During his PhD studies, Abdelhakim researched autonomy in marine robotic systems for inspection tasks. Abdelhakim developed an open-source marine robotics simulator with highly realistic rendering to enable robust testing and synthetic data generation. He proposed novel model predictive control-based coverage path planning methods that account for tether constraints and ensure complete area coverage. To improve control accuracy and robustness in uncertain underwater environments, he applied advanced data-driven modeling techniques, including Gaussian processes and physics-informed neural networks.

The new research findings contribute to more reliable, adaptive, and safe marine robotic systems capable of autonomous inspection and surveying operations.

The PhD study was completed at the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, Faculty of Technical Sciences, Aarhus University.

This summary was prepared by the PhD student.

Time: Monday, 22 September 2025 at 13:00
Place: Building 5124, room 026, Aarhus University, Finlandsgade 20, 8200 Aarhus N
Title of PhD thesis: Autonomous Marine Robots Optimal Control and Path Planning with Data-Driven Models
Contact information: Abdelhakim Amer, e-mail: abdelhakim@ece.au.dk, tel.: +45 50293663
Members of the assessment committee:
Professor Moritz Schulze Darup, Lehrstuhl für Regelsungstechnik und cyberphysische Syteme, TU Dortmund University, Germany
Associate Professor Matteo Fumagalli, Department of Electrical and Photonics Engenieering, Electro Technology Automation and Control, Danmarks Tekniske Universitet
Professor Rune Hylsberg Jacobsen, (chair) Electrical and Computer Engineering Aarhus University, Denmark
Main supervisor: Professor Henrik Karstoft, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Aarhus University, Denmark
Co-supervisor: Professor Erdal Kayacan , University of Paderborn, Germany
Language: The PhD dissertation will be defended in English

The defence is public.
The PhD thesis is available for reading at the Graduate School of Technical Sciences/GSTS, Ny Munkegade 120, building 1521, 8000 Aarhus C.