Automation, control and robotics are pervasive enabling technologies found in almost every modern technical system, particularly in manufacturing and production. They combine the diverse and rapidly expanding disciplines of automation, control, mechanics, software and signal processing.
This course is ideal if you wish to develop comprehensive knowledge and understanding of • classical and modern control theory • industrial automation • systems analysis • design and simulation • robotics.
You gain the ability to apply principles of modelling, classical and modern control concepts and controller design packages in various areas of industry. You also learn how to design and exploit automation and robotic systems in a range of manufacturing and industrial applications.
The course has six core modules which cover the major aspects of industrial automation and control systems engineering and robotics, ranging from classical linear control system design to non-linear, optimal and intelligent control systems, including distributed control systems, robotics, computer networks and artificial intelligence.
You also choose two optional modules relevant to automation and control to suit your interests. For example, if you wish to work in the manufacturing industry you can choose manufacturing systems or machine vision. There is the opportunity to study one or two management modules if you wish to apply yourself to a more managerial role.
To gain the masters you complete a major research-based project, which can be focused on an area of your particular interest or career need.
You work alongside staff from the Electrical, Electronic and Control Engineering Group and the Centre for Automation and Robotics Research (CARR) at Sheffield Hallam. This provides the opportunity to work with active researchers.
This course is seeking accreditation by the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) on behalf of the Engineering Council for the purposes of fully meeting the academic requirements for registration as a Chartered Engineer. The MSc will meet, in part, the exemplifying academic benchmark requirements for registration as a Chartered Engineer; graduates who have a BEng (Hons) accredited for CEng will be able to show that they have satisfied the further learning requirement for CEng accreditation.
Core modules
Options
Choose two from
MSc
This course provides you with the knowledge and skills for further advanced study in this area.
You can also apply your skills in an industrial setting for automated manufacturing, control system design, or in the wide range of industries that exploit intelligent robotics. Graduates from this course find career opportunities in areas including • automation and control • process and petrochemical • biomedical • manufacturing • energy • automotive • aerospace.
You can also pursue careers in engineering design and development, engineering research, engineering consultancy and engineering management.
Completing this course combined with further work-based experience enables you to gain Chartered Engineer status.
The overall objective of this course is to add value to your first degree and previous relevant experience by developing a focused, integrated and critically aware understanding of underlying theory and current policy and practice in the field of control systems engineering.
The course is control systems focused, with the emphasis on control systems theory together with a range of control applications including industrial control (SCADA), intelligent control, flight control and robotic control. The control systems approach provides continuity in learning throughout the one year of study.
This course has been awarded accredited status by both the Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS) and the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) for 2010 to 2014 intake cohorts as meeting the exemplifying academic benchmark for registration as a Chartered Engineer (CEng) for students who also hold an accredited BEng Honours degree. Candidates who do not hold an appropriately accredited BEng Honours degree will gain partial exemption for CEng status; these candidates will need to have their first qualification individually assessed if they wish to progress onto CEng registration.
Professional registration and Institution membership will enhance your career in the following ways:
On completion of the course you should have a critical awareness and understanding of current problems in control engineering, techniques applicable to research in the field of control systems and how established techniques of research and enquiry are used to create and interpret knowledge in the field of control systems. You should also be able to deal with complex issues both systematically and creatively, make sound judgments in the absence of complete data, and communicate your conclusions clearly to specialist and non-specialists.
Teaching will be delivered through a combination of lectures, tutorials, computer workshops and laboratory activities.
Mechanical Lab – This lab is used to understand material behaviour under different loading conditions and contains a tensile test machine and static loading experiments – typical laboratory sessions would include tensile testing of materials and investigation into the bending and buckling behaviour of beams.
Aerodynamics Lab – Contains low speed and supersonic wind tunnels – typical laboratory experiments would include determining the aerodynamic properties of an aerofoil section and influence of wing sweep on the lift and drag characteristics of a tapered wing section.
Composite Material Lab – This lab contains wet lay-up and pre-preg facilities for fabrication of composite material test sections. The facility is particularly utilised for final year project work.
Control & Dynamics Lab – Contains flight simulators (see details below) and programmable control experiments – typical laboratory sessions would include studying the effects of damping and short period oscillation analysis, forced vibration due to rotating imbalance, and understanding the design and performance of proportional and integral controllers.
Flight Simulators
Merlin MP520-T Engineering Simulator
Elite Flight Training System
A wide range of control and automation opportunities in manufacturing and engineering companies, opportunities in the aerospace sector.
There are opportunities to go on to further research study within our CASE control and Intelligent Systems Research Centre.
Research themes in the Centre include:
This course is for students who already have a strong engineering background and wish to specialise in robotics and automation. This course has a particular emphasis on advanced robotics, where robots are designed to operate with a degree of intelligence.
You will gain a firm grounding in control engineering and intelligent systems concepts, along with the ability to comprehend and fully specify integrated automation systems embodying intelligence, robotic and automation hardware and software, and virtual reality (VR)/simulation technologies.
The course also provides a suitable background for research in advanced autonomous systems with reference to robotics.
You will be taught via a series of lectures and workshops with many of the modules taught via extensive hands-on practical lab-based sessions.
Practical experience includes the use of robotics platforms to produce a software system using the MATLAB toolboxes or the C programming language or to produce a finished hardware/software based mobile robotics system.
70% coursework and 30% examination.
There are dedicated labs and facilities for Robotics and Automation students, including: Industrial robots, flexi-picker, manipulators (Hitachi, KUKA) humanoid robots plus many mobile robots. Plus dedicated computing facilities
And if you do your MSc Project with an aerospace company, as many of our students do, then you will also have access to their facilities.
Graduates from this course can expect to find employment in a range of industries. Robotics and automation are continuously developing topics that present many career opportunities in areas such as robotic design, control systems integration and design, factory automation, engineering management and research.
Many of our students work on final year projects in conjunction with aeronautical companies associated with the University.
Many of our students go on to further study at the Centre for Advanced Robotics which is very closely linked with this course.
