Curriculum Vitae

Education

• Ph.D. in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of California Irvine, June 2026 (Expected)
  • Dissertation: Collaborative Interactions in Heterogeneous Multi-Robot Systems
• M.S. in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of California Irvine, June 2022
  • Thesis: Aerial Vehicle Navigation with Terrestrial Signals of Opportunity: Performance Analysis and Transmitter Selection [PDF]
• B.S. with Honors in Mechanical Engineering, University of California Santa Barbara, June 2020
• A.S. with Honors in Mechanical Engineering, Diablo Valley College, May 2018

Research Experience

• UCI Robot Ecology Laboratory (Irvine, CA), Graduate Student Researcher, Sept. 2022 - Present
  • Advisors: Magnus Egerstedt and Faryar Jabbari
    • Investigate why, how, and when different types of robots should collaborate through the expansion/contraction of reachable sets, a hybrid automata-based framework, and the satisfaction of specific pairwise conditions, leveraging tools from control theory and optimization.
    • Explored the application of ecological principles in robotics to understand how the environment can influence when robots should work together.
    • Led the assembly and programming of differential- and mecanum-wheeled robots in the UCI Robotarium, overseeing task delegation among 12 undergraduate and graduate lab members.
    • Conducted lab tours, which include live demonstrations of mobile robots performing coordinated behaviors, to 500+ visitors (e.g., K-12 student field trips, engineering outreach programs, UCI alumni events, and visiting researchers).
• Multi-Robot Systems Laboratory (Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico), Visiting Researcher, Oct. 2023 - Nov. 2023
  • Advisor: Luis Guerrero-Bonilla
    • Designed a scalable, pairwise collaboration architecture, comprised of a centralized queue to determine pairwise arrangements between robots and a finite state machine for decision-making, enabling individual robots to enhance their functionality
    • Collaborated with four graduate and undergraduate students to build and program the Dingo-O robot that was deployed in the ITESM Robotarium.
    • Designed a mechanical structure for integration onto the Dingo-O robot.
• Autonomous Systems, Perception, Intelligence, and Navigation Laboratory (Irvine, CA), Graduate Student Researcher, Sept. 2020 - June 2022
  • Advisor: Zak Kassas
    • Spearheaded the opportunistic aerial vehicle navigation projects, which involved developing computationally efficient transmitter selection strategies and evaluating the navigation performance of aerial vehicles using an inertial navigation system and ambient cellular signals in GPS-denied environments.
    • Processed and analyzed data collected by an uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) from cellular towers during flight experiments.
    • Assisted graduate students in mounting and configuring communication electronics, such as antennas and receivers, for flight experiments with a UAV
• Biological Control Laboratory (Santa Barbara, CA), Undergraduate Research Assistant, Sept. 2019 - Mar. 2020
  • Advisor: Enoch Yeung
    • Investigated new data-driven methods for synthesis of genetic circuits for nonlinear biological systems.
    • Prepared synthetic biology experiments and performed data collection for two graduate students and a junior research associate.

Work Experience

• Autonomy Technology Research Center Summer Program (Dayton, OH), Electrical Engineer, June 2021 - Sept. 2021 &
  June 2022 - Sept. 2022
  • Mentors: Mark Carroll and Mark Smearcheck
    • Developed a Monte Carlo-based navigation simulator to evaluate high-altitude aircraft performance in long-duration, GPS-denied missions using ambient cellular signals under varying environmental conditions.
    • Processed cellular signal data (i.e., pseudorange measurements) collected by a fixed-wing U.S. Air Force aircraft during an extensive flight campaign at the Edwards Air Force Base.
    • Benchmarked the estimation accuracy, convergence behavior, and computational efficiency of various nonlinear stochastic filters, such as the extended Kalman filter and its related variants, using the post-processed flight cellular signal data. <!–* Debriefed 30+ AFRL researchers in the Navigation and Communication branch (RYWN) on the project findings.
    • Presented project findings at the ATR Center Summer Workshop as a talk to 100+ attendees.–>

Journal Publications

• A. A. Nguyen , M. Rodriguez Curras, M. Egerstedt, and J. N. Pauli, “Mutualisms as a Framework for Multi-Robot Collaboration,” in Frontiers in Robotics and AI , vol. 12, p. 1566452, Mar. 2025.
• A. A. Nguyen , F. Jabbari, and M. Egerstedt, “Resiliency Through Collaboration in Heterogeneous Multi-Robot Systems,” in IEEE Open Journal of Control Systems , vol. 3, pp. 461-471, Sept. 2024.
• A. A. Nguyen , L. Guerrero-Bonilla, F. Jabbari, and M. Egerstedt, “Scalable, Pairwise Collaborations in Heterogeneous Multi-Robot Teams,” in IEEE Control System Letters , vol. 8, pp. 604-609, May 2024.
• A. A. Nguyen and Z. Kassas, “Efficient Transmitter Selection Strategies for Improved Information Gathering of Aerial Vehicle Navigation in GNSS-Denied Environments,” in IEEE Aerospace and Electronic Systems Magazine , vol. 38, no. 10, pp. 26-39, Oct. 2023.

Conference Publications

• A. A. Nguyen , F. Jabbari, and M. Egerstedt, “Energy-Based Scheduling for Collaborative Robot Mobility,” in American Control Conference , 2026 (Accepted).
• A. A. Nguyen , F. Jabbari, and M. Egerstedt, “Mutualistic Interactions in Heterogeneous Multi-Agent Systems,” in IEEE Conference on Decision and Control , 2023, pp. 411-418.
• A. A. Nguyen and Z. Kassas, “Transmitter Selection for Improved Information Gathering in Aerial Vehicle Navigation with Terrestrial Signals of Opportunity,’’ in ION International Technical Meeting , 2022, pp. 723-734.
• A. A. Nguyen , Z. Shadram, and Z. Kassas, “A Lower Bound for the Error Covariance of Radio SLAM with Terrestrial Signals of Opportunity,” in ION Global Navigation Satellite Systems Conference , 2021, pp. 2294-2306.

Presentations

• A. A. Nguyen , L. Guerrero-Bonilla, F. Jabbari, and M. Egerstedt, “Scalable, Pairwise Collaborations in Heterogeneous Multi-Robot Systems,” at the 63rd IEEE Conference on Decision and Control, Milan, Italy, December 2024. (Conference Talk)
• A. A. Nguyen , L. Guerrero-Bonilla, F. Jabbari, and M. Egerstedt, “Scalable, Pairwise Collaborations in Heterogeneous Multi-Robot Systems,” at the 43rd Southern Control Workshop, University of California, Los Angeles, April 2024. (Invited Talk)
• A. A. Nguyen , F. Jabbari, and M. Egerstedt, “Mutualistic Interactions in Heterogeneous Multi-Agent Systems,” at the 62nd IEEE Conference on Decision and Control, Singapore, December 2023. (Conference Talk)
• A. A. Nguyen , F. Jabbari, and M. Egerstedt, “Mutualistic Interactions in Heterogeneous Multi-Agent Systems,” for the Multi-Robot Systems Group, Tecnologico de Monterrey, November 2023. (Invited Talk)
• M. Egerstedt and A. A. Nguyen , “Robot Ecology: Robots in the Wild,” at the Southern California Robotics Symposium, University of California, Irvine, September 2023. (Workshop Talk)
• A. A. Nguyen , “Nonlinear Filter Performance Comparison for Aerial Vehicle Navigation with Terrestrial Signals of Opportunity,” for the Navigation \& Communication Branch at the Air Force Research Lab, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Sept. 2022. (Invited Talk)
• A. A. Nguyen and Z. Kassas, “Transmitter Selection for Improved Information Gathering in Aerial Vehicle Navigation with Terrestrial Signals of Opportunity,” at the ION ITM 2022, Long Beach, CA, USA, Jan. 2022. (Conference Talk)
• A. A. Nguyen , A. Abdallah, and Z. Kassas, “Performance Evaluation of Radio SLAM with Terrestrial Signals of Opportunity,” at the ION GNSS+ 2021, St. Louis, MO, USA, Sept. 2021. (Conference Talk)
• A. A. Nguyen , “Opportunistic Navigation Performance for Prolonged Flight Missions using Terrestrial SoOPs,” for the Navigation & Communication Branch at the Air Force Research Lab, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Sept. 2021. (Invited Talk)

Posters

• M. Rodriguez Curas, A. A. Nguyen , M. Egerstedt, and J. N. Pauli, “From ecology to robotics and back: Mutualisms as a framework for multi-robot collaboration,” in the the Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society of America Annual, Long Beach, CA, USA, August 2024.

Honors and Awards

• SSoE Outstanding Graduate Student Leadership Award - Honorable Mention (2025)
• Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need Fellowship (2020 - 2025)
• IEEE CSS Student Travel Award and Workshop Support (2023, 2024)
• Mexico Graduate Research and Education Program Fellowship (2023)
• UCSB College of Engineering Honors Program (2018 - 2020)
• UCSB Dean’s Honors List (2018 - 2020)
• Eagle Scout (2015)

Media Coverage

• “UCI Robot Ecology Lab inspired by nature,” Daily Pilot, April 2025 [URL]

Review Activity

• Journals:
  • IEEE Open Journal of Control Systems (2025)
  • IEEE Control System Letters (2024, 2025)
  • The Journal of Supercomputing (2024)
• Conferences:
  • IEEE Conference on Decision and Control (2024, 2025)
  • IEEE Conference on Vehicular Technology (2022)

Skills

• Program: MATLAB & Simulink, Python, C++, Mathematica
• Software: Motion Capture Systems, Git, GitHub, Solidworks, AutoCAD, KiCAD, LTSpice, LaTeX, Microsoft Office Suite
• Machine Shop: 3D Printing, Laser Cutting, Soldering, Lathe, Mill, Drill Press, Band Saw
• Technical Expertise: Feedback Control, State Estimation, Sensor Fusion, SLAM, Convex Optimization, Reachability Analysis
• Languages: English (Native) and French (Elementary)

Relevant Coursework

• Dynamics and Control:
  • Nonlinear Control Systems, Synthetic Biological Design and Computing, Linear Systems I, Optimization Methods, Network Control, Network Science, Nonlinear Feedback Systems, Geometric Nonlinear Control, Learning Control Systems, Advanced Dynamics, Engineering Analysis I (Linear Algebra and Ordinary Differential Equations), Engineering Analysis II (Partial Differential Equations).
    
• Estimation Theory:
  • Parameter and State Estimation, Advanced Detection and Estimation Theory, GNSS Signal Processing and SDR Design, Random Processes.
    
• Robotics:
  • Robot Locomotion, Soft Robotics, Introduction to Robotics: Robot Dynamics and Control, Introduction to Robot Motion Planning & Navigation.

Affiliations

• Professional Organizations:
  • American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Student Member
  • Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, Student Member
  • IEEE Control System Society, Student Member
  • Institute of Navigation, Student Member
  • Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, Student Member
  • National Eagle Scout Association, Eagle Scout Member
• Student Leadership:
  • UCI Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Graduate Student Association, Events Coordinator