Autonomous and Connected Systems - Purdue Engineering Initiatives - Purdue University

Robotics at the micro- and nano-scale represent one of the new frontiers in intelligent automation systems. In particular, mobile microrobots have recently emerged as viable candidates for biomedical applications, taking advantage of their small size, manipulation, and autonomous motion capabilities. Targeted drug delivery is one of the key applications of these nano- and microrobots.
Dave Cappelleri
- Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering

The ‘Autonomous and Connected Systems’ initiative is an extension of Purdue’s research on Mobile Mapping Systems (MMS). Since its inception in the mid 80’s, the MMS technology has been focusing on the manipulation of multi-sensor systems onboard mobile platforms to derive information regarding its trajectory as well as the surrounding environment. MMS technology involves expertise from different fields including navigation, remote sensing, computer vision, and systems engineering. Autonomous and Connected Systems would be a paradigm shift in the MMS technology, as it is targeting a wider range of remote sensing/navigation systems and platforms for more diverse applications.
Ayman Habib
- Thomas A. Page Professor (CE), Co-Director of the Civil Engineering Center for Applications of UAS for a Sustainable Environment (CE-CAUSE), and Associate Director of the Joint Transportation Research Program

The convergence of autonomy with connectivity has created a whole new world of possibilities for 'systems of systems' to emerge that are transformative in their benefits but also in their robustness and resilience. Transportation on the ground, in the air, and in space are 'prime real estate' for these transformations.
Dan DeLaurentis
- Professor, Aeronautics and Astronautics; Director-Institute for Global Security and Defense Innovation (i-GSDI), Director, Center for Integrated Systems in Aerospace

A large-scale of inter-connected systems by working as a cohesive whole usually offer better autonomy, flexibility and robustness than single monolithic systems. This naturally gives rise to the frontier research of autonomous and connected systems. By emerging theories and techniques from multidisciplinary domains, research advance in this area will bring significant impact to many challenging tasks, which are usually beyond the capability of a single systems, including surveillance, information gathering, monitoring a large area, exploration of the unknown, search and rescue, and so on.
Shaoshuai Mou
- Assistant Professor, School of Aeronautics and Astronautics

We are developing new methods that use connectivity, and where appropriate, function automation, to improve the safety, efficiency, performance, and cost effectiveness of human-operated commercial vehicles – including Agricultural Machines and Class 8 Trucks. Our partners include Deere, Peloton Technologies, ZF, Peterbilt, Cummins, the U.S. Department of Energy, and the U.S. and Indiana departments of Transportation.
Greg Shaver,
- Professor, School of Mechanical Engineering

Autonomous and connected systems - from self-driving cars to self-flying military and civilian drones to interactive personal robots - will change the way we live and work. The new engineering initiative will coalesce and amplify Purdue Engineering’s considerable existing strengths in diverse areas such as machine learning, transportation, robotics, cognitive and neuromorphic computing, cyber-physical systems, Internet-of-Things, wireless networking, distributed systems, and others to address the many daunting research, development, ethical, and policy challenges posed by these next-generation systems.
Vijay Raghunathan,
- Professor, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Director, Embedded Systems and IoT Lab

Due to rapid advances in computing, sensing, and communication technologies, engineering systems are becoming increasingly more complex – so much so that conventional system models and control tools are being severely challenged. Such systems, referred as Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS), exhibit complicated behaviors such as interaction between cyber (or logical or human/automation) elements and physical components, and increased uncertainty. Thus high assurance autonomy for the CPS with guarantees on not only performance but also safety and cybersecurity is crucial with applications to safety-critical systems such as air traffic control (ATC), unmanned aircraft systems (UASs), and autonomous vehicles.
Inseok Hwang
- Professor, School of Aeronautics and Astronautics

Innovation in wireless communications will soon enable a revolution in autonomous and connected systems. These systems generate large amounts of data in real-time. The ability to acquire this data, analyze it, and optimally adapt to it will be crucial. Research at Purdue will drive 5G and beyond cellular, vehicular, UAS, and agricultural networks that will enable this autonomous and connected future.
David Love
- Nick Trbovich Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Autonomous and connected systems operate in challenging environments: a large number of subsystems, disruptions and delays in communication, limited onboard computation, and possible malicious attacks. These necessitate the development of novel and fast distributed data processing and decision making algorithms that can ensure real-time resilient system operations.
Jianghai Hu
- Associate Professor or Electrical and Computer Engineering