Symmetry/Asymmetry in Control Science

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce the upcoming Special Issue on "Symmetry/Asymmetry in Control Science". This Issue aims to explore how symmetry and asymmetry influence control science in the domain of robotics, such as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs), Unmanned Surface Vessels (USVs), Autonomous Surface Vehicles (ASVs), Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUVs), Space Exploration Vehicles (SEVs), Lunar Roving Vehicles, and Mars rovers. By reading this Special Issue, researchers and readers will gain insights into the development of novel control techniques, especially on how to enable more efficient, adaptable, and reliable robotic systems across domains such as aerial, ground, surface, underwater, space exploration, and lunar and planetary exploration. By addressing the challenges posed by asymmetries and harnessing the benefits of symmetries, we can unlock new possibilities and advancements in navigation, path planning, control, guidance, Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM), and other control techniques.

In the past decades, the field of robotics has witnessed remarkable advancements, enabling the deployment of various unmanned vehicles in diverse environments. Robotic systems are designed to operate autonomously in complex and challenging environments for a wide range of applications, from aerial surveillance and package delivery to ground-based exploration, underwater research, and extraterrestrial missions. The control science behind these robotic systems is crucial for achieving efficient and reliable operation in these demanding scenarios. Relevant topics include path planning, control, guidance, and SLAM.

Understanding the dynamics of symmetry and asymmetry is extremely important for developing efficient and robust control strategies because (i) symmetry analysis provides valuable insights into the structure and behaviour of robotic systems. By identifying and leveraging inherent symmetries, control strategies can be designed to exploit system properties, optimize navigation, enhance path planning, improve control, enable accurate guidance, and enable robust SLAM algorithms. Symmetry-based approaches have demonstrated significant success in various robotic applications, leading to improved performance, energy efficiency, and overall system reliability. (ii) Real-world scenarios often introduce asymmetries that impact the control and operation of robotic vehicles. Uneven terrains, varying water currents, sensor limitations, communication constraints, and the unpredictable nature of space exploration pose challenges that require innovative control solutions. Effectively addressing and adapting to these asymmetries is crucial for maintaining stability, safety, and mission success.

We kindly invite all researchers working in the area to contribute to this Special Issue.

Dr. Jinjin Yan
Dr. Lyudmila Mihaylova
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Symmetry is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.