LabCompass

Sean M. Nolan

Engineering · Purdue University West Lafayette

OpenAlex
Mid career · publishing since 2006
Spacecraft Dynamics and ControlAerospace Engineering and Control SystemsRobotic Path Planning AlgorithmsGuidance and Control SystemsAutonomous Vehicle Technology and Safety

Publications

21

Citations

103

Est. group size

~3

Recurring co-author estimate

Active years

19

Publishing since 2006

Research summary
AI-generated

Sean M. Nolan works on trajectory optimization and optimal control methods for aerospace and autonomous vehicle applications, including techniques for planning efficient and safe flight paths (spacecraft, aircraft, and robotic path planning). Much of the recent work focuses on 'indirect methods' for solving optimal control problems, including a technique called the Uniform Trigonometrization Method, and more recently on making these optimized trajectories easier to interpret using explainable AI approaches.

Trajectory optimization and optimal controlAerospace and spacecraft guidanceRobotic and autonomous vehicle path planningMathematical methods for constrained control problemsExplainable AI applied to control systems

Publication output rose to a peak around 2020 (5 papers) and has since settled into a steadier, lower rate of about 2-3 papers per year through 2024.

Generated by claude-sonnet-5 from public bibliographic data · Jul 20, 2026

Publication cadence
Publications per year over the last 10 years — averaging 1.4/year recently
2017: 1 publication172018: 1 publication182019: 1 publication192020: 5 publications5202021: 3 publications212022: 3 publications222023: 2 publications232024: 2 publications242526
Recent publications
Publishes in
  • AIAA Scitech 2021 Forum×2
  • IEEE Transactions on Aerospace and Electronic Systems×1
  • 2022 IEEE Aerospace Conference (AERO)×1
  • AIAA AVIATION 2020 FORUM×1
  • AIAA AVIATION 2021 FORUM×1
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This profile was generated automatically from public scholarly data (OpenAlex). Group size and activity levels are estimates derived from co-authorship patterns.

Last updated Jul 20, 2026.

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