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R. Ferrari

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93 records found

Journal article (2026) - Tushar Desai, Riccardo M.G. Ferrari
Accurate battery capacity forecasting is crucial for ensuring safe operation and effective maintenance scheduling. However, capacity prediction remains challenging due to the complex, nonlinear degradation processes influenced by diverse operational conditions and usage patterns. Existing operational condition analysis methods either treat voltage, current, and temperature independently, losing cross-variable coupling effects, or aggregate exposure durations without preserving temporal ordering, discarding transition dynamics that influence degradation pathways. This work addresses both limitations through a transition-aware encoding method that discretizes measurements into joint operational bins, tracking the sequence of transitions between bins and preserving both coupled effects and temporal dynamics. An encoder–decoder neural network processes these compact representations to generate capacity forecasts over extended horizons. Based on experimental data from lithium–iron–phosphate (LFP) cells undergoing nonlinear degradation, the proposed transition-aware encoding forecasts absolute capacity with a mean absolute percentage error of 1.68% and captures cycle-to-cycle capacity variation to within 0.16%, while simultaneously compressing raw time-series data by 94.3%. Compared to methods that discard temporal ordering or treat measurements independently, the proposed approach reduces worst-case capacity prediction errors by more than 50%. ...
Journal article (2026) - Luca Ballotta, Nicola Bastianello, Riccardo M.G. Ferrari, Karl H. Johansson
In this paper, we address two practical challenges of distributed learning in multi-agent network systems, namely personalization and resilience. Personalization is the need of heterogeneous agents to learn local models tailored to their own data and tasks, while still generalizing well; on the other hand, the learning process must be resilient to cyberattacks or anomalous training data to avoid disruption. Motivated by a conceptual affinity between these two requirements, we devise a distributed learning algorithm that combines distributed gradient descent and the Friedkin-Johnsen model of opinion dynamics to fulfill both of them. We quantify its convergence speed and the neighborhood that contains the final learned models, which can be easily controlled by tuning the algorithm parameters to enforce a more personalized/resilient behavior. We numerically showcase the effectiveness of our algorithm on synthetic and real-world distributed learning tasks, where it achieves high global accuracy both for personalized models and with malicious agents compared to standard strategies. ...
Journal article (2026) - Tushar Desai, Federico Oliva, Daniele Carnevale, Riccardo M.G. Ferrari
Accurate and robust state of charge (SOC) estimation is vital for reliable and safe battery operations. However, the nonlinear and time-varying dependence of the model parameters on the battery states makes the problem challenging. To address this task, we propose a moving-horizon estimation (MHE)-based robust approach for joint state and parameter reconstruction. Due to its optimization-based nature, the computational burden of MHE is a crucial challenge. To overcome this, we introduce a real-time adaptive sampling method based on wavelet analysis. The resulting adaptive multirate MHE dynamically selects the best measurements for solving the estimation problem. Such an approach reduces the computational burden by focusing on the most informative data in the measurement buffer. Last, we implement a parallelized observer structure, combining both multirate and reduced-order MHEs to further lower the computational burden while maintaining estimation accuracy. The proposed methods are validated using a first-order equivalent circuit model on real battery datasets, under moderate operating conditions. The adaptive sampling framework extends naturally to higher-order models with appropriate recalibration for more demanding scenarios. ...
Journal article (2025) - Bart Wolleswinkel, Ivo van Straalen, Luca Ballotta, Alexander J. Gallo, Riccardo M.G. Ferrari
Over-actuated systems, namely systems with more inputs than outputs, can increase control performance, yet are susceptible to model-based undetectable attacks if the actuator channel is compromised. In this paper, we show how implementing a sparse actuator schedule can introduce security by rendering these attacks ineffective. We formulate a novel methodology whereby a periodic sparse schedule, implemented at the actuators, secures the system by ensuring that a malicious adversary cannot exploit actuator redundancy to deploy undetectable attacks. The schedule is designed offline and repeats periodically at the actuators, so that the adversary is constrained to only tamper with the active actuators. We devise a degeneracyaware greedy selection procedure with low computational complexity to design an actuator schedule that renders undetectable attacks ineffective, whilst simultaneously providing relatively small performance degradation. We illustrate the effectiveness of our approach using a reference tracking model predictive controller on the IEEE-39 bus power network employing the designed sparse schedule. ...
Journal article (2025) - Alexander J. Gallo, Sribalaji C. Anand, Andre M.H. Teixeira, Riccardo M.G. Ferrari
Active techniques have been introduced to give better detectability performance for cyber-attack diagnosis in cyber–physical systems (CPS). In this paper, switching multiplicative watermarking is considered, whereby we propose an optimal design strategy to define switching filter parameters. Optimality is evaluated exploiting the so-called output-to-output gain of the closed-loop system, including some supposed attack dynamics. A worst-case scenario of a matched covert attack is assumed, presuming that an attacker with full knowledge of the closed-loop system injects a stealthy attack of bounded energy. Our algorithm, given watermark filter parameters at some time instant, provides optimal next-step parameters. Analysis of the algorithm is given, demonstrating its features, and demonstrating that through initialization of certain parameters outside of the algorithm, the parameters of the multiplicative watermarking can be randomized. Simulation shows how, by adopting our method for parameter design, the attacker’s impact on performance diminishes. ...

A Geometric Approach With Application to Privacy

Journal article (2025) - Guitao Yang, Alexander J. Gallo, Angelo Barboni, Riccardo M.G. Ferrari, Andrea Serrani, Thomas Parisini
This paper examines the properties of output-redundant systems, that is, systems possessing a larger number of outputs than inputs, through the lense of the geometric approach of Wonham et al. We begin by formulating a simple output allocation synthesis problem, which involves “concealing” input information from a malicious eavesdropper having access to the system output, while still allowing for a legitimate user to reconstruct it. It is shown that the solvability of this problem requires the availability of a redundant set of outputs. This very problem is instrumental to unveiling the fundamental geometric properties of output-redundant systems, which form the basis for our subsequent constructions and results. As a direct application, we demonstrate how output allocation can be employed to effectively protect the input information from certain output eavesdroppers with guaranteed results. ...
Conference paper (2025) - Wolfram Martens, Manon Kok, Riccardo Ferrari
This article addresses sequential Bayesian filtering for nonlinear and stochastic dynamical systems. We extend a Galerkin-approach that was previously used for the prediction of non-Gaussian probability density functions, to incorporate linear and non-linear measurement updates. The proposed method results in a linear pipeline of prediction and update steps, which are computed as sparse matrix operations on the finite-dimensional coefficient vector. The performance of our approach is demonstrated in numerical experiments for nonlinear dynamical 2D- and 4D-systems, using results of a standard particle filter as reference, both in terms of accuracy and computational expenses. ...
High penetration of wind energy is pushing wind farms (WFs) to offer grid support capabilities, such as active power tracking. One of the main challenges in active power tracking for WFs is the interaction of wind turbines (WTs) through their wakes. This reduces the available wind in downstream WTs, leading them to saturation, while also affecting structural loading. With the increasing number of WTs in individual WFs, the computational and communication complexity of implementing centralized control architectures grows, posing challenges for real-world applications. In this article, we present a novel distributed control approach for active power tracking for WFs, namely multirate consensus-based distributed control (MCDC). The MCDC is designed to ensure that tracking errors caused by WT saturation are equally compensated throughout the WF, while only requiring local information exchanges between WTs. Furthermore, the proposed controller ensures that WT aerodynamic loading is balanced across the WF in a distributed manner. Finally, the overall power reference is distributed via a leader–follower consensus algorithm, resulting in a fully distributed approach. Our control approach facilitates the WF modularity and sparsity, which reduces the costs associated with control design and its applicability. Throughout this article, we demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed MCDC through high-fidelity simulations, presenting performance comparable to the centralized control. ...
Conference paper (2025) - I. van Straalen, A.J. Gallo, Riccardo M.G. Ferrari, M. Mazo
We propose a novel cyber-attack detection scheme for control schemes regulated via Stochastic Event-Triggered Control, to detect packets that are maliciously injected by an adversary. The diagnosis scheme relies on assessing whether the arrival time of the information packets received from the controller are compatible with the nominal probability distribution of triggering, or whether they are anomalous. To contrast the threat of an eavesdropping adversary capable of estimating the nominal triggering distribution, we propose a switching scheme, whereby the probability of triggering is drawn among a set of stochastic triggering mechanisms, which is such that the reconstruction of the communication pattern by an eavesdropper becomes computationally infeasible. We design the set of stochastic triggering mechanisms via the solution of an optimization problem, which embeds an explicit trade-off between the properties of the nominal Stochastic Event-Triggered Controller and the detection scheme. The results are illustrated through a numerical example. ...
Conference paper (2025) - Bart Wolleswinkel, Riccardo Ferrari, M. Mazo
We propose a novel watermarking scheme by modifying a self-triggered control (STC) policy, aimed at detecting replay attacks for linear time-invariant (LTI) systems. We show that by employing non-deterministic early triggering of the STC mechanism, replay attacks can be detected by a modified χ2 detector which takes into account the aperiodic nature of the inter-sample times. Specifically, we consider the case where a periodic reference signal is tracked, which makes these systems vulnerable to replay attacks. The proposed approach is modular and can be retrofitted to legacy systems. An approach for designing an online optimal early triggering mechanism is provided. This is validated through an illustrative numerical example in which we compare our method to scenarios employing both additive and multiplicative watermarking. ...
Journal article (2025) - Tushar Desai, Alexander J. Gallo, Riccardo M.G. Ferrari
Developing accurate models for batteries, capturing ageing effects and nonlinear behaviors, is critical for the development of efficient and effective performance. Due to the inherent difficulties in developing physics-based models, data-driven techniques have been gaining popularity. However, most machine learning methods are black boxes, lacking interpretability and requiring large amounts of labeled data. In this paper, we propose a physics-informed encoder–decoder model that learns from unlabeled data to separate slow-changing battery states, such as state of charge (SOC) and state of health (SOH), from fast transient responses, thereby increasing interpretability compared to conventional methods. By integrating physics-informed loss functions and modified architectures, we map the encoder output to quantifiable battery states, without needing explicit SOC and SOH labels. Our proposed approach is validated on a lithium-ion battery ageing dataset capturing dynamic discharge profiles that aim to mimic electric vehicle driving profiles. The model is trained and validated on sparse intermittent cycles (6 %–7 % of all cycles), accurately estimating SOC and SOH while providing accurate multistep ahead voltage predictions across single and multiple-cell based training scenarios. ...
Conference paper (2025) - Y. Wang, R. M. G. Ferrari, M. Verhaegen
Accurate identification of lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery parameters is essential for managing and predicting battery behavior. However, existing discrete-time methods hinder the estimation of physical parameters and face the fast-slow dynamics problem of the battery. In this paper, we develop a continuous-time approach that enables the estimation of battery parameters directly from sampled data. This method avoids discretization errors in converting continuous-time models into discrete-time ones. Moreover, the developed method is capable of jointly identifying the open-circuit voltage (OCV) and the state of charge (SOC) relation of batteries without utilizing offline OCV tests. By modeling the OCV-SOC curve as a cubic B-spline, we represent the piecewise nonlinearity of the OCV curve with high fidelity, facilitating its estimation. By solving a rank and L1 regularized least squares problem, we identify battery parameters and the OCV-SOC relation directly from the battery’s dynamic data. Simulated and real-life data validate the effectiveness of the developed method. ...
Conference paper (2025) - B. Wolleswinkel, M. Mazo, R. Ferrari
Zero dynamics attacks (ZDAs) have received considerable attention in the control systems literature, as they can be disruptive while being almost virtually to detect from the measured output of the plant. However, as ZDAs require an unbounded input sequence, the effect of physical constraints on the actuators, in the form of saturation, must be taken into account. In this work, we show that conventional methods for constructing ZDAs, when subject to input saturation, can make these attacks no longer disruptive, stealthy, or both. While this might imply that some systems are safe from ZDAs, we introduced a new attack called a relaxed ZDA, which can be disruptive and practically stealthy even under input constraints. For the construction of relaxed ZDAs, we propose a method that involves solving an optimization problem offline. We demonstrate the versatility of the proposed method and show it succeeds where conventional ZDAs fall short by means of an illustrative example on a cyber-physical system (CPS). ...
Journal article (2025) - Twan Keijzer, Paula Chanfreut, José María Maestre, Riccardo Maria Giorgio Ferrari
The wireless communication used by vehicles in collaborative vehicle platoons is vulnerable to cyber-attacks, which threaten their safe operation. To address this issue we propose a topology-switching coalitional model predictive control (MPC) method based on a reduced order unknown input observer which detects and isolates the cyber-attacks, so that the attacked communication links can be disabled by means of a topology switch. Also, the MPC controller is designed to guarantee robustness against undetected attacks and the increase of uncertainty derived from disabling communication links. The proposed control method also conforms to a relaxed string stability condition and is guaranteed to be safe against crashes. ...

A Multi-rate Distributed Control Approach

With the increasing share of renewable energy, concerns regarding ensuring power system stability are ever more relevant and have been accompanied by discussions to address this yet unsolved issue. Nonetheless, enhancing sparsity and increasing generation capacity by overplanting wind turbines not only mitigates the stability problem but also accelerates the transition from fossil fuel to renewable energy sources. With the high penetration of wind energy, there will be a paradigm shift from maximizing energy extraction to generating energy on demand. In this panorama, a cooperative wind farm control may strengthen the stability of the wind power plant through compensation strategies. Still, large-scale farms raise relevant control issues regarding computation effort and information sharing, such as topology constraints and communication overhead. Here, we contribute by presenting a multi-rate distributed control strategy based on average consensus. This strategy involves estimating the power-tracking errors at a fast sampling rate and executing local control actions that collaboratively mitigate these errors over an extended sampling period. This approach achieves performance comparable to that of the resource-intensive centralized approach. The reliability is therefore enhanced by improving the power regulation while reaching modularity and sparsity inside the farm. ...
Conference paper (2025) - Y. Wang, Riccardo M.G. Ferrari
Accurate identification of lithium-ion battery parameters is essential for estimating battery states and managing performance. However, the variation of battery parameters over the state of charge (SOC) and the nonlinear dependence of the open-circuit voltage (OCV) on the SOC complicate the identification process. In this work, we develop a continuous-time LPV system identification approach to identify the SOC-dependent battery parameters and the OCV-SOC mapping. We model parameter variations using cubic B-splines to capture the piecewise nonlinearity of the variations and estimate signal derivatives via state variable filters, facilitating CT-LPV identification. Battery parameters and the OCV-SOC mapping are jointly identified by solving L1-regularized least squares problems. Numerical experiments on a simulated battery and real-life data demonstrate the effectiveness of the developed method in battery identification, presenting improved performance compared to conventional RLS-based methods. ...
Journal article (2025) - Bart Wolleswinkel, Manuel Mazo, Riccardo Ferrari
We describe a new variant of zero dynamics attack (ZDA), what we call a switched ZDA, targeting linear time-invariant (LTI) sampled-data systems with non-uniform sampling. Specifically, we consider continuous-time systems and construct attacks that exploit the unstable sampling zeros resulting from a zero-order hold (ZOH) mechanism. These attacks can be constructed by strong adversaries who have knowledge of the plant dynamics, with the additional requirement that they can determine the next sampling instant. We provide sufficient conditions when cyber-physical systems are vulnerable to switched ZDAs, and prove that these attacks can be disruptive while remaining stealthy. We also provide two possible countermeasures that make switched ZDAs ineffective. The first countermeasure revolves around creating a mismatch between the next sampling instant as predicted by the adversary and the true one, which makes the switched ZDAs no longer stealthy. The second countermeasure relies on increasing the inter-sample times such that the system no longer contains unstable sampling zeros, making the switched ZDA no longer disruptive. We demonstrate the vulnerability of sampled-data systems with non-uniform sampling to switched ZDAs in several illustrative examples, and exemplify the effectiveness of the proposed countermeasures. ...
Model-based fault detection identifies anomalies by comparing a system's output with the prediction from a model. Although such a technique can be very powerful, it may suffer from the computational complexity of its underlying models, especially for large systems. An alternative approach that circumvents this cost increase uses barrier functions, which abstract the system's behaviour into a single value. In this paper, we propose a fault detection mechanism via output-based barrier functions, that does not require to estimate the full state, copes with noisy processes, and is tailored to safety-critical faults as given by a user-defined safe region. We leverage such a mechanism by introducing so-called p-fault tolerant sets, which guarantee that a faulty system requires at least p time steps before reaching any unsafe state. Our approach is validated through numerical experiments on two systems with linear and nonlinear dynamics, along with the classic three-tank model. ...