Marcello Farina Ricerca

Research

Marcello Farina is Principal Investigator of the project BUDD-e: Blind assistive aUtonomous Droid Device, awarded the Polisocial Award 2021 funding (starting date: 15/03/2022).

Marcello Farina has been involved in industrial projects in collaboration with Italian metrological primary Institute Istituto Nazionale Ricerche in Metrologia, RSE S.p.A. (former ERSE, CESI Ricerca and CESI), Magneti-Marelli, Addfor s.r.l., SIEMENS, Yousave s.r.l., and Electrolux.

He has been involved in the following Research Projects:

o MIUR (Italian Ministry for University and Research) Project: Innovative methodologies for identification and control of industrial systems, 2003-2004.

o MIUR (Italian Ministry for University and Research) Project: Innovative methodologies for identification and adaptive control of industrial systems, 2005-2006.

o MIUR (Italian Ministry for University and Research) Project: Innovative methodologies and applications of identification and adaptive control, 2007-2011.

o INFN (Istituto Nazionale Fisica Nucleare) Project: VBL-Rad, 2008-2009.

o European 7th framework STREP project: Hierarchical and Distributed Model Predictive Control (HD-MPC), 2008-2011.

Research interests

Current research

o Design and realization of an autonomous guide for blind users

in the framework of the project BUDD-e: Blind assistive aUtonomous Droid Device, awarded by the Polisocial Award 2021 funding.

o Direct data-based design of linear and nonlinear controllers with stability guarantees with application to automotive systems

In collaboration with G. Panzani, A. La Bella, A. Bisoffi, W. D’Amico (POLIMI) and L. Zaccarian (LAAS-CNRS and University of Trento).

o Hierarchical, decentralized, and distributed algorithms for state estimation, fault detection, and control

- A review on Distributed Predictive Control, prepared for SIDRA 2014, is available here.

- Download the Plug and Play MPC MATLAB toolbox here.

In collaboration with G. Ferrari Trecate (EPFL Lausanne), S. Streif (University of Chemnitz, Germany), R. Carli (Università di Padova), T. Parisini (Imperial College, London, UK), and R. Scattolini (POLIMI).

o MPC-based control of autonomous ground vehicles

In collaboration with M. Matteucci and L. Bascetta (POLIMI).

o Robust learning-based MPC and use of Recurrent Neural Networks for control applications

In collaboration with L. Fagiano, R. Scattolini, and F. Bonassi (POLIMI).

Past research

o Design of robust model predictive control algorithms with deterministic and stochastic disturbances and applications

In collaboration with Riccardo Scattolini (DEIB, Politecnico di Milano), Lalo Magni (Università degli Studi di Pavia).

o Voltage Control in MV Networks with Distributed Generators

In collaboration with Riccardo Scattolini (DEIB, Politecnico di Milano), Antonio Guagliardi and Carlo Sandroni (RSE).

o Control of floating wind turbines with spar buoy and tension leg platforms

In collaboration with Riccardo Scattolini (DEIB, Politecnico di Milano), Giulio Betti, and Antonio Guagliardi (RSE).

o Simulation error minimization identification for linear and polynomial external representation systems

In collaboration with Luigi Piroddi (DEIB, Politecnico di Milano).

o Systems theory and identification in systems biology

Observer design and parameter identification for mass-action biochemical reaction networks

In collaboration with Eric Bullinger (University of Liege), Rolf Findeisen (University of Magdeburg), and Sergio Bittanti (DEIB, Politecnico di Milano).

Hybrid models for gene regulatory networks

In collaboration with Maria Prandini (DEIB, Politecnico di Milano).

Molecular and computational analysis of regulation of protein hSos1

In collaboration with Elena Sacco, Marco Vanoni, Lilia Alberghina (Università di Milano-Bicocca), and Diego Liberati (IEIIT, CNR).

Virtual biophysics lab

In collaboration with Edoardo Milotti (Università di Trieste), Roberto Chignola (Università di Verona), and Diego Liberati (IEIIT, CNR).

o Steering a time scale by application of advanced control techniques

In collaboration with Patrizia Tavella (INRIM, Torino), Lorenzo Galleani (Politecnico di Torino), and Sergio Bittanti (DEIB, Politecnico di Milano).

o Optimization of ammonia injection in DeNOx SCR systems

In collaboration with Claudio Zagano (RSE) and Sergio Bittanti (DEIB, Politecnico di Milano).

Other

Marcello Farina is member of the EUCA (European Control Association): he has served as Associate Editor and he has been member of the International Programming Committee for the European Control Conference (years 2013, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022). He is also member of the international program committee (IPC) and area Chair (decentralised/hierarchical MPC) for the 6th IFAC International Conference on Nonlinear Model Predictive Control - NMPC 2018. Since 1/9/2016 he is Editorial Board Member (Subject Editor) for International Journal of Adaptive Control and Signal Processing. Since 2019 he is Associate Editor for the IFAC journal Automatica.

He serves as a reviewer for several international journals, among which Automatica, IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, IEEE Transactions on Control System Technology, IET Transactions on Control Theory and Applications, Journal of Process Control, IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems I, International Journal on Adaptive Control and Signal Processing, IEEE Transactions on Neural Networks and Learning Systems and for many international conferences, including IEEE Conference on Decision and Control, American Control Conference, NOLCOS (Nonlinear Control Systems) Conference, IFAC World Congress, FOSBE (Foundations of Systems Biology in Engineering), IEEE Multi-Conference on Systems and Control.

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