Syllabus for ME-GY 6703-I - Linear Control Theory and Design I - Fall, 2015

Course Information
Instructor: Dr. Alessandro Rizzo
Email: alessandro.rizzo@nyu.edu
Office: RH520B
Office Hours: Tuesday 3:30-5:30 PM, and by appointment
Lecture: Thursday 6:00-8:30 PM – Classroom RH 707
Units: 3.00
Webpage: NYU Classes

Course Goals
The student who completes this course should have a clear understanding of modeling of
mechanical systems (e.g., mechatronic, vibrational, robotic, and smart systems) in state-space.
He/She should be able to:
• Carry out the description and analysis of linear mechanical systems;
• Apply transform and transition matrix methods;
• Understand and investigate on properties such as stability, controllability/stabilizability,
observability/detectability;
• Design simple state observers and controllers for linear systems;
• Learn and utilize MATLAB® and Simulink® for linear systems analysis and design.

Prerequisites
It is assumed that all students have a working familiarity with linear algebra and calculus, ordinary
differential equations, and fundamentals of physics of mechanical and electric systems.

Course Syllabus
Topic 1: Introduction, classification, properties, and notion of state variables
Topic 2: Representations, simulation diagrams, vectors, transformations
Topic 3: Realizations
Topic 4: Solution of state equations
Topic 5: Stability
Topic 6: Controllability
Topic 7: Observability
Topic 8: State feedback, pole-placement, regulation, tracking
Topic 9: State estimation

Textbook
Chi-Tsong Chen, Linear System Theory and Design, Oxford University Press, ISBN: 978-
0199959570

Suggested References
1. Robert L. Williams II and Douglas A. Lawrence, Linear State-Space Control Systems, Wiley,
ISBN: 978-0471735557
2. Thomas Kailath, Linear Systems, Prentice Hall, ISBN: 978-0135369616
3. Philip E. Sarachik, Principles of Linear Systems, Cambridge University Press, ISBN: 978-
0521576062
4. Panos J. Antsaklis and Anthony N. Michel, A Linear Systems Primer, Birkhäuser, ISBN: 978-
0817644604
5. Wilson J. Rugh, Linear System Theory, Prentice-Hall, ISBN: 978-0134412054

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Homework, Project, Exams
Homework will be assigned periodically and will neither be collected, nor graded. You are
responsible to do homework on your own. Solutions for all assigned problems will be provided. A
Project will be assigned 3 to 4 weeks before the end of the semester. Its execution will imply the
use of computing tools, such as Matlab®. Students must complete all project assignments on their
own. They may consult other students while formulating their solution strategy, however, they are
not allowed to collaborate with anyone in working out the details of assignments, nor should they
compare their solutions with others. Students must hand-in their own project. No late project will be
accepted except for exceptional and documented circumstances.
There will be one mid-term and a final exam. These will be administered in class and will test the
student’s comprehension and ability to apply material learned in class and through assignments.
All tests are in-class, closed book, closed notes. During exams, before beginning to solve assigned
problems, students should briefly restate the problem and list the data given. Also, students should
list the important concepts and formulae used to arrive at the final solution along with detailed work.
Illegible work and loose sheets will not be graded. Significant weight in grading will be placed on
clarity of presentation.
Every page of every exam/quiz submission should have the student full name and section number.
Illegible work and loose sheets will not be graded. Students must complete all exams on their own.
If a student cannot attend an exam due to a medical condition, certified by a doctor, he/she must
notify the instructor in advance. In such a case, no makeup exam/quiz will be offered. Instead, the
weight of the missed exam/quiz will be added to the following exam (if there is one remaining).
Unexcused absence from an exam will result in a grade of 0 for that exam/quiz.
Students are responsible to check their grades on the Internet and compare their solutions to those
posted. Grades and solutions will be reasonably posted within 72 hours. Discussion of the grades
will be done only during office hours.

Grading Policy
Project 20%
Midterm 30%
Final 50%

Letter Grade Policy

A: 95+, A-: 90+, B+: 87+, B: 83+, B-: 80+, C+: 75+, C: 70+, F: <70

Midterm Schedule (tentative)

Thursday, October 15th or 22nd, 6:00p – 8:30p, classroom RH202

Extra Credit
There are no opportunities for extra credits.

Class attendance and absences

There are no formal requirements for attendance, and there is no direct penalty for missing class.
Students are strongly encouraged to attend class since some course material will only appear in
lectures. Students that miss class are responsible for obtaining class notes from a classmate.
Course website (NYU Classes)
Students are responsible to regularly check NYU Classes for course related material and
announcements (e.g., homework assignments, schedules, reading material, etc).

Electronic communications during exams

Cell phones, tablets, laptops, and any other device able to be connected to the Internet must not
be in use, at all, during exams. The use of such devices as substitutes for calculators is not
allowed and will be treated as cheating, according to the policies and procedures for academic
dishonesty.

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Moses Center Statement of Disability
If you are student with a disability who is requesting accommodations, please contact New York
University’s Moses Center for Students with Disabilities at 212-998-4980 or mosescsd@nyu.edu.
You must be registered with CSD to receive accommodations. Information about the Moses
Center can be found at www.nyu.edu/csd. The Moses Center is located at 726 Broadway on the
2nd floor.

NYU School of Engineering Policies and Procedures on Academic Misconduct

Introduction: The School of Engineering encourages academic excellence in an environment that

promotes honesty, integrity, and fairness, and students at the School of Engineering are expected
to exhibit those qualities in their academic work. It is through the process of submitting their own
work and receiving honest feedback on that work that students may progress academically. Any
act of academic dishonesty is seen as an attack upon the School and will not be tolerated.
Furthermore, those who breach the School’s rules on academic integrity will be sanctioned under
this Policy. Students are responsible for familiarizing themselves with the School’s Policy on
Academic Misconduct.

Definition: Academic dishonesty may include misrepresentation, deception, dishonesty, or any act
of falsification committed by a student to influence a grade or other academic evaluation. Academic
dishonesty also includes intentionally damaging the academic work of others or assisting other
students in acts of dishonesty. Common examples of academically dishonest behavior include, but
are not limited to, the following:

1. Cheating: intentionally using or attempting to use unauthorized notes, books, electronic

media, or electronic communications in an exam; talking with fellow students or looking at
another person’s work during an exam; submitting work prepared in advance for an in-class
examination; having someone take an exam for you or taking an exam for someone else;
violating other rules governing the administration of examinations.
2. Fabrication: including but not limited to, falsifying experimental data and/or citations.
3. Plagiarism: intentionally or knowingly representing the words or ideas of another as one’s
own in any academic exercise; failure to attribute direct quotations, paraphrases, or
borrowed facts or information.
4. Unauthorized collaboration: working together on work that was meant to be done
individually.
5. Duplicating work: presenting for grading the same work for more than one project or in
more than one class, unless express and prior permission has been received from the
course instructor(s) or research adviser involved.
6. Forgery: altering any academic document, including, but not limited to, academic records,
admissions materials, or medical excuses.

Violations of the academic honesty rules will result in the application of the policies and procedures
of the NYU Polytechnic School of Engineering for academic, which can be found at the following
link http://engineering.nyu.edu/academics/code-of-conduct/academic-misconduct

Typical sanctions for academic dishonesty in this course will be:

- First infraction: a grade of F for the corresponding exam/project
- Second infraction: a grade of F for the course

The application of more severe sanctions may be considered, according to the gravity of the
infraction.

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