CTC, Cybernetics Science and Technique research group, belongs to the Polytechnic School of Engineering of Ferrol (Universidade da Coruña). It is currently recognised and funded as a Group with Growth Potential by the Xunta de Galicia.

Its field of research is mainly related to automation, control engineering and artificial intelligence. These disciplines are being applied in many sectors, so the group usually works in collaboration with research staff from other universities and other fields of knowledge. Specifically, CTC addresses the use of intelligent techniques in many disciplines, such as medical field (anaesthesia control), industry, university teaching (prediction of student performance), environmental radioactivity and energy efficiency, among others. Its main lines of activity focus on data analysis and processing, intelligent and advanced control, system optimisation and modelling, anomaly detection in industrial processes, as well as virtual and intelligent instrumentation.

In terms of organisational structure, the group is vertebrated around four laboratories coordinated by different CTC members. Each laboratory focuses on a specific discipline which, in turn, is closely related to the others through the common thread of Artificial Intelligence, IoT and Industry 4.0:

• Applied Intelligent Systems Lab

• Smart Building and Sustainability Laboratory

• Electronic and Automatic Systems Laboratory

• Environmental Radioactivity Laboratory.

At another organisational level are grouped the transversal activities of continuous improvement, which seek to increase the impact, increase the capacities of the members, as well as manage projects, and establish and strengthen national and international collaborations:

• Coordination of pre- and post-doctoral training activities.

• Project management.

• Coordination of collaborations, internationalisation and dissemination.

Finally, part of the structure is dedicated to technical support for the laboratories and another part to support research management.

As for the composition of the CTC, it is coordinated by the Systems Engineering professor José Luis Calvo Rolle, who has extensive leadership experience in research, management and teaching. CTC is made up of thirteen other PhD researchers from UDC, most of them from the area of Systems Engineering and Automatics. CTC also has two postdoctoral research (one of them FPU) and four PhD members from other Spanish institutions, with whom they collaborate closely. There are currently 14 pre-doctoral and contracted research staff, including one doctoral student from competitive calls of the Xunta de Galicia and three industrial doctoral students also from competitive calls of the Xunta de Galicia. The composition of the group is complemented by technical support staff from UDC and two contracted laboratory technicians.

As for the affiliation to research centres, both the coordinator (J.L. Calvo) and the researchers H. Quintián, E. Jove, F. Zayas and J.L. Casteleiro are affiliated to the CITIC of the UDC, recognised as a Singular Research Centre of Galicia. On the other hand, E. Arce, A. Piñón, R. Vega, M. Meizoso, M. Fernández, J.A. López and R. Vega belong to the Ferrol Industrial Campus, accredited as a specialisation campus of the Galician University System.

It is a cohesive and very active group in both research and transfer, as evidenced by their scientific-technical contributions. Since 2020, CTC has published more tan 75 JCR-indexed journal articles, 99 conference proceedings, 3 books and 3 book chapters [see full scientific output: https://udc.es/gl/ctc/publicacions/].

CTC has experience leading European, national and regional research projects and contracts. Selection [see full list]:

• SAtComm – Sustainable Atlantic Communities. Ref. EAPA_0019/2022. PI UDC: J.L. Calvo Rolle / H. Quintián Pardo. Funding: EU – Interreg Atlantic Area, Budget UDC: 405.000,00€. Dates: 01/01/2023 – 31/08/2026. Partners: Údarás na Gaeltachta (IE), Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto (PT), Universidade da Coruña (ES), Greenvolt Comunidades (PT), Breizh ALEC (FR), Kerwatt (FR), Instituto de Ciências Sociais da Universidade de Lisboa (PT), Agence Locale de l’Énergie du Centre Ouest Bretagne (FR), Universidad de La Laguna (ES), Energy Research & Intelligence Solutions, S.L.U. (ES).

• Production of Prototypes with STEAM Content in Maker Workshops Against Climate Change (Eco-Maker), Ref.: 2023-1-PT01-KA220-SCH-000155915. PI UDC: Elena Arce. Funding: Erasmus+. Budget UDC: 39.500,00€. Dates: 01/09/2023 – 31/08/2025. Partners: Educação e Formação, Agrupamento de Escolas de Mangualde (Portugal), Osmangazi Ilce Milli Egitim Mudurlugu (Turkiye), FABLAB MESSINA (Italy), Universidade da Coruña (Spain), Technische Universitat Berlin (Germany), Szkola Podstawowa nr 50 z Oddzialami Integracyjnymi im. Swietej Jadwigi Krolowej Polski w Bialymstoku (Poland), AISR (Ireland).

• Intelligent system for optimal management of the water network in cities (SIGORAC). Agencia Estatal de Investigación. Knowledge Generation Projects, Ref. PID2022-137152NB-I00. PI: J.L.  Calvo Rolle (UDC) / H. Quintián Pardo (UDC). Dates: 01/09/2023 – 31/08/2026. Amount granted: 75.500,00€.

• Cybersecure critical infrastructures through intelligent modeling of attacks, vulnerabilities and increased security of their IoT devices for the water supply sector. National Cybersecurity Institute (INCIBE). Strategic Cybersecurity Projects in Spain, Ref. C061/23. PI: J.L. Calvo Rolle (UDC) / E. Jove Pérez (UDC). Dates: 26/10/2023 – 31/12/2025. Amount granted: 414.880,10€.

• Environmental Radiological Surveillance Program, Network of Sampling Stations. Dense Network. Nuclear Assurance Council – Spanish Govern, Ref. CSN- INV00124/2024. PI: J.L. Calvo Rolle (UDC) / E. Jove Pérez (UDC). Dates: 01/01/2024 – 31/12/2027. Amount granted: 681.406,90€.

• National Automatics Network. Agencia Estatal de Investigación, Call “Research Networks”, RED2022-134223-T. PI: J.M. Andújar (Univ. Huelva). J.L. Calvo Rolle (UDC) isin charge of one of the network’s objectives. Dates: 01/06/2023 – 30/05/2025. Amount granted: 16.300,00€.

• SMART PRE2: Artificial intelligence applied to the prediction and prevention of professional illnesses. Ministerio de Asuntos Económicos y Transformación Digital, Call

• Red.es 2021, Ref. 2021/C005/00152589. PI: J.L. Calvo Rolle (UDC) / O. Fontenla Romero (UDC). Dates: 01/09/2022 – 30/04/2024. Amount granted 120.300,00 €.

• Plant and Process Digital Twin, Automation Subline (CEMI UDC-Navantia «Shipyard 5.0. The Shipyard of the Future»). Xunta de Galicia, Ref. IN853C 2022/01. PI: J.L. Calvo Rolle (UDC). Dates: 01/01/2022 – 31/12/2025. Amount granted: 310.400,00€.