Dr Yogang Singh is a Lecturer in Maritime Technology at the University of Plymouth, where he contributes to teaching, research, postgraduate supervision, and external academic engagement in the areas of maritime autonomy, marine robotics, and intelligent control systems. His work focuses on developing innovative technologies for autonomous and sustainable maritime operations through the integration of robotics, artificial intelligence, digital twins, and advanced control engineering.
Prior to joining the University of Plymouth, Dr Singh served as a Senior Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in Automation, Control and Systems Engineering at Sheffield Hallam University, where he led teaching in robotics, automation, and advanced control systems. During his time at Sheffield Hallam, he was awarded an Early Career Research and Innovation Fellowship (2025–26) in recognition of his research excellence and innovation.
Dr Singh has conducted graduate and postdoctoral research spanning both fundamental and applied engineering at leading international institutions, including Purdue University (USA), KU Leuven and Ghent University (Belgium), the University of Plymouth (UK), and the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (India). His research has encompassed maritime autonomous navigation, path planning, multi-robot systems, vessel manoeuvring, maritime logistics, Industry 4.0, and marine robotics. He has received several prestigious awards, including the Commonwealth Doctoral Scholarship, the IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society Best Student Poster Award, the University of Plymouth Doctoral School Award, and the IEEE OES/MTS Student Travel Grant.
Alongside his academic role, Dr Singh actively contributes to the wider engineering and maritime research communities. He serves as a Board Member of the Marine Facilities Advisory Board at the National Oceanography Centre and is an External Examiner for engineering programmes at Liverpool John Moores University and BPP University. He is the Publication Chair and Technical Co-Chair of the IEEE/OES Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV) 2026 Conference, an Associate Editor for the IEEE Journal of Oceanic Engineering Special Issue on AUV 2026, and a Technical Program Committee Member for the IMarEST International Naval Engineering Conference and Exhibition (INEC/iSCSS 2026).
His current research combines theoretical modelling, simulation, artificial intelligence, and experimental validation to develop next-generation decision-support and autonomy technologies for maritime systems. His interests include autonomous surface and underwater vehicles, guidance, navigation and control, digital twins, intelligent vessel manoeuvring, marine sensing, and coastal and harbour monitoring, with a strong emphasis on improving the safety, resilience, and sustainability of maritime operations.
Dr Singh has accumulated over 3,000 hours of university teaching across undergraduate and postgraduate programmes and is a Fellow of the UK Higher Education Academy (FHEA). He supervises PhD and MSc research in autonomous maritime systems, marine robotics, control engineering, artificial intelligence, and system identification, and welcomes enquiries from prospective postgraduate researchers interested in these areas.
Qualifications
Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA), Advance HE, UK
Sheffield Hallam University, United Kingdom | 2024
Sheffield Hallam University, United Kingdom | 2024
PhD in Mechanical Engineering
Thesis: Cooperative Swarm Optimisation of Unmanned Surface Vehicles
Autonomous Marine Systems (AMS) Research Group, University of Plymouth, United Kingdom | 2015–2019
Thesis: Cooperative Swarm Optimisation of Unmanned Surface Vehicles
Autonomous Marine Systems (AMS) Research Group, University of Plymouth, United Kingdom | 2015–2019
Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA) (Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching)
University of Plymouth, United Kingdom | 2017
University of Plymouth, United Kingdom | 2017
Master of Science (MS) by Research in Ocean Engineering
Thesis: Design and Development of a Laboratory Underwater Glider
Department of Ocean Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, India | 2012–2015
Thesis: Design and Development of a Laboratory Underwater Glider
Department of Ocean Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, India | 2012–2015
Bachelor of Technology (BTech) in Mechanical Engineering
Department of Mechanical Engineering, SRM University, Chennai, India | 2006–2010
Department of Mechanical Engineering, SRM University, Chennai, India | 2006–2010
Professional membership
Fellow (FHEA), Advance HE (formerly the Higher Education Academy), United Kingdom — 2024–Present (Lifetime Fellowship)
Associate Fellow (AFHEA), Higher Education Academy, United Kingdom — 2017–2024
Member, Marine Technology Society (MTS) — 2014–2016
Graduate Student Member, IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society (IEEE OES) — 2014–2015
Student Member, Royal Institution of Naval Architects (RINA) — 2014–2015
Roles on external bodies
Conference and Technical Committees
- Publication Chair and Technical Co-Chair, IEEE/OES Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV) 2026 Symposium — 2024–Present
- Technical Committee Member, IMarEST International Naval Engineering Conference (INEC) and International Ship Control Systems Symposium (iSCSS 2026) — 2025–Present
- Technical Committee Member, Unmanned Systems Track, First International Conference on Smart Systems and Emerging Technologies (SMARTTECH 2020) — 2020
- Programme Committee Member, Springer Book Deep Learning for Unmanned Systems (DLUS) — 2020
Editorial Activities
- Associate Editor, IEEE Journal of Oceanic Engineering (Special Issue: IEEE/OES AUV 2026) — 2025–Present
- Editorial Board Member (Robotics and Automation), Advances in Mechanical Engineering — 2021–Present
Doctoral Examination
- External PhD Examiner, University of Genoa, Italy (Autonomous Marine Systems) — 2026
Teaching
Teaching interests
Sheffield Hallam University (2023-2026)
Courses taught:
MSc Automation Control and Robotics; BEng Mechanical Engineering; BEng Mechatronics and Robotics; BEng Aerospace Engineering and BEng Railway Engineering (DA)
Modules taught:
Level 7 (Module Lead and Co-lead)-Robotics and Advanced Control Methods; Control Systems and Industrial Automation; Control of Linear Systems; Robotics; Advanced Control Methods; Robotics and Autonomous Systems; Industrial Automation
Level 6, 5 and 4 (Module Lead and Co-lead)- Mechatronics and Automated Systems; Control and Instrumentation for Aerospace; Advanced Railway Engineering; Mechanical Systems and Mechatronics Systems Design and Electrical Engineering Principles
University of Plymouth (2015-2018)
Modules taught:
Level 6 (Instructor/Demonstrator) - Robotics and Control Theory (2016-2017, 2017-2018); Introduction to Robotics (2017-2018); Fundamentals of Robotics Manipulator (2017-2018)
Staff serving as external examiners
External Examiner, Mechanical and Marine Engineering Programmes, Liverpool John Moores University, UK — 2025–Present
External Examiner, Data Analytics and Automation Programmes, BPP School of Technology, UK — 2024–Present
External Examiner, Marine Navigation and Maritime Operations Programmes, MLA College, Plymouth, UK — 2025–2026