Control

MERL is seeking a highly motivated and qualified individual to conduct research in the integration of model- and learning-based control to achieve high precision positioning with guaranteed safety and robustness. The ideal candidate should have solid backgrounds in dynamical systems, control theory and state-of-the-art control policy learning algorithms, and strong coding skills. Prior experience on ultra-high precision motion control systems is a plus. Ph.D. students in learning and control are encouraged to apply. Start date for this internship is flexible and the duration is about 3 months.

MERL is seeking a graduate student to develop a scalable optimization-based framework for feedforward-feedback co-design for nonlinear dynamical systems subject to path constraints. The framework will 1) support modeling and operational uncertainties, and 2) guarantee static and dynamic feasibility in closed-loop. The solution approach will leverage the state-of-the-art in sequential convex programming, contraction analysis, and first-order methods for semidefinite programming. The methods will be evaluated on high-dimensional motion planning problems in robotics. The results of the internship are expected to be published in top-tier conferences and/or journal in robotics, control systems, and optimization.

The internship is expected to start in Spring or Summer 2025 with an expected duration of 3-6 months depending on the agreed scope and intermediate progress.

Required Specific Experience

• Current/Past enrollment in a Ph.D. program in Mechanical, Aerospace, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or Applied Mathematics.
• 2+ years of research in at least some of: first-order algorithms for SDPs, contraction analysis, nonconvex trajectory optimization.
• Strong programming skills in Python and/or C/C++.

MERL is seeking a highly motivated intern to research low-complexity (i.e., computationally efficient) formulations of model predictive control (MPC). Candidates should be currently enrolled in a PhD program and have theoretical background in MPC (e.g., an understanding of standard proofs of stability) and relevant concepts in convex optimization (e.g., an understanding of interior-point, active set, and first-order optimization methods). An ideal candidate would have prior research experience related to suboptimal MPC, real-time iterations strategies for MPC, and/or other low-complexity approximation methods for MPC, and convex optimization.

Publication of results produced during the internship is expected. The duration of the internships are 3-6 months, and the start dates are flexible.

Required Specific Experience

• Current enrollment in a PhD program in Aerospace, Mechanical, Electrical Engineering, or a related field
• Understanding of fundamental theoretical concepts in MPC (e.g., proofs of stability, recursive feasibility, etc.)
• Familiarity with optimization algorithms commonly used in MPC (e.g., interior-point, active set, and first-order methods)
• Strong programming skills in MATLAB, Python, and/or C/C++.

Additional Desired Experience

• Prior research experience related to suboptimal MPC and/or other low-complexity approximation methods for MPC.
• Prior research experience related to optimization algorithm development/analysis.