Symmetry/Asymmetry in Control Theory

A special issue of Symmetry (ISSN 2073-8994). This special issue belongs to the section "Engineering and Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2026 | Viewed by 591

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Laboratory of Computer Systems Engineering, Mathematics and Applications (ISIMA), National High School of Artificial Intelligence and Data Science (ENSIASD), Ibnou Zohr University, Taroudant, Morocco
Interests: robust control; robotic systems; electrical engineering

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Guest Editor
Laboratory of Mechanical, Computer, Electronics and Telecommunications, Faculty of Sciences and Technology, Hassan First University, Settat 26000, Morocco
Interests: renewable energy optimization; power system control; AI-driven parameter estimation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The complex interrelationship between symmetry and asymmetry in control theory is examined in this Special Issue. Control theory provides the mathematical and engineering foundations for analyzing, designing, and optimizing systems that govern dynamic processes in a variety of fields, ranging from mechanical and electrical systems to biological and social networks.

For controlled systems to be stable, robust, and effective, symmetry and asymmetry are essential. With this Special Issue, we aim to bring together a collection of research articles that investigate how symmetric structures can simplify system analysis and design, and how asymmetries can significantly influence system behavior.

The research scopes of this Special Issue are included in the following journal sections: mathematic, computer, and engineering end material. This Special Issue aims to investigate novel control techniques suited to symmetric and asymmetric dynamics, as well as their uses in robotics, distributed systems, and energy systems, among other fields. The Special Issue seeks to offer fresh perspectives and approaches that improve the flexibility, dependability, and effectiveness of contemporary control systems by emphasizing both theoretical and practical viewpoints.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

  • Control design for disturbed systems;
  • Optimal and intelligent control in disturbed systems;
  • Adaptive and robust control under asymmetric uncertainties;
  • Machine learning and AI approaches in control theory;
  • Application of control in: Energy systems, robotics, mechatronics.

Dr. Brahim Moudoud
Dr. Azeddine Loulijat
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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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.

Keywords

  • adaptive control
  • intelligent control
  • fuzzy logic control
  • observer-based control
  • symmetry/asymmetry in dynamics
  • distributed and networked systems
  • asymmetry in stability

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

22 pages, 4182 KB  
Article
Model-Free Non-Singular Fast Terminal Sliding Mode Control Based on Agricultural Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Electrical Control System
by Mingyuan Hu, Longhui Qi, Changning Wei, Lei Zhang, Yaqing Gu, Bo Gao, Yang Liu and Dongjun Zhang
Symmetry 2026, 18(4), 678; https://doi.org/10.3390/sym18040678 - 18 Apr 2026
Viewed by 278
Abstract
Permanent magnet synchronous motors (PMSMs) are widely used in agricultural unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) electromechanical systems for their high efficiency and power density. While sliding mode control (SMC) offers robustness for PMSM drives, conventional designs face challenges like slow convergence, singularity, and chattering. [...] Read more.
Permanent magnet synchronous motors (PMSMs) are widely used in agricultural unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) electromechanical systems for their high efficiency and power density. While sliding mode control (SMC) offers robustness for PMSM drives, conventional designs face challenges like slow convergence, singularity, and chattering. This paper proposes a model-free improved non-singular fast terminal SMC scheme with an improved adaptive super-twisting algorithm and a disturbance observer (MFINFTSMC-IADSTA-IFTSMO) for agricultural UAV applications. The designed sliding surface ensures fixed-time convergence without singularity, the adaptive reaching law reduces chattering, and the observer enables feedforward compensation of disturbances. Closed-loop stability is proven via Lyapunov theory. DSP-based experiments demonstrate that the proposed method outperforms existing SMC variants in dynamic response, steady-state accuracy, chattering suppression, and disturbance rejection. Specifically, the proposed method achieves a start-up convergence time of only 0.35 s, which is 56.25% shorter than that of the classic SMC-STA method, fully verifying its superior fast convergence performance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Symmetry/Asymmetry in Control Theory)
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