Discover how modern control systems make robots stable, precise and reliable, and learn to design and evaluate controllers for complex interactions and applications.
This course provides a broad overview of modern control systems for robotics. You will learn about the process of design, application and evaluation of controllers through theory and practical problems. Within this course, you will acquire knowledge about a wide area of topics, for example: state-space methods, linear and nonlinear control techniques commonly used in robotics and handling of fundamental design trade-offs and limitations in feedback controller synthesis. This will help you answer questions such as: how can I guarantee stability when a robot interacts physically with people or objects? Which controller design method fits my application and constraints?
The course is relevant for professionals who need to design, evaluate, or improve robotic motion and interaction performance, and who want a solid foundation to make informed decisions.
Robotics is rapidly moving from structured factory environments to dynamic settings such as logistics, healthcare, agriculture and public spaces. In these contexts, robust and safe control is essential: robots must remain stable, accurate and predictable despite uncertainty, changing loads and physical interaction. Modern organisations increasingly rely on autonomous systems, where control design directly impacts performance and safety. For engineers and technical leads working with autonomous robots and mechatronic systems acquiring knowledge about control system design gives a solid foundation to make informed design decisions.
This is a regular master-level course in which both students and professionals can participate. The programme consists of approximately 15 lectures and 8 tutorials. The lectures build the theoretical foundation, the tutorials are designed for active learning: asking questions, working through examples, and discussing open issues that arise when applying methods in practice.
Participants apply and test the gained knowledge in a practical assignment, which takes the form of an assignment where modelling, analysis, controller synthesis and evaluation are integrated.
This course is intended for professionals who work with robotics, mechatronics or advanced motion systems and want to deepen their control engineering skills. Typical profiles include, but are not limited to, robotics engineers, control engineers, R&D engineers and researchers in industry.
If you are interested in applying for this course, you are expected to have background knowledge in:
Start date: 9 November (Q2)
Total duration: 9 November until 29 January (excluding resits) (140 hours study load)
Number of teaching days / sessions: Approx. 15 lectures + 8 tutorials (23 sessions total)
Total programme fee: €2067,15,- (5 ECTS *413.43)
Programme type: master course
Location: On campus, University of Twente, Enschede, NL
Language of instruction: English
Admission requirements: Professionals with basic knowledge on differential equations, classical dynamical mechanical modelling, linear systems, Laplace and Fourier transforms and basic PID control.
Teachers: