Seminar title

Design of Robust Multivariable Controllers and Applications in Inverter-Based Microgrids

Speaker

Houshang Karimi, Professor, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at York University, Toronto

Abstract

A systematic framework for the design of robust multivariable controllers and their application to inverter-based microgrids is presented. The method provides a practical and accessible approach for Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) control systems subject to uncertainties and coupling effects. The graphical nature of the method allows it to be viewed as a root-locus-based approach for MIMO systems.

The framework combines a servo-compensator for tracking and disturbance rejection with an optimal stabilizing compensator formulated via linear quadratic tracking (LQT). This enables systematic tuning to achieve closed-loop stability, reduced interactions, and improved transient performance.

Applications to power electronic converter-based microgrids demonstrate superior performance compared to conventional Single-Input Single-Output (SISO) designs, particularly under uncertainties and weak grid conditions, while resulting in structurally simple controllers.

Bio

Houshang Karimi (Senior Member, IEEE) received his B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees from Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan, Iran, in 1994 and 2000, respectively, and the Ph.D. degree from the University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada, in 2007, all in electrical engineering. He was a Visiting Researcher and a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Toronto, from 2001 to 2003 and from 2007 to 2008, respectively. He was an Assistant Professor with the Department of Electrical Engineering, Arya Mehr University of Technology, Tehran, Iran, from 2009 to 2012. From June 2012 to January 2013, he was a Visiting Professor in the ePower lab of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON, Canada. He was a faculty member of the Department of Electrical Engineering at Polytechnique Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada, from 2013 to 2022.

In July 2022, he joined the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at York University, Toronto, Ontario, where he is currently a Professor. His research interests include power systems, control systems, microgrid control, and smart grid.

Lunch will be provided at 12:30 P.M.

Zoom Meeting ID and Passcode will be shared in the RSVP reply.