Daniel Herber

Assistant Professor of Systems Engineering

Dr. Daniel Herber’s research interests are in the areas of computational design, design optimization, model-based systems engineering, system architecture synthesis, architecture graph representations and enumeration, combined physical and control system design (control co-design), and numerical methods for optimal control concentrated around the development of novel theory and tools for integrated design methods conducive to emerging and dynamic engineering systems.

Herber’s work has involved several engineering application domains, including the design of offshore wind/wave energy systems, carbon capture systems combined with thermal storage and natural gas plants, aero-actuation systems, thermal management networks for aircraft, strain-actuated solar arrays for reorienting spacecraft, vehicle suspensions, and electrical circuits and continues to expand.

His projects are frequently collaborative and have involved the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Air Force Research Laboratory, Woodward, Deere & Company, and the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

He currently teaches SYSE 567 Systems Engineering Architecture, SYSE 667 Advanced Model-Based Systems Engineering, ENGR 510 Engineering Optimization: Method/Application, and SYSE 580A1 Control Engineering for Systems Engineers at CSU.

Education

Post Doctoral Research Associate 2018 – 2019, NSF Engineering Research Center for Power Optimization for Electro-Thermal Systems (POETS)

Ph.D. 2017, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign – Systems and Entrepreneurial Engineering

M.S. 2014, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign – Systems and Entrepreneurial Engineering

B.S. 2011, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign – General Engineering

Resources

Courses Taught

Note to Prospective Students

Graduate students:

Note: I currently have very limited space for new distance graduate students but do have some on-campus (funded) projects for which prospective students could be considered. Please reach out if you are interested in the areas of renewable energy, optimization, dynamics/controls, and model-based systems engineering, as the on-campus projects broadly cover these areas.

If you are searching for an advisor for a graduate degree in Systems Engineering (on-campus or distance), please send me an email with the following:

  1. CV including any research products,
  2. A general research outline appropriate for the degree sought (M.S. or Ph.D.),
  3. Whether you are interested in enrolling as an on-campus or distance student, and
  4. A statement of your application area of interest and how its associated design challenges align with my research areas.

My research interests are not confined to one particular application domain. Please send the requested materials if you feel the design challenges are relevant, particularly if the topic includes challenging aspects of design optimization, model-based systems engineering, system architecture synthesis, dynamics/controls, or some combination of the above. Please see my research website for up-to-date project descriptions and how to inquire.

Undergraduate students:

I frequently have select projects for motivated undergraduates in the areas of modeling, optimization, and algorithms for engineering design. These projects typically require some coding experience (primarily done in MATLAB but experience in other languages is also acceptable). These projects will help develop broadly applicable research skills and do not require a specific degree program (e.g., mechanical, electrical, civil, etc.). Please see my research website for up-to-date project descriptions and how to inquire.

Research Interests

  • Design Optimization
  • Systems Architecture
  • Dynamics/Controls

Honors and Awards

  • 2015 – Mavis Future Faculty Fellow