The School of Computer Technologies and Control is the oldest and largest school at ITMO University. It was founded on the basis of the faculty of the same name as a result of a merger of specialized departments in response to the need to consolidate scientific, educational, engineering, and technological resources within a world-class international center of competencies in cyberphysical systems. 

Cyberphysical systems are a network of interacting physical and computing components that is designed as a unified system within a single fundamental cyberphysical model and can adapt to real-world changes.

The term emerged following the significant growth of computing technologies and the appearance of embedded computing systems, which, in turn, lead to the evolution of cybernetics, computer technology, and in particular the development of the so-called C3 systems: command, control, and communications. 

The further integration of different communication networks (infrared, wireless, power, etc.) and physical systems and objects started the transition from the era of information technologies to that of cyberphysical systems. In recent years, the development of these systems is guided by the concept of Industry 4.0 – the implementation of the internet and web technologies into manufacturing. 

Cyberphysical systems are characterized by new principles of computer systems organization, automated processing of large amounts of data, adaptive behavior, and independent decision-making. However, the more complex a system is, the tougher its security must be.

Together, all these factors led to the establishment of the School of Computer Technologies and Control at ITMO University. The school includes three faculties: the Faculty of Secure Information Technologies, the Faculty of Software Engineering and Computer Systems, and the Faculty of Control Systems and Robotics. 

With its vast expertise and balanced symbiosis of different fields, the School of Computer Technologies and Control aims to tackle a global challenge of the 21st century – namely, to improve the quality of human life.

Cyberphysical systems can solve a range of social and economic problems: for example, they can help specialists shift from dangerous and exhausting labor to activities that help them grow and improve the world around them.

The systems our graduates are working on are omnipresent: these are assisting robotic complexes, exoskeletons, sophisticated platforms for calculations, data storage and transmission, decision-making in technical systems control (e.g., power networks, traffic flows, technological processes), and the widespread introduction of data protection technologies. 

At the school, students are trained to tackle global challenges:

• to develop decision-making algorithms for guaranteed performance, reliability, and security;

• to produce next-gen platforms for efficient computations;

• to create self-trained algorithms for sensorimotor coordination;

• to develop natural human-machine interfaces;

• to protect and eliminate vulnerabilities in the computerized world. 

The holistic development of both students and staff is impossible without a value model. For the School of Computer Technologies and Control, the formula is as follows: 

• Motto – responsibility for the result;

• Drivers – freedom, development, quality. 

As of now, the School of Computer Technologies and Control accommodates over 3,500 students within 18 Bachelor’s, 35 Master’s, and 7 PhD programs, as well 15 joint educational programs of various levels in partnership with the world’s top universities. 

The school’s educational and research activities are conducted by more than 500 employees, including academic and administrative staff. Among its lecturers are highly-qualified professionals: one member and one corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, eight IEEE Fellows, two IFAC Fellows, and over 60 professors. 

The Faculty of Secure Information Technologies trains highly-skilled specialists in cybersecurity and information security, as well as computer system design. During their studies, students acquire fundamental theoretical knowledge in the development of security systems for complex cyberphysical systems, authentication protocols, as well as secure data processing and transmission for distributed systems for data storage and processing. 

In 2018, the Faculty of Secure Information Technologies opened the Educational Center ITMO-Infowatch with support of the Infowatch company. The center provides a technical and technological foundation for educational and research activities in the field of cybersecurity. Its mission is to let students work on cases by real-world enterprises. The center is equipped with a complex of software products by InfoWatch for varied IT environments, including the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT).

Our graduates are in demand in the fields of secure computer systems, mathematical and simulation models, and cyberattack prediction. They are competent to perform tasks in computer forensics and security incident investigation. 

The Faculty of Software Engineering and Computer Systems aims to conduct research and train specialists in R&D and the applications of system platforms, particularly cyberphysical systems: 

• computer platforms (from hardware to operating systems);

• communication platforms (network equipment, channels, and protocols);

• engineering/instrumental platforms (system, computer, and software engineering);

• interfaces (human-machine interaction). 

While there’s already a great number of existing technologies, new computer and communication platforms are on the rise; they are used to produce cyberphysical systems, solve tasks associated with the use of AI, develop new models for programming and software engineering with a focus on the Internet of Things (IoT), VR and AR, create cognitive technologies, and promote digital art. 

Graduates of the faculty are trained to not only apply cutting-edge technologies in computer systems and platforms but also lead the production of these technologies in the era of cyberphysical systems and gain rapid success despite the market’s relative fullness. 

The Faculty of Control Systems and Robotics focuses on training Bachelor’s and Master’s students in intelligent control systems, energy-efficient complexes and mechatronic devices, digital production technologies, robotic systems, new materials, and design methods.

The faculty includes the Youth Robotics Lab and the Student Construction Bureau RED. Apart from being a training ground, the Youth Robotics Lab is also a home to the university’s student teams in robotics. ITMO’s team of school students excels at different competitions and boasts a number of wins: first place at the national round of RoboCup Russia Open 2017 in Tomsk and the Novice Award by RoboCup OnStage as part of the final round of RoboCup 2017 in Japan. The team of university students became the winners of the largest robotics competition in Europe, Robotex 2017.

The faculty’s students work on: 

• computer vision algorithms; 

• process automation algorithms;

• human-robot interaction software;

• programmable smart physical objects (SDx) – particularly, smart homes; 

• platforms and algorithms for the Internet of Things (IoT);

• technologies for autonomous transport, including drones; 

• human-machine interfaces (brain-computer interfaces and gesture control);

• human augmentation;

• smart robots.

The faculty has state-of-the-art facilities, including robotic systems and complexes for lab assignments and practice-oriented studies. Graduates are sought-after specialists who boast creative and entrepreneurial thinking and can launch their own high-tech businesses. 

The school includes the following international departments:

• Adaptive and Nonlinear Control Systems Lab

  • Laboratory of Architecture and Design Techniques for Embedded Systems and Systems on Chip

  • Laboratory of Power Electronics and Automated Electric Drive

  • International Laboratory “Integrated Navigation and Attitude Reference Systems”

  • Laboratory of Multi-Agent, Distributed and Networked Control Systems

  • International Laboratory of Biomechatronics and Energy-Efficient Robotics (BE2R Lab)

  • International Laboratory of Geometrical Methods in Control and Application

• International Laboratory of Cryptosystem Protection from Side-Channel Attacks

• International Research Laboratory for Intelligent Data Processing Methods and Semantic Technologies

The school also has partnerships with over 30 companies in Russia and abroad. Our graduates work at IBM, Intel, Microsoft, Oracle, Dr. Web, Yandex, Cisco, National Instruments, Schneider Electric, Siemens,  General Motors, Kaspersky Lab, Peterstar, Telecom, Vodokanal, Gazprom, Sberbank, Diakont, Thermex, Elektropribor, Electroavtomatika, LOMO, Techpribor, Kinef, the Research Institute of Precision Mechanics, Novaya Era, Avionika-Vist, Concern Avrora, Evrika, and others.