Paul Van den Hof

Paul Van den Hof is a Full Professor (Part-time) in the Control Systems Group at the Department of Electrical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e). He has been affiliated with TU/e since 2011, following a distinguished career that began at Delft University of Technology in 1986. His academic journey includes founding co-directorship of the Delft Center for Systems and Control and serving as Scientific Director of the Dutch Institute of Systems and Control (DISC) from 2005-2015.

Van den Hof's research focuses on data-driven modeling, control and optimization of dynamic systems across multiple technological domains. His work spans industrial process control, oil reservoir engineering, and high-tech mechatronic and cyber-physical systems. His methodological contributions include data-driven modeling techniques, closed-loop and control-oriented identification, data analytics, experimental design, performance monitoring, and model-based control systems.

His recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on dynamic network identification, with significant contributions to identifiability analysis in acyclic networks, frequency domain identification methods, fault detection frameworks, and the development of the SYSDYNET toolbox. These works reveal his evolving research trajectory toward increasingly complex interconnected systems while maintaining a strong theoretical foundation in control systems engineering.

• Fellow of IFAC
• Fellow of IEEE
• Honorary Member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences
• ERC Advanced Research Grant on Dynamic Network Identification (SYSDYNET)

Throughout his career, Van den Hof has maintained strong international collaborations with both academic and industrial partners. His leadership extends to professional service as General Chair of the 13th IFAC Symposium on System Identification (2003), member of the IFAC Council (1999-2005, 2017-2020), Associate Editor and Editor of Automatica (1992-2005), and Vice-President of IFAC (2017-2020).

His research activities are centered around the Control Systems Group and the Dynamic Networks: Data-Driven Modeling and Control research line at TU/e, with affiliations to EAISI High Tech Systems, EAISI Mobility, EAISI Foundational, and EIRES Research centers.