Mohamed-Ali (M.-A.) Belabbas

PhD, Applied Mathematics, Harvard University
Ingénieur degree, École Centrale Paris (France)
Electrical Engineering, Université Catholique de Louvain (Belgium)

Associate Professor
Electrical and Computer Engineering Department
Coordinated Science Laboratory
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Contact: CSL 166
1308 W Main St
Urbana, IL 61801
Phone: 217 300 1742
belabbas [at] illinois [dot] edu

Office hours: by appointment.

Banff workshop: Geometry, Topology, and their Applications in Control System Design. Organized with Tony Bloch (UMich), Monique Chyba (Hawaii), Xudong Chen (CU Boulder) and Angelia Nedich (ASU). June 11- June 16 2023

Motion planning: papers, slides, code and videos: Motion planning

Tutorial on Graph Theory in Systems and Control (CDC18): paper pdf Slides Part 1 – Part 2 – Part 3 – Part 4

Teaching

ECE 557 Geometric Control (Spring 2021, Spring 2023)

ECE 486: Linear Systems (Fall 2013, Fall 2014, Fall 2015, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Fall 2002)

ECE 555 Stochastic Control (Spring 2013, Spring 2015, Spring 2017, Spring 2022)

ECE 470/AE 482/ME 446: Introduction to Robotics (Fall 2018, Spring 2019, Fall 2020, Fall 2021)

ECE 598MAB: Geometric Control (Spring 2014, Spring 2016, Spring 2018)

ECE 515: Linear Systems (Fall 2015)

ECE 517: Nonlinear and adaptive control (Fall 2017)

Papers and preprints

Preprints

Geometric Characterization of the H-property for Step-graphons, with X. Chen, pdf
The H-Property of Line Graphons, with X. Chen and T. Başar, pdf
On gradient flows initialized near maxima. pdf
On Structural Rank and Resilience of Sparsity Patterns, with X. Chen and D. Zelazo. pdf
On implicit regularization: Morse functions and applications to matrix factorization (pdf)
Motion Planning for Non-holonomic Systems via the Heat Flow: theory and algorithms, with S. Liu (pdf)
Graph theory and the design of sparse distributed systems, A. Kirkoryan and M.-A. Belabbas. pdf bibtex

Journal

On the structural stability of random systems, with A. Kirkoryan (pdf), SIAM Journal on Control and optimization (accepted for publication)
On the H-property for step-graphons and edge polytopes, with X. Chen and T. Başar. pdf, IEEE Systems and Control Letters, vol. 6, 1766-1771, 2022
Gradient approximation and multivariable derivative-free optimization based on non-commutative maps, with J. Feiling and C. Ebenbauer, pdf, IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control (accepted for publication)
Gossip over Holonomic Graphs, with X. Chen and J. Liu. pdf Automatica, Vol 136, 2022.
On Integer Balancing of Digraphs, Systems & Control Letters, vol 154, 2021. with X. Chen, pdf
Triangulated Laman Graphs, Local Stochastic Matrices, and Limits of their Products, Linear Algebra and its Applications, volume 619, pp176–209, 2021. with X. Chen, pdf
Geometric Heat Flow for Legged Locomotion Planning, with S. Liu and Y. Fan, IEEE Control Systems Letters, Vol 5(3), July 2021, pdf
Mid-air Motion Planning of Robot Using Heat Flow Method with State Constraints, with Y. Fan and S. Liu, Mechatronics, Volume 66, April 2020, 102323.
Controlling and stabilizing a rigid formation using a few agents, with X. Chen and T. Başar. SIAM Journal on Control and Optimization, Volume 57(1), p.104–128, pdf

Sensor placement for optimal estimation of vector-valued diffusion processes, with X. Chen, Systems and Control Letters, Volume 121, p. 24-30 (2018).
Classification of the structurally controllable zero-patterns for driftless bilinear control systems, with A. Tsopelakos and B Gharesifard, IEEE Transactions on Control of Network Systems, 2018 (Early access)
Cluster Consensus with Point Group Symmetries, SIAM J. Control Optim., 55(6), 3869–3889 (2017) with X. Chen and T. Başar. pdf
Optimal Capacity Allocation for Sampled Networked Systems, with X. Chen and T. Başar, Automatica, Volume 85, p. 100-112 (2017) pdf
Exponential Convergence of the Discrete- and Continuous-Time Altafini Models, with J. Liu, X. Chen and T. Başar, to appear in IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control (2017).
Global stabilization of triangulated formations, with X. Chen and T. Başar, in SIAM Journal on Control and Optimization, vol 55, issue 1, p. 172-199 (2017). pdf
Geometric methods for optimal sensor design, in Proceedings of the Royal Society, Volume 472, Issue 21805 (2016). pdf
Distributed averaging with linear objective maps, with X. Chen, M.-A. Belabbas, in Automatica, 70, p. 179–188 (2016), pdf
Controllability of formations over time-varying graphs, with X. Chen and T. Başar, in IEEE Transactions on Control of Networked Systems, PP, (2015) pdf
Distributed Evaluation and Convergence of Self-Appraisals in Social Networks, with X. Chen, J. Liu, Z. Xu and T. Başar, in IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, 62(1), p. 291–304 (2017). pdf
Undirected Rigid Formations are Problematic, with S. Mou, A. S. Morse, Z. Sun and B.D.O. Anderson, in IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, 61(10), p.1821-2836, (2016) pdf
Sparse stable systems, in Systems and Control Letters, 62(10),p. 981–987, (2013). pdf bibtex
On global stability of planar formations, in IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, 58(8), p.2148–2153. pdf bibtex
On Landmark Selection and Sampling in High-Dimensional Data Analysis, with P.J. Wolfe, in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A, 367, p. 4295–4312, (2009), pdf bibtex
Spectral methods in machine learning and new strategies for very large datasets, with P.J. Wolfe, in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 106(2), p. 369–374, (2009). pdf bibtex
Networks of Hamiltonian Systems and Feedback, in Systems and Control Letters, 58(8), p. 217–224, (2009) pdf bibtex
Gradient flows on Kac-Moody algebras and the periodic Toda lattice, in Comm. in Information and Systems, R. Brockett’s special issue, 8(2), p. 107–126 (2008) pdf bibtex

Conference

Vision-Based Shape Reconstruction of Soft Continuum Arms Using a Geometric Strain Parametrization, with A. AlBeladi, G. Krishnan and S. Hutchinson, pdf (ICRA21)
Graph Theory in Systems and Control, with D. Zelazo and M. Mesbahi, CDC18 pdf Slides Part 1 – Part 2 – Part 3 – Part 4
On the Optimal Design of Low Frequency Actuators, with A. Kirkoryan, CDC18 pdf slides
Optimal actuator design for linear systems with multiplicative noise, with A. Kirkoryan, ECC18 pdf slides
New Method for Motion Planning for Non-holonomic Systems using Partial Differential Equations, with S. Liu, ACC2017. pdf
Controlling a rigid formation from a triangle, with X. Chen and T. Başar, CDC2016. pdf
Optimal sensor and actuator placement with sparsity constraints, MTNS2016
Cluster Consensus over Strongly Connected Voltage Graphs, with X. Chen and T. Başar, MTNS2016
Controllability of formations over directed graphs, with X. Chen and T.Başar, CDC2015
Consensus with Linear Objective Maps, with X. Chen and T. Başar, CDC2015
Stability and Convergence Rate of Discrete-Time Altafini’s Model: A Graphical Approach, with J. Liu, X. Chen, T.Başar, CDC2015
Formation Control with Triangulated Laman Graphs, with X. Chen and T.Başar, CDC2015
Distributed local stabilization in formation control, with M. Lorenzen, ECC2014 pdf bibtex
Undirected rigid formations are problematic, with S. Mou, A.S. Morse and BDO Anderson, CDC2014
Decentralized stabilization with symmetric topologies, with A. Kirkoryan, CDC2014
Algorithms for sparse stable systems, CDC2014 pdf bibtex
Decentralized design with localized objective in formation control, ACC2013 pdf bibtex slides
Robustness issues with undirected formations, with S. Mou, A.S. Morse and B.D.O. Anderson, CDC2012 pdf bibtex
On global feedback stabilization in decentralized formation control, CDC2011. pdf bibtex
Factorizations and partial contractions of nonlinear systems, with J.JS Slotine, ACC2012. pdf bibtex
Spectral clustering for multiclass Erdos-Renyi graphs, ICASSP2010 pdf bibtex
On Sparse Representations of Linear Operators and the Approximation of Matrix Products, with P.J. Wolfe, CISS2008 pdf bibtex
Fast Low-Rank Approximation for Covariance Matrices, with P.J. Wolfe, CAMSAP2007
Input-output Hamiltonian systems and neural signal processing, with R. Brockett, CDC2006 pdf bibtex

Members

Xudong Chen (Postdoctoral fellow) => Assistant Professor at CU Boulder

Artur Kirkoryan (PhD Student, Mathematics, graduated Dec 2018) => Postdoctoral Fellow, UIUC

Yinai Fan (PhD Student, MechSE)

Shenyu Liu (PhD Student, ECE)

Ivan Abraham (PhD Student, MechSE)

James Schmidt (MSc Student, ECE)

Aristomenis Tsopelakos (MSc Student, ECE)

Xuandong Xu (MSc student, ECE, graduated Spring 2015)

Yuan Yao (MSc student, ECE, graduated Spring 2015)

Tao Yang (MSc Student, ECE, graduated Spring 2015)

M.-A. Belabbas