The Argentina Joint Chapter (control systems, industrial electronics, robotics and automation, industry
applications, power electronics) has a total of 968 members. The Control Systems Society contributes to
this chapter with 345 members (115 of them are student members).

The geographical distribution of the members of the chapter is shown in the map below (Figure 1). It is important to note the large concentration of members in Buenos Aires City (40% of the total). Córdoba City has 10% of the CSS members, and Bahía Blanca, La Plata, San Juan and Rosario have approximately 7% each. Also the Comahue region in north Patagonia has another 5%. There are approximately 60 researchers in the field of Control Systems in Argentina. Most of them are associated to the National Universities and the National Research Council (CONICET), and they belong to Active Control Groups. They work in several cities, in Research and Development Groups as shown in Figure 2.

Some of them are members of IEEE and collaborate in the activities of the joint chapter. The research
activities of the different groups are funded through different ways.

They receive funding for research projects and graduate students from the National Universities, the
National Agency for Science and Technology Promotion (ANPCyT), the National Research Council
(CONICET), State research Councils (CICpBA, CONICOR). Some additional funding for research
projects are obtained from Industry.

The following Table shows a description of active research groups.  Only three of these Groups involve
more than ten researchers, they are: INAUT, LEICI and Systems Control Group "Ing. Alfredo Desages"

ADQDAT Group on Development in Data Adquisition, Control and Supervision, Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires at Olavarría

This group began its activities in 1993. It is a small interdisciplinary group of 5 researchers. They work
on applied research and technological developments in the following areas:

• Control and Supervision based on Artificial Intelligence.
• Microprocessor Architectures and Logical Programmable Devices.
• Industrial Communications based on open protocol for distributed control.
• Harmonics Compensation in Electrical Distribution Networks.

Applied Electronics Group (GEA) Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto

Since 1995, the Applied Electronic Group is working in research and development of electronics
systems. The group is formed by 3 researchers and 4 graduate students. The principal research areas are

• Control Applications of microprocessors
• Power Electronics
• Electric Drives
• Modeling and simulation of electronics systems and control using digital computers.

The automatic control and systems group began its activities in 1994. Currently it has 4 researchers
who are involved in teaching and research of signal processing, identification and automatic control
and their applications in electrochemical, bioprocesses and power electronics.

• Robust parallel model filters design using polynomial approach.
• Estimation and parameters identification using electrochemical impedance.
• State estimation and modeling of batch bioprocesses.
• Nonlinear control via observers.
• Sensorless control of AC drives.

There are several groups working on different topics of Automatic control within the Universidad de
Buenos Aires. All of them participate in the Masters program in Simulation & Control and the
Ph.D. program.

This group began its activity in 1989. Its research is related to the management of uncertain systems,
in a context of robust identification and control and the development of several experiments related
to aerospace applications. The group is formed by 5 researchers and 5 graduate students and the work
is specifically divided into the following areas:

• Robust and LPV Control. Applications to magnetic bearing motors, satellites and launchers.
• Robust Identification. Robust ID Toolbox applied to aerospace flexible structures.
• Simulation: Development of a 6DOF simulation of propulsed aerospace vehicles and a physical
  pneumatic simulator of a satellite with 3DOF for attitude control.
• Sensor Integration: Development of an integrated INS/GPS Navigator.

Control Applications Group:

This group involves 2 researchers. The main activities are

• Real time control based on DSP
• Industrial buses.

Neural Network Group:

The group is formed by 2 researchers and 3 grad. students working on

• Adaptive systems based on Neural Network.
• Applications to trajectory computation in robotics.

Robotics Laboratory:

This group started its activities in 1988 and it currently involves 5 researchers. The main activities
focus on:

• Robotic Manipulators: Cinematic, Dynamics
• Identification and control of position and torque
• Cooperative movement,
• Redundant and parallel manipulators

Control Group of the Department of Mathematics:

This group is formed by 5 researchers. The main research activities are

• topics of nonlinear control
• hybrid systems
• variable structure control
• nonlinear observers.

Laboratory of Electric Drives and Power Electronics:

This group is formed by 3 researchers. Their research activity involves

• Power converters structure
• battery chargers and interruptible power supplies
• electric power quality, power factor correction
• hybrid vehicles

This is a research group within the School of Electronics Engineering, College of Engineering at the
Universidad Nacional de Rosario. The group is involved in teaching and research activities in the areas
of Modeling, Identification, Simulation and Control of Dynamical Systems. Currently the group is
composed of 3 researchers and 2 PhD students. Research topics include

• Analysis and Control of Nonlinear Systems
• Model Predictive Control
• Bond Graph Based Modeling, Simulation, Analysis and Nonlinear Control Synthesis.
• Motion Control Systems
• Control of Electric Drives
• Power Electronics
• Nonlinear Identification using Orthonormal Bases
• Signal Processing Applications of DSP
• Modeling, Simulation and Control of Hybrid Systems
• Fault Modeling and Simulation with the DEVS-formalism.

Industrial Automation and Control Group - Universidad Nacional de Quilmes

This young group started in 1998 with the organization of the Engineering in Industrial Automation
and Control career at the Universidad Nacional de Quilmes (a small, dynamic university founded 10
years ago in the southern neighborhoods surrounding Buenos Aires). The group includes 2 researchers
and 2 graduate students as full-time members, and 4 part-time research assistants. Its present activities
focus on the consolidation of teaching and research labs, and the development of the following lines of
research and engineering projects:

• Advanced Control Techniques
• Performance limitations in nonlinear control systems.
• Quantification of unmodeled dynamics in identification.
• Identification and control in industrial baking processes.
• Artificial Vision for Non-Destructive Testing and Measurement
• Measurement and flaw detection in the production of gas and oil pipes and couples.
• Measurement in continuous industrial baking processes.
• Instrumentation and Industrial Communications
• Integration of field sensors, control devices, and supervision systems.
• Software development for communication protocols.

INAUT began its activities in 1973 at the School of Engineering, National University of San Juan.
At present, 23 researchers and 25 posgraduate students are involved in research activities at INAUT.
The objectives of this Institute are scientific research, development and industrial transfer of technology
in the field of Automatic Control. Main areas of research include Robotics and Automation, Process
Control, Applied Artificial Intelligence, Industrial Electronics and Sensors. The facilities include the
Robotics Lab, the Process Control Lab and the Sensorial Systems Lab. Since 1990, INAUT has
been carrying out a MSc and a PhD posgraduate program in Engineering with specialization in
Control Systems. Thirteen national funded research projects and seven international cooperation
projects provide the main financial source for research activities and make possible strong
international links. INAUT is continuously involved in technology transfer activities to the local
industry.

Industrial Electronics, Control and Instrumentation Laboratory (LEICI). 
Universidad Nacional de La Plata

LEICI began its activities in 1968 developing instruments for experimental physics. In 1974 the group's
first works on Automatic Control took place. Along the 30 years of existence more members were
incorporated and there are currently 13 researchers. Today about 20 grad students are working towards
their Master's or Doctor's degrees. The main objective is teaching and research in the areas of Automatic
Control, Signal Processing and Energy Conversion. The Laboratory is divided into 5 groups with a
specific orientation:

• Power Electronics
• Real Time Systems
• Control Strategies
• Statistical Signal Processing
• Instrumentation

These groups interact to carry on several multidisciplinary research projects:

• Motor drives: sensorless control, observers, fault detection
• Power converters
• Flicker measurements in electric distribution lines
• Measurement and control of non active power in distribution lines.
• Control strategies for wind energy conversion
• Multivariable Control
• Neural net and fuzzy logic applications
• Non linear systems
• System modelling, parameter estimation and fault detection and identification
• Instrumentation
• Sensor Array processing

Instrumentation and Control Group (LIC). Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata

LIC began its activities in 1983. Currently it involves 5 researchers and 8 grad students. The main activities
are related to teaching and research in Motion Control and Power Electronics.

• Thyristor Converters.
• Space Vector PWM methods in AC Drives
• Stepper Motors Drives
• Velocity Profiles
• State estimation and parameters identification in AC Drives.
• Logic Gate Arrays application on Power Electronics and Motion Control.

Process Control Group INTEC. Universidad Nacional del Litoral

This group is in charge of the teaching and research activities on control in the Chemical Engineering
doctoral program at the Universidad Nacional del Litoral (Santa Fe). The group includes three
professors, two graduate students and two part-time research assistants.

Its present activities focus on the development of the following research lines:

• Control and optimization of heat exchange systems.
• Estimation and control of batch bioreactors.
• Control of nonlinear systems.
• Monitoring and statistical process control techniques.

Systems Control Group "Ing. Alfredo Desages".   Universidad Nacional del Sur

This group began its activities in 1983 in the Department of Electrical Engineering. Currently, it is a
group of 10 researchers. Teaching activities (undergraduate and graduate) are in the field of systems
control, signal processing and dynamical systems. Research areas include

• Identification and Modeling of Linear and Nonlinear Systems.
• Analysis and Control of Linear and Nonlinear Systems.
• Robust Control, Adaptive Control, Optimizing Control and Control of Stochastic Systems.
• Nonlinear dynamics in engineering systems.

Since 1991, a Ph.D. program on Control Systems was incorporated at the Universidad Nacional del Sur.