Nemwel Ariaga, a PhD student at Huddersfield’s EPSRC Future Metrology Hub, has received a Chancellor’s Prize from HRH the Duke of York after scoring exceptionally high marks and a distinction in his Control Systems and Instrumentation MSc degree.

His work will help computer-controlled machines — including machine tools, vehicles and aircraft — respond more accurately and safely to commands.

He said: “It was truly an honour to receive an award from the Duke of York. I have nothing but praise for the University of Huddersfield, and I am sincerely grateful to its management for the investment in facilities and to the teaching staff.”

Mr Ariaga has already embarked on the next phase of his studies. He has been selected for a PhD project funded by the EPSRC and will investigate new adaptive control strategies that enable machines to respond to variations in their operating conditions.

For example, said Mr Ariaga, the parameters affecting aircraft are altered when it goes higher or faster. This can mean that a control system based on one set of parameters will fail to give the desired performance. He will work on a system that will help an on-board computer to adapt to changes.

After a first degree in Kenya, Mr Ariaga worked as an industrial control engineer and software developer at two companies, before taking up the opportunity of further study at the University of Huddersfield (www.hud.ac.uk).