems and robotics as a service (UAV and UGV) [especially for applications in demanding off-road and rmeote environments]

- Robust and resilient system architecture (advanced control)

- Vehicle platforms with net zero standards (novel power distibution)

We are always keen to hear from interested candidates. Candidates with appropriate background in systems and control, Autonomy and AI, Robotics and embedded systems, Hybrid propulsion are recommended to contact me for a discussion (include a full up to date CV in your email).

Current activities

Professor Zolotas's expertise is on Systems and Control Engineering, including robust control and fault tolerant control, system architecture, AI-based and data-driven control. Since joining Cranfield University he has lead work in autonomous systems for ground, aerial and and rail service related concepts. He is also Course Director of the world renowned MSc in Autonomous Vehicle Dynamics and Control programme. Since January 2021 he has heading the Autonomous Systems Dynamics and Control research group within the Centre for Autonomous and CyberPhysical Systems, where he is developing an innovative research program in Autonomous Systems and Robotics as a Service (ASRaaS) promoting net-zero standards.

To date, Argyrios has graduated several PhD students and advised several Research fellows on a variety of funded research projects. In 2018 he was hosted by GIPSA lab, Grenoble INP, on a short-term esteemed visiting Professorship award.

Prof Zolotas presented keynote speeches:

- Keynote speech (invited), Title: "Systems and Control in the era towards Autonomy", The 3rd International Conference on Control, Instrumentation and Mechatronics Engineer (CIM 2022), Malaysia, 2022.

- Keynote speech (invited), Title: "Systems and Control in the era towards Autonomy, experiences and what the future may hold.", 15th International Conference Mechatronic Systems and Materials, Bialystok, Poland, 2020.

and was invited speaker:

-- Invited talk on "Hangar of the Future: Using UAVs & Advanced Digital Technologies", at the RSSB dedicated Workshop on 'The Future of Train Maintenance', Oct 2021.

Clients

Professor Zolotas works with the:

Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl);

BI Expertise;

Railway Safety & Standards Board (RSSB);

Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land (RBSL);

BAE Systems;

Outsmart Insight;

Rolls Royce;

Qinetiq;

Malloy Aeronautics

Publications

Articles In Journals

Conference Papers

Books