On May 21th, Prof. XU Chao, current Associate Dean of the College of Control Science & Engineering, Zhejiang University as well as the inaugural Dean of ZJU Huzhou Institute visited ZJUI and presented a wonderful talk themed as “Intelligent Flight: Evolution from Individual to Swarm.” Focusing on the latest research progress of his research team, Prof. XU had an in-depth exchange with the students and faculty members in attendance. The seminar was hosted by Prof. Lee Der-Horng, Dean of the ZJUI.

Prof. XU began his prologue with this statement:“Aerial Robot (especially multi-rotor copters) is an ideal research platform for autonomous guidance, navigation, control(GNC) studies.” He then introduced several latest technologies of the Field Autonomous System and Computing (FAST) Laboratory in Zhejiang University including autonomous navigation, micro-drone design and control, real-time planning for aggressive locomotion, and fully autonomous swarming flight. Additionally, combined with several practical applications, Prof. XU had a lively discussion with students and faculty members on the practical application and great value of Unmanned Aerial Systems.

Prof. XU Chao received his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the Leigh University. He is currently the Associate Dean and Professor of Cybernetic Physics & Autonomous Mobility (CPAM) with the College of Control Science & Engineering, Zhejiang University. He serves as the inaugural Dean of ZJU Huzhou Institute, as well as plays the role of the Managing Editor for two international journals, e.g., IET Cyber-Systems & Robotics (IET-CSR), and Journal of Industrial & Management Optimization (JIMO). His research expertise is Cybernetic Physics & Autonomous Mobility in general, with a focus on, modeling & control of aerial robotics with applications, machine learning for dynamic systems & control, visual sensing & machine learning for complex fluids. Prof. Xu has published over 100 papers on international journals, including Science Robotics, IEEE Transactions, etc. Breakthrough on swarm aerial robotics from his research team has been reported by Science and IEEE-Spectrum. He is also the recipient of the International Aerial Robotics Competition Championship (2018), the Champion of the World Robotic Sailing Competition (2019), the second Runner-up of the 2nd Intelligent Unmanned Aerial Vehicle System Challenge (2021), the Runner-up of the “Overcome Obstacles” Water Race (2021).

Prof. XU was invited by YANG Liangjing, a Researcher and Assistant Professor at ZJUI, to share his research progress with students and faculty members of ZJUI's "Machine Learning Seminar" for the purpose of inspiring innovative ideas. The atmosphere of the discussion was active and intriguing. By in-depth discussion, the participants deepened their understanding of the frontiers of science and technology in related fields, which would be very enlightening for the further development of related scientific research work by faculty and students of ZJUI.