Control and Automation

Mission

The mission of the Control and Automation Group is to address the electro-optical and electro-mechanical instrumentation needs and requirements of the industrial and national defense communities.

Several variations of laser scattering and fluid monitoring technologies including the Autogrape in-line fuel monitor (model and installed aboard a Navy aircraft carrier), bench-top and suitcase variants, the AutoGlow water-in-fuel analyzer, and MiniGRASP oceanographic particle sizing instrument.

Core Competencies

Core competencies include environmentally hardened optical device design, rapid instrument prototyping, on-board processing, and hand-held device design and interfaces. Personnel skills include optical, mechanical, electrical, electronic and software engineering and data analysis for on-board algorithm development.

Current Research Thrusts Include:

• Military Fluid Monitoring
  - Sponsor: NAVSEA/Army
  
  - Objectives: Provide technology for quality control and assurance of fuels for Navy vessels and other military assets.

Area Leadership

Mark Merritt

The Control and Automation Group is led by Mark Merritt. Mr. Merritt has over 30 years experience in the design and development of high-performance signal and image processing systems, including adaptive beamforming, target recognition, and real-time processor architecture. Mr. Merritt joined PSI in November 2008, and is Program Manager for the production of PSI’s In-Line Fuel Sampler product for installation on multiple US aircraft carriers.

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