Contact
Associate Professor, Faculty of Engineering - Mechanical Engineering Dept
- mbarczyk@ualberta.ca
- Phone
- (780) 492-2340
- Address
-
10-380 Donadeo Innovation Centre For Engineering
9211-116 StEdmonton ABT6G 2H5
Overview
Area of Study / Keywords
Mechanical Systems Automation And Robotics Control Systems Dynamical Systems Mechatronics Robotics UAVs Control Systems State Estimation
About
I received a B.Eng. in Mechanical Engineering from McGill University, and an M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Alberta. Following a post-doc at the Centre de Robotique (CAOR) at Ecole des Mines in Paris, France, I returned to the U of A as an Assistant Professor in Mechanical Engineering.
Research
My area of interest is Mechatronics - Mechanical systems augmented with onboard computing hardware and sensors, running software algorithms in feedback control, data fusion and state estimation - and its application to fields such as robotics, aerospace, manufacturing, and agriculture. As computing power and sensing technology continue to become cheaper, smaller and more powerful, applications of Mechatronics continue to grow, as seen in the emergence of areas such as drone delivery, self-driving vehicles, precision agriculture and autonomous search-and-rescue.
Current research projects include:
- Vision-based UAV-to-UAV pursuit
- GPS-denied autonomous robot navigation and mapping
- Control and estimation of robotic arms
- Applications of computer vision and deep learning
- Model identification of novel mechanical systems
Please check my ResearchGate profile link for publications.
Teaching
I have taught the following courses at the U of A:
- Mec E 300, Mechanical Measurements
- Mec E 301, Mechanical Engineering Laboratory I
- Mec E 420, Feedback Control Design of Dynamic Systems
- Mec E 451, Vibrations and Sound
- Mec E 651, Advanced Robotics: Analysis and Control
Courses
MEC E 300 - Mechanical Measurements
Characterization and behavior of measuring systems. Statistics and analysis of measurement data; measurement techniques applied to fundamental mechanical engineering phenomena. Prerequisites: CIV E 270, ECE 209, STAT 235. Corequisite: MEC E 330 or MEC E 331.
MEC E 420 - Feedback Control Design of Dynamic Systems
Design of linear feedback control systems for command-following error, stability, and dynamic response specifications. PID, Root-locus, frequency response and design techniques. An introduction to structural design limitations. Examples emphasizing Mechanical Engineering systems. Some use of computer aided design with MATLAB/Simulink. Controls Lab - control of mechanical systems. Prerequisites: MEC E 390. Credit can only be granted for one of MEC E 420, ECE 362, CH E 448.
MEC E 651 - Advanced Robotics: Analysis and Control
Introduction to advanced robotics including mobile robots, redundant manipulators, walking robots, aerial and marine autonomous vehicles. Kinematic and dynamic models for advanced robots. Linear and nonlinear control theory overview with applications to advanced robots.