Page 12 - Control Theory in Biomedical Engineering

Preface xvii

team, and having had the chance to represent you. Your training and
guidance in control theory were of undeniable value.
Thank you to everyone who strives to grow and help others grow with
generosity. All my thoughts go here to Professor Hichem Kallel from the
National Institute of Applied Sciences and Technology, Tunisia, who
initiated my training in robotics and helped me to progress in this field.
To Professor Quanmin Zhu from the University of the West of England,
Bristol, UK, thank you for the undeniable encouragement and generosity,
which were essential for my last five books. I greatly appreciate your guid-
ance, support, and friendship, and perhaps most of all, your examples.
The following researchers are particularly acknowledged for the honor
they bestowed upon me by contributing artwork and for their professional
efforts to provide comments and reviews: Professor Hongliang Ren from the
National University of Singapore, Singapore; Emeritus Professor Mohamed
Benrejeb from the National Engineering School of Tunis, Tunisia; and
Professor Ali Cinar from the Illinois Institute of Technology, USA.
I am also immensely grateful to everyone on the Elsevier editorial team
who helped me so much. Special thanks to the ever patient Acquisitions
Editor Sonnini Yura, from Brazil, who was behind the idea of editing this
book, Mariana Henriques, from Brazil, the amazing Editorial Project Manager
for her help, guidance and for being a great cover designer, and Kamesh
Ramajogi, the production project manager from India, for his patience
and skills.
Thanks to my former doctoral student, Dr. Abir Lassoued, Assistant
Professor at the National School of Engineers of Tunis, Tunisia, for all
didactic efforts to design many diagrams and figures joining control theory
to physiology.
Finally, thanks to my daughter, Sarra Boubaker, External Doctor at the
Faculty of Medicine of Sousse, Tunisia, for her continuous encouragement,
but mostly for fruitful discussions and comments on the accuracy and proof
of medical information.

Olfa Boubaker
University of Carthage, National Institute of Applied Sciences and
Technology, Tunis, Tunisia