| Citation | David Clarke is distinguished for major contributions to the control, safety and efficency of industrial processes. The combination of identification and control techniques which led to his Generalized Least Squares Method for the optimal control of industrial plants with complex, unknown models was among the very first developments of its type in this important field. Successful applications have been made to a range of important applications from the control of plate glass manufacture and ship stabilisation to business forecasting and physiological control mechanisms. Further development led to the Generalized Minimum Variance Controller. The Clarke-Gawthrop algorithm on which this is based has become a benchmark against which all later approaches to this problem have been judged. This work was further complemented by a new method called Generalized Predictive Control, one of the few classes of control technique which can handle constraints such as quality and safety. He remains vigorous and active in research and is currently working on the wider aspects of safety in control. |