Prof John Counsell

Professor, Electrical & Electronic Engineering

School of Computing and Engineering Sciences
j.counsell@chester.ac.uk
Prof John Counsell

Professor John M Counsell is a Research Professor and leader of the Digital Energy and Control Systems (DECS) group at the University of Chester in the Faculty of Science & Engineering.  He was previously the Head of Computer Science and Electronic and Electrical Engineering departments (2016-2020).

Previously he was Senior Manager of all New Product Development for Brother in Europe (1999-2007), BRE Chair of Energy Utilisation at the University of Strathclyde (2007-2012), the Scientific Director of the EPSRC Engineering Design Centre for Mechatronics at Lancaster University (1997-1999) and the Research Group leader of Intelligent Controls group at EA Technology (1994-1997).

Professor Counsell has over 30 years of experience in the research and development of complex systems and machines using advanced control and artificial intelligence.  He co-invented Demand Side Response (DSR) with Dr Reeves for electric heating in the 1990s [1], co-invented the A3 multifunction inkjet printer (the most sustainable A3 full photocopier in the world) using landscape printing [2] along with the world’s first consumer hardcopy language translation machine. 

His current work is developing sophisticated dynamic modelling and control systems for multi-vector energy systems such as Combined Heat and power with fully integrated PV (CHPV) [3,4] and DC power distribution and control in buildings using Building Integrated PV (BIPV) to power Ethernet networks using energy storage and Power over Ethernet (PoE) infrastructures [5,6]. Professor Counsell has continued his DSR work applying it to electric heating with thermal and battery storage to include all types of electric heating such as the currently topical ground source and air-source Heat Pumps [7,8].

Professor Counsell’s scientific theory is focussed on the use of computational and embedded design knowledge methods utilising nonlinear Ordinary Differential Equations (ODEs) [9] to describe the complex systems’ dynamic behaviours, especially their conditions for stable and high performance using automatic control systems.  These methods have been successfully commercialised applied to the simulation of buildings and their energy systems [10] and the controller design of complex engineering systems [11].  The energy systems of current interest are of a type of Local Energy System/micro- energy grids such as CHPV, DC infrastructures for power distribution and control in buildings [5] and hybrid electric heating systems using Dynamic Carbon Response (DCR) control [12].

Professor Counsell also assists industry with sophisticated industrial control solutions. Professor Counsell has co-invented Gencoa’s Speeflo controller [13] using nonlinear controller design methods [9,14].  This work was extended to utilise auto-tuning and optimisation methods for Speedflo, but recently using nonlinear ODE analysis this has enabled the removal of the need for controller tuning.  This new Nonlinear Control has been generalised and now being applied to an exemplar Net Zero Carbon energy systems in EA Technology’s HQ building in Chester as part of a Warrington LEP funded project.

  • Level 5, 6 and 7 Control Systems Engineering and Intelligent Systems
  • Final Year Projects in Computer Science and Electronics & Electrical Engineering

Post Graduate Research (PGR) Students in:

Energy Systems and Control for the Built Environment; Intelligent Drives/Robotics and High Performance Aircraft.

Professor Counsell has primary supervised 8 successful PhD students between 2008 and 2021.

  • Research Professor and Research Group leader of DECS- Digital Energy and Control Systems.
  • Nonlinear Multi-Input Multi-Output (MIMO) Control Systems theory and application to high performance machines, process control systems and multi-vector energy systems.
  • Artificial Intelligence applied to control system design, machine learning and optimisation of complex MIMO systems.
  • Building Physics and Energy Systems’ Modelling for use in building’s energy utilisation and Control Systems Design.
  • High Performance Aircraft/Drone Control Systems and Robotics.
  • Research Collaborators:  Arup NW, URENCO, Glen Dimplex, BRE, Eastbourne Borough Council, University of Durham, University of Manchester, Fujitsu (Kawasaki City), Japan.

Current Research Grants

  • EPSRC Solar Heating Heat Pump & Storage (c£330K, 2020 - present)

Selected Previous Research Grants

  • EPSRC, “Heat STRESS”, (c£320K, 2014-2018)
  • InnovateUK/EPSRC, “Renewable & Integrated Sustainable Energy Heating, RISE Heating System”, (c£190K, 2014-2017)
  • InnovateUK, “Combined Heat and power with fully integrated PV – CHPV”, (c£220K, 2013-2016)
  • EPSRC, TEDDInet Programme, Principal Investigator “Building Management linking Energy Demand, Distributed Conversion and Storage using Dynamic Modelling and a Pervasive Sensor Infrastructure”, (c£320K, 2009-2012)
  • InnovateUK, “Building Integrated Energy Networks, BIEN”, (c£170K, 2008,2010)
  • EPSRC, “Engineering design Centre in Mechatronics”, (c£1million, 1997-1999)
  • EC/EU ESPRIT Programme, Framework 4 DGIII, partner, “DICE”, (c£250K, 1996-1999)
  • EC/EU ESPRIT Programme, Framework 4 DGIII, Principal Investigator, “ETHOS”, (c£3.4million, 1996-1999)   

Counsell. J.M., Reeves, J.H, “Heating apparatus controlled to utilize lower cost energy”, Patent Number 5700993, Dec 23, 1997.

Brother International Europe Ltd,.

Counsell, J.M., Murphy, G.B., Allison, J. “Control of micro-CHP and thermal energy storage for minimising electrical grid utilisation”, International Journal of Low-Carbon Technologies Advance Access Published, August 21, 2014.

Counsell, J. M., Ameer, A. K., & Stewart, M. J. “Advance control of a fully integrated energy system for a building”, International Journal of Smart Grid and Clean Energy, vol 5, no. 4, October 2016, pp229-236.

Stewart, M., Counsell, J.M., Al-Kaykhan, A., “Design and specification of building integrated DC electricity networks”, 2016 Future Technologies Conference (FTC), 1237-1240.

Counsell, J.M., Stewart, M.J., Williams, A., “Powering of Devices”, Feb 21, 2011, Patent Number 20130154367.

Counsell,J.M,  Khalid,Y., Stewart, M.J., “Hybrid Heat Pump for Micro Heat Network”, World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology International Journal of Energy and Power Engineering Vol:11, No:7, 2017.

Murphy, G., Counsell, J.M., Baster, E., Counsell, S.D., “Symbolic modelling and predictive assessment of air source heat pumps”, Building Services Engineering Research and Technology, Vol 34, Issue 1, CIBSE, Sage Journals October 22, 2012.

Brindley, J., Counsell, J.M., Obadah. O. S., Pearce, J.P. “Design and simulation of a non-linear, discontinuous, flight control system using rate actuated inverse dynamics”, Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part G: Journal of Aerospace Engineering, Vol 227, issue 4, pp 632-646, 2013.

Murphy, G. B., Counsell, J., Allison, J., & Brindley, J. (2013). Calibrating a combined energy system analysis and controller design method with empirical data. Energy, 57, 484-494.

Counsell Ian Porter David Dawson, J. and Duffy, M. (1999), "Schemebuilder: computer aided knowledge based design of mechatronic systems", Assembly Automation, Vol. 19 No. 2, pp. 129-138.

J. Counsell, Y. Khalid and M. Stewart, "Comparative performance modelling of heat pump based heating systems using dynamic carbon intensity," The 11th IET International Conference on Advances in Power System Control, Operation and Management (APSCOM 2018), Hong Kong, China, 2018, pp. 1-6, doi: 10.1049/cp.2018.1768.

Gencoa Ltd, Liverpool (UK).

Bellido-González, V., Daniel, B., Counsell, J., Stevens, M., “Flexible Reactive Gas Sputtering Process Control”, Society of Vacuum Coaters 505/856-7188 1 47th Annual Technical Conference Proceedings (2004) ISSN 0737-5921.

  • 1st Class Hons BSc in Mechanical Engineering, University of Salford, 1987
  • PhD in Engineering, University of Lancaster, 1992
  • Passed CEng qualification for IMechE in 1993

 

  • Member of The IET and Built Environment Sector Steering Group
  • Electricity Research Council (now EA Technology) Churchman Prize winner 1995 for CELECT a Demand Side Response (DSR) system for heating systems using energy storage