Robot Talk: Recent Episodes
EPSRC UK-RAS Network
Join us each month as we explore the exciting world of robotics, artificial intelligence, and autonomous machines. Each episode, Dr Claire Asher — science communicator and robot enthusiast — chats with robotics scientists from across the UK to find out how their cutting-edge research is influencing the future of every aspect of science, technology, and engineering, from the mundane to the extraordinary.
Since the first robot-assisted surgery was performed, over 40 years ago, major advances in robotics, computer vision and artificial intelligence have fundamentally changed medicine and healthcare. Innovative new technologies are already aiding skilled medical professionals in diagnosis, surgery, rehabilitation and beyond. But many questions remain: What ethical issues arise as medical tools become increasingly autonomous? How do we regulate technologies that can learn and change over time? And how can we ensure that cutting-edge medical devices are accessible to all?
In this special live recording at Imperial College London as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival, Claire chatted to George Mylonas (Imperial College London), Antonia Tzemanaki (University of Bristol) and Tom Vercauteren (King's College London) about robotics and AI in medicine and healthcare.
George Mylonas is an Associate Professor in Robotics and Technology in Cancer at Imperial College London, and the director of the Human-centred Automation, Robotics and Monitoring in Surgery lab at The Hamlyn Centre, Institute of Global Health Innovation and the Department of Surgery & Cancer, Faculty of Medicine. He is leading research in the areas of surgical robotics, soft robotics, minimal access surgical technology, perceptual human-robot and human-computer interfaces, and smart data-driven operating theatres. He is a member of the European Association of Endoscopic Surgery Technology Committee.
Antonia Tzemanaki is a Senior Lecturer in Robotics at the University of Bristol and a core member of the Bristol Robotics Laboratory. She leads the Dexterous Manipulation and Wearable Robotics group which develops robotic simulators and interventions, including robotic needle steering, abdominal, urology, skull and hand models, for surgical and physical therapy treatments of disease including cancers, neurological, prostate and urinary disorders. The group provides wide expertise in precision manipulation, robot hands, hand exoskeletons, kinematics, haptics and wearable robotics, especially with applications in surgery, preventative medicine, rehabilitation, physiotherapy and dexterous tele-operation.
Tom Vercauteren is a Professor of Interventional Image Computing at King's College London, where he leads the Contextual Artificial Intelligence for Computer Assisted Interventions research group. His research focuses on medical image computing, machine learning and imaging for surgery and interventional sciences. He is also co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Hypervision Surgical, a spin-out company developing safe, non-invasive optical imaging for use during surgery. His work is now used in hundreds of hospitals worldwide. Tom is also a supporter of open-source software and patient involvement.
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Claire chatted to Allison Okamura from Stanford University about developing advanced robotic systems for haptic (touch) interaction.
Allison Okamura is the Richard W. Weiland Professor of Engineering at Stanford University. Her academic interests include haptics, teleoperation, virtual reality, medical robotics, soft robotics, rehabilitation, and education. Allison is Director of Graduate Studies for Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University, a deputy director of the Wu Tsai Stanford Neurosciences Institute, a Science Fellow of the Hoover Institution and a founding faculty member and executive committee member of the Stanford Robotics Center.
This episode is powered by the Advanced Research + Invention Agency's Robot Dexterity programme, which aims to transform robotic capabilities and unlock a step-change in human productivity.
Find out more about ARIA: https://aria.org.uk/
Support Robot Talk on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ClaireAsher
Claire chatted to Edward Mehr from Machina Labs about their RoboCraftsman that shapes complex metal parts for the aerospace, defence, and automotive industries.
Edward Mehr is an entrepreneur and engineer specializing in advanced manufacturing, robotics, and artificial intelligence. As the Co-Founder and CEO of Machina Labs, he leads efforts to integrate AI-driven robotics into flexible, on-demand production systems. Under his leadership, Machina Labs is reshaping how industries such as aerospace, defence, and automotive approach metal forming and modern manufacturing. Before founding Machina Labs, Ed worked at leading technology companies, including Relativity Space, Averon, SpaceX, Google, and Microsoft.
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Maria Koskinopoulou is an Assistant Professor in Robotics and Computer Vision at Heriot-Watt University. She co-leads the ARM²Lab – Autonomous Robotic Manipulation & Multi-Agent Systems Lab at Heriot-Watt and the National Robotarium, alongside Ignacio Carlucho. Her research interests include robotic manipulation, perception, robot vision, medical robotics, human-robot interaction, and machine learning. She is involved in major UKRI and EU-funded research projects advancing robotic manipulation, surgical and underwater robotics, autonomous assembly, and waste sorting.
Check out the bonus episodes from the European Robotics Forum: https://www.patreon.com/posts/robot-talk-at-157276631
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This bonus episode features interviews from academic and industry experts at this year's European Robotics Forum in Stavanger, Norway.
On the second day of the conference, I attended a workshop on '6G Empowering Future Multipurpose Robotics', which explored opportunities, technical challenges, and requirements for connectivity in robotics.
This bonus episode was produced in collaboration with euRobotics — an international non-profit association that aims to boost European robotics research, development, and innovation.
This bonus episode features interviews from academic and industry experts at this year's European Robotics Forum in Stavanger, Norway.
The first workshop I attended at ERF 2026 was on 'Robotics for Strategic Reindustrialisation', which focussed how to strengthen the resilience of Europe's manufacturing supply chains, including those for robotics hardware and software.
This bonus episode was produced in collaboration with euRobotics — an international non-profit association that aims to boost European robotics research, development, and innovation.
Claire chatted to Ahti Heinla from Starship Technologies about their AI-powered delivery robots that operate independently on streets and sidewalks.
Ahti Heinla is the co-founder and CEO of Starship Technologies, the world's leading autonomous delivery company building AI-powered robots that operate fully independently in real-world environments. One of the original engineers behind Skype's billion-dollar success, Ahti later made a quiet pivot into robotics, spending the past decade advancing practical, consumer-facing AI. Under his leadership, Starship has completed more than 10 million autonomous deliveries with a fleet of over 2,700 robots navigating streets, pavements, weather, and people, without human intervention.
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Claire chatted to Josie Hughes from École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) about using generative AI to develop new designs for robotic manipulators.
Josie Hughes is an Assistant Professor at EPFL, where she established the CREATE Lab in 2021. She completed her PhD in the Bio-inspired Robotics Lab at the University of Cambridge, examining the role of passivity in bio-inspired manipulators. Her research focuses on developing novel design paradigms for designing robot structures that exploit their physicality and interactions with the environment. This includes the development of robotic hands, soft manipulators, and automation systems for applications focused on sustainability and science.
This episode is powered by the Advanced Research + Invention Agency's Robot Dexterity programme, which aims to transform robotic capabilities and unlock a step-change in human productivity.
Support Robot Talk on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ClaireAsher
Find out more about ARIA: https://aria.org.uk/
Claire chatted to Gavin Kenneally from Ghost Robotics about robot dogs for defence, security, and public safety.
Gavin Kenneally is the Co-Founder and CEO of Ghost Robotics, a company that has gained a reputation for pushing the boundaries of legged robotics technology. In his current role, Gavin spearheads a team of highly skilled engineers and researchers who share his passion for creating advanced robotics systems. Previously, he was Head of Product at Ghost Robotics, responsible for the mechanical design of the company's flagship product: the Vision 60 Q-UGV. Gavin has a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and has authored six academic papers.
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Claire chatted to Melissa Greeff from Queen's University about autonomous navigation and learning for drones.
Melissa Greeff is an Assistant Professor in Electrical and Computer Engineering at Queen's University. She leads Robora Lab and is also an Ingenuity Labs Robotics and AI Institute member. Her research interests include aerial robots, vision-based navigation, and safe learning-based control. Melissa's expertise is in building autonomous aerial systems including previous experience in conducting field trials at various locations across Canada. She was listed as one of 50 women in robotics you need to know about in 2023 by the Women in Robotics organization.
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Claire chatted to Andrew Philippides from the University of Sussex about what we can learn from ants and bees to improve robot navigation.
Andrew Philippides is a Professor of Biorobotics at the University of Sussex, where he co-directs the Centre for Computational Neuroscience and Robotics and the be.AI Leverhulme Doctoral centre for Biomimetic Embodied AI. His research combines biological experiments with robotics, modelling, and machine learning to understand how intelligent behaviour emerges from the interaction of body and brain acting in an environment. Focussing on visual navigation, he aims to understand the navigation and learning abilities of ants and bees to develop novel AI and biorobotic algorithms.
This episode is powered by the Advanced Research + Invention Agency's Robot Dexterity programme, which aims to transform robotic capabilities and unlock a step-change in human productivity.
Find out more about ARIA: https://aria.org.uk/
Join the Robot Talk community on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ClaireAsher
Claire chatted to Chenying Liu from the University of Oxford about how a robot's physical form can actively contribute to sensing, processing, decision-making, and movement.
Chenying Liu is a Junior Research Fellow and an Associate Member of Faculty in the Department of Engineering Science at the University of Oxford. She leads an independent research programme focused on embodied physical intelligence, exploring how robot design can integrate geometry, materials, and control to enhance autonomy and robustness. Her work aims to develop more efficient and resilient robotic systems by embedding intelligence directly into their physical structures.
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Claire chatted to Rich Walker from Shadow Robot Company about their advanced robotic hands for research and industry.
Rich Walker has been at Shadow Robot since long before it was a company, working initially on software and systems engineering before "jumping the fence" into management. He led Shadow Robot's engagement with a number of R&D initiatives in UK and across Europe, as well as developing proof-of-concept projects for dexterous robotics with a number of commercial organisations. Rich represents robotics SMEs at the European level as one of the Directors of euRobotics, as well as maintaining Shadow Robot's research engagements and policy programme.
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This episode was produced in collaboration with euRobotics — an international non-profit association that aims to boost European robotics research, development, and innovation.
Claire chatted to Simona Aracri from the National Research Council of Italy about innovative robot designs for oceanography and environmental monitoring.
Simona Aracri is a researcher in the Institute of Marine Engineering at the National Research Council of Italy. Previously, she was a Post Doctoral Research Associate at the University of Edinburgh, working on the award winning project ORCA Hub and focusing on offshore robotic sensors. Her research uses innovative sensors and robotic platforms to push the boundaries of observational oceanography and environmental monitoring. She has spent more than 6 months at sea on oceanographic sampling campaigns, in the Mediterranean Sea, Pacific Ocean and the North Sea.
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Claire chatted to Vikas Enti from Reframe Systems about using robotics and automation to build climate-resilient, high-performance homes.
Vikas Enti is the co-founder and CEO of Reframe Systems, a physical AI company rethinking how homes are built through automation and localized fabrication. He previously spent more than a decade at Amazon Robotics, where he helped scale advanced robotics systems across global logistics networks. Today, he is applying those same principles of systems design and repeatable production to address the housing shortage. Vikas focuses on building climate-resilient, high-performance homes faster and more predictably than traditional methods.
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Claire chatted to Krystal Mattich from Brain Corp about trustworthy autonomous robots in public spaces.
Krystal Mattich leads global data governance, system security, and privacy compliance for Brain Corp: the world's leading autonomy platform for commercial robotics. As Senior Director of Security, Privacy, and Risk, she is the architect of the privacy-first infrastructure that powers over 40,000 BrainOS®-enabled robots across retail, airports, education and logistics. Krystal played a central role in launching Brain Corp's public-facing Trust Center, reinforcing the company's commitment to data transparency, GDPR compliance, and responsible AI.
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Last month, I hosted a panel discussion on home assistant robots at the Festival of Tomorrow in Swindon.
I was joined by Dr Patrick Holthaus, a Reader in Interactive Assistive Technology at the University of Hertfordshire, Dr Nicole Salomons, a Lecturer at Imperial College London, Dr Gerard Canal, a Lecturer in Autonomous Systems at King's College London, and Dr Carolina Fuentes Toro, a Lecturer in Human-Computer Interaction and Human-Robot Interaction at the University of Cardiff.
This event was part of the Festival of Tomorrow's Hawking Building Series — a series of four evening events organised at the Science and Innovation Park in Swindon. I'd like to say thanks again to the Festival of Tomorrow for inviting me to be part of this fantastic imitative. The Festival of Tomorrow is an annual festival bringing together researchers, programmers, artists and performers to share discoveries, research, knowledge and ideas that will shape our shared future.
Listen to the full catalogue of bonus episodes here: https://www.patreon.com/collection/681853
Find out more about the Festival of Tomorrow: https://www.festivaloftomorrow.com/
Claire chatted to Alan Winfield from the University of the West of England about developing new standards for ethics and transparency in robotics.
Alan Winfield is Professor of Robot Ethics at the University of the West of England (UWE), Visiting Professor at the University of York, and Associate Fellow of the Cambridge Centre for the Future of Intelligence. Alan co-founded the Bristol Robotics Laboratory, where his research is focussed on the science, engineering and ethics of cognitive robotics. Alan is an advocate for robot ethics; he chairs the advisory board of the Responsible Technology Institute at the University of Oxford and has co-drafted new standards on ethical risk assessment and transparency.
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Claire chatted to Maria Guix from the University of Barcelona about combining electronics and biology to create robots that are more than the sum of their parts.
Maria Guix is a chemist and nanotechnology researcher in the University of Barcelona's ChemInFlow lab, developing miniaturized living robots and integrating flexible sensors into microfluidic platforms to better understand biohybrid robotic platforms. Her PhD research at the Autonomous University of Barcelona focussed on nanomaterials for biosensing. She has held postdoctoral positions at IFW Dresden, Purdue University, and the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia, advancing biocompatible micromotors, magnetic microrobot automation, and functional living robots.
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Claire chatted to Jamie Palmer from Icarus Robotics about building a robotic labour force to perform routine and risky tasks in orbit.
Jamie Palmer is co-founder and CTO of Icarus Robotics. He earned a Master's in Robotics from Columbia University on a full scholarship, researching intelligent, dexterous manipulation in the ROAM lab. Jamie developed and deployed autonomous hospital robots during the pandemic and worked as a race-winning engineer for the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One team.
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Claire chatted to Agata Suwala from the Manufacturing Technology Centre about leveraging robotics to make manufacturing systems more sustainable.
Agata Suwala is a Technology Manager at the Manufacturing Technology Centre, where she leads cutting-edge work in automation and robotics. With over a decade of experience in R&D, Agata specialises in developing and implementing advanced manufacturing systems—particularly for the aerospace sector—transforming complex, skill-intensive processes through automation. Her recent focus is on enabling the transition to a circular economy by leveraging automation and robotics to create sustainable, scalable technologies.
This episode is powered by the Advanced Research and Invention Agency's Robot Dexterity programme, which aims to transform robotic capabilities and unlock a step-change in human productivity.
Find out more about ARIA: https://aria.org.uk/
Join the Robot Talk community on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ClaireAsher
Claire chatted to Samuele Vinanzi from Sheffield Hallam University about how robots can tell whether to trust or distrust people.
Samuele Vinanzi is a Senior Lecturer in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence at Sheffield Hallam University. He specializes in Cognitive Robotics: an interdisciplinary field that integrates robotics, artificial intelligence, cognitive science, and psychology to create robots that perceive, reason, and interact like humans. His research focuses on enabling social collaboration between humans and robots, particularly emotional intelligence, intention reading, and artificial trust. His recent book, "In Robots We Trust", explores trust relationships between humans and robots.
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Claire chatted to Elmira Yadollahi from Lancaster University about how children interact with and relate to robots.
Elmira Yadollahi is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Lancaster University. She has a joint PhD in robotics and computer science from EPFL in Switzerland and Instituto Superior Técnico in Portugal. Her research tackles explainability in robotics, as well as multimodal perception and explanation methods. Her core expertise is in child–robot interaction, with a focus on expectation management, trust, and AI literacy. She has organised workshops on Explainability in Human-Robot Interaction and the Design and Development of Robots and AI with Children.
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Claire chatted to Mark Gray from Universal Robots about their lightweight robotic arms that work alongside humans.
Mark Gray has worked in automation for the last 30 years, first involved in machine vision and robotics and finally collaborative robots or cobots. As country manager, Mark was the first person to work for Universal Robots in the UK and has carried out projects with many research institutes such as the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC), The Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC), the National Robotarium, and Bristol Robotics Lab.
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Claire chatted to Razanne Abu-Aisheh from the University of Bristol about how people feel about interacting with robot swarms.
Razanne Abu-Aisheh is a Senior Research Associate in the Centre for Sociodigital Futures at the University of Bristol. Her work explores how people interact with robot swarms, with a focus on how collective robot behaviours influence human perception. In her current research, she collaborates with communities to imagine more inclusive and meaningful futures with robotics, working towards community-centred design. Her broader interests include bringing robot swarms into real-world settings and designing them with people in mind.
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Claire chatted to Amir Patel from University College London about designing robots with the agility and manoeuvrability of a cheetah.
Amir Patel is an Associate Professor of Robotics & AI in the Department of Computer Science at University College London (UCL). His research uses robotics methods—sensor fusion, computer vision, mechanical modelling, and optimal control—to understand and quantify animal locomotion, especially high-speed predators such as the cheetah, and to translate these insights into bio-inspired machines. Previously, he served on the faculty of Electrical Engineering at the University of Cape Town, where he founded and directed the African Robotics Unit (ARU).
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Claire chatted to Christine Evers from the University of Southampton about helping robots understand the world around them through sound.
Christine Evers is an Associate Professor in Computer Science and Director of the Centre for Robotics at the University of Southampton. Her research pushes the boundaries of machine listening, enabling robots to make sense of life in sound. Her current focus is embedding our understanding of the human auditory process into deep-learning audio architectures. This bio-inspired approach moves away from massive, internet-scale models toward compute-efficient and inherently interpretable systems - opening the door to a new generation of embodied auditory intelligence.
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Claire chatted to Stefano Mintchev from ETH Zürich about robots to explore and monitor the natural environment.
Stefano Mintchev is an Assistant Professor of Environmental Robotics at ETH Zürich in Switzerland. He has a Ph.D. in Bioinspired Robotics from Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna in Italy, and conducted postdoctoral research at EPFL in Switzerland, focused on bioinspired design principles for versatile aerial robots. At ETH Zürich, Stefano leads a research group working at the intersection of robotics and environmental science, developing robust and scalable bioinspired robotic technologies for monitoring and promoting the sustainable use of natural resources.
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Claire chatted to Oluwami Dosunmu-Ogunbi from Ohio Northern University about bipedal robots that can walk and even climb stairs.
Oluwami Dosunmu-Ogunbi (Wami) is an Assistant Professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department at Ohio Northern University. Her research focuses on controls with applications in bipedal locomotion and engineering education. She is the first Black woman to receive a PhD in Robotics at the University of Michigan. During her Ph.D., she developed the Biped Bootcamp technical document, which she is transforming into an undergraduate curriculum —introducing students to bipedal robotics while providing advanced coursework for juniors and seniors.
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Claire chatted to Shimon Whiteson from the University of Oxford and Waymo about machine learning for autonomous vehicles.
Shimon Whiteson is a Professor of Computer Science at the University of Oxford and a Senior Staff Research Scientist at Waymo UK. His research focuses on deep reinforcement learning and imitation learning, with applications in robotics and video games. He completed his doctorate at the University of Texas at Austin in 2007. He spent eight years as an Assistant and then an Associate Professor at the University of Amsterdam before joining Oxford as an Associate Professor in 2015. His spin-out company Latent Logic was acquired by Waymo in 2019.
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Claire chatted to Chapa Sirithunge from the University of Cambridge about what robots can teach us about human anatomy, and vice versa.
Chapa Sirithunge is a Marie Sklodowska-Curie fellow in robotics at the University of Cambridge. She has an undergraduate degree and PhD in Electrical Engineering from the University of Moratuwa. Before joining the University of Cambridge in 2022, she was a lecturer at Sri Lanka Technological Campus and a visiting lecturer at the University of Moratuwa Sri Lanka. Her research interests span assistive robotics, soft robots and physical human-robot interaction. In addition to her research, she founded Women in Robotics Cambridge to help young minds navigate their path into robotics.
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Claire chatted to Kevin McAleer from kevsrobots about how to get started building robots at home.
Kevin McAleer is a hobbyist robotics fanatic who likes to build robots, share videos about them on YouTube and teach people how to do the same. Kev has been building robots since 2019, when he got his first 3d printer and wanted to make more interesting builds. Kev has a degree in Computer Science, and because his day job is relatively hands-off, this hobby allows his creativity to have an outlet. Kev is a huge fan of Python and Micropython for embedded devices, and has a website - kevsrobots.com where you can learn more about how to get started in robotics.
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Claire chatted to Heather Knight from Oregon State University about applying methods from the performing arts to robotics.
Heather Knight runs the CHARISMA Robotics research group. Her education includes a PhD on Expressive Motion for Low Degree of Freedom Robots from Carnegie Mellon University, and M.S. and B.S. degrees in EECS from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She has worked at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Aldebaran Robotics, and produced the Robot Film Festival, a Cyberflora robot flower garden, robot comedy on TED.com, and a two-floor Rube Goldberg machine for OK Go that won a British Video Music Award.
This episode is sponsored by Soft Robotics for Healthcare, a national platform for accelerating the clinical adoption of soft robotic technologies. Their upcoming event: SoRoH 2026 'Shaping the Future of Soft Robotics in Health' is coming to Bristol on the 19th and 20th of January. Register at softroboticshealth.org.uk
Claire chatted to Anthony Jules from Robust.AI about their AI-driven autonomous robots that work alongside humans.
Anthony Jules is the CEO and co-founder of Robust.AI, a leader in AI-driven warehouse automation. The company's flagship product Carter™, is built to work with people in their existing environments, without disrupting their workflows. Anthony has a career spanning over 30 years at the intersection of robotics, AI, and business. An MIT-trained roboticist, he was part of the founding team at Sapient, held leadership roles at Activision, and has built multiple startups, bringing a unique blend of technical depth and operational scale to human-centered automation.
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Claire chatted to Edith-Clare Hall from the Advanced Research + Invention Agency (ARIA) about accelerating scientific and technological breakthroughs.
Edith-Clare Hall is a PhD student at the University of Bristol, Frontier Specialist at ARIA, and leader of Women in Robotics UK. She focuses on the critical interfaces where interconnected systems meet, working to close the gap between academic research and real-world deployment to unlock cyber-physical autonomy. At ARIA, she works as a technical generalist, accelerating breakthroughs across emerging and future programmes. Her PhD research focussed on creating bespoke robotic systems that deliver support for people with progressive conditions such as motor neurone disease (MND).
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Claire chatted to Chad Jenkins from the University of Michigan about how robots can learn from people and assist us in our daily lives.
Odest Chadwicke Jenkins is a Professor of Robotics and a Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Michigan. His research addresses problems in robot learning from demonstration and human-robot interaction, primarily focused on dexterous mobile manipulation and robot perception. In 2022, he founded the Robotics Major Degree Program for undergraduates at the University of Michigan. He was awarded the 2024 ACM/CMD-IT Richard A. Tapia Achievement Award for Scientific Scholarship, Civic Science, and Diversifying Computing.
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Claire chatted to Yuen Ting Chan from the Natural History Museum about using robots to automate molecular biology experiments.
Yuen Ting Chan has nearly 20 years of experience working on translating, developing and optimising laboratory protocols, from DNA forensics to the biomedical field. She has brought automation to molecular laboratories for over 12 years, translating the laboratory protocols into bespoke scripts for a wide variety of liquid handling instruments. Her role at the Natural History Museum is to bring automation to the molecular laboratories, thus providing more opportunities for researchers to work on projects with large sample numbers for the wide variety of specimens within the museum.
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Last month I had the pleasure of attending the Smart City Robotics Competition in Milton Keynes, where I spoke to the organisers, competitors, exhibitors and attendees of this exciting 3-day event. Check out our conversations in this month's bonus episode!
This bonus episode was sponsored by euRobotics, an international non-profit association that aims to boost European robotics research, development, and innovation. Thank you to euRobotics for their support! And thank you to Smart City Consultancy for inviting me to attend the competition.
This is the first time I've recorded interviews at a live event like this, so I'd love to know what you think. Would you like to see more content like this in the future? Let me know!
Listen to the full catalogue of bonus episodes here: https://www.patreon.com/collection/681853
Find out more about euRobotics: https://eu-robotics.net/
Learn more about the Smart City Robotics competition: https://www.smartcityconsultancy.co.uk/
Claire chatted to Ali K. Hoshiar from the University of Essex about how microrobots move and work together.
Ali Hoshiar is a Senior Lecturer in Robotics at the University of Essex and Director of the Robotics for Under Millimetre Innovation (RUMI) Lab. He leads the EPSRC-funded ‘In-Target’ project and was awarded the university’s Best Interdisciplinary Research Award. His research focuses on microrobotics, soft robotics, and data-driven mechatronic systems for medical and agri-tech applications. He also holds an MBA, adding strategic and commercial insight to his technical work.
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Claire chatted to Frances Zhu from the Colorado School of Mines about intelligent robotic systems for space exploration.
Frances Zhu has a degree in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from Cornell University. She was previously a NASA Space Technology Research Fellow and an Assistant Research Professor in the Hawaii Institute of Geophysics and Planetology at the University of Hawaii, specialising in machine learning, dynamics, systems, and controls engineering. Since 2025, she has been an Assistant Professor at the Colorado School of Mines in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, affiliated with the Robotics program and Space Resources Program.
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Robot Talk will be back for a new season very soon — make sure you're subscribed to be the first to hear the latest episodes!
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Research into humanoid robots is a rapidly advancing field, with companies around the world striving to produce robots that look and act more like us. But what is it about recreating ourselves in robot form that we find so captivating? Why do humanoid robots both enthral and terrify us? And is our obsession with robotic humans just vanity, or could they play valuable roles in our future society?
In this special live recording at Imperial College London as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival, Claire chatted to Ben Russell (Science Museum), Maryam Banitalebi Dehkordi (University of Hertfordshire) and Petar Kormushev (Imperial College London) about humanoid robotics.
Ben Russell has been the Science Museum’s Curator of Mechanical Engineering since 2004. He has curated six permanent galleries and temporary exhibitions at the museum, including Engineers (2023), Robots (2017), Cosmonauts (2015) and James Watt’s Workshop (2011). He is the author of James Watt: Making the World Anew, (Reaktion Books, 2014), and editor of Robots (Scala, 2017), as well as numerous published and conference papers.
Maryam Banitalebi Dehkordi is a Senior Lecturer in Robotics and AI at the University of Hertfordshire. She has a master’s degree in Mechatronics and Automatic Control Engineering from the University Technology Malaysia and a Ph.D. in Perceptual Robotics from Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna in Italy. Her expertise spans assistive robots, mobile robots, agricultural robots, industrial robots, humanoid robots, parallel manipulators, navigation, and outdoor autonomous vehicles.
Petar Kormushev is Director of the Robot Intelligence Lab at Imperial College London and an Associate Professor in Robotics at the Dyson School of Design Engineering. His research focus is on reinforcement learning algorithms and their application to autonomous robots. Petar’s long-term goal is to create robots that can learn by themselves and adapt to dynamic environments. His machine learning algorithms have been applied to a variety of humanoid robots, including COMAN and iCub.
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Claire chatted to Gabriel Skantze from KTH Royal Institute of Technology about having natural face-to-face conversations with robots.
Gabriel Skantze is a Professor of Speech Communication and Technology at KTH Royal Institute of Technology. He specializes in conversational systems and leads several research projects on conversational AI and human-robot interaction. His work focuses on computational models of spoken interaction, integrating both verbal and non-verbal aspects such as prosody, turn-taking, feedback, and joint attention. In 2014, he co-founded Furhat Robotics, where he continues to serve part-time as Chief Scientist.
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Claire chatted to Amy LaViers from the Robotics, Automation, and Dance Lab about the creative relationship between humans and machines.
Amy LaViers works at the intersection of robotics and dance. Her writing, choreography, and machine designs have been presented internationally at performing arts and engineering venues, including Merce Cunningham’s studios, the Performance Arcade, and universities like Berkeley and Brown. She is the founder of three startup companies, including AE Machines, which won “Product Design of the Year” at the 4th Rev Awards in Chicago. Amy runs the Robotics, Automation, and Dance (RAD) Lab, a non-profit for art-making, commercialization, education, outreach, and research.
Robot Talk LiveBe part of the audience for a live recording at the Great Exhibition Road Festival this weekend: https://www.greatexhibitionroadfestival.co.uk/event/why-are-we-building-humanoid-robots/
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Claire chatted to Nick Thompson from BOW about software that makes robots easier to program.
Nick Thompson is CEO of BOW and exited founder of One Beyond Ltd, an international software development firm. His career started in 1997 as a software engineer, founded One Beyond in the early 2000's and after 20 years in the business sold to a private equity firm. In 2022 he was recognised as one of the UK's 'Most Ambitious Business Leaders' by LDC Private Equity Group.
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Claire chatted to Jane Pauline Ramos Ramirez from Delft University of Technology about drones that can move on land and in the air.
Jane Pauline Ramos Ramirez is a licensed engineer with a multidisciplinary background in bionics, mechanical, and aerospace engineering, and international research experience. Her life’s work is rooted in designing inclusive, socially accessible systems that work in synergy with nature and create meaningful impact in communities. As part of this mission, she has been developing nature-inspired drones that can move on both land and in the air — blending her appreciation for nature, design, and the mechanics of how things work.
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Claire chatted to Lerrel Pinto from New York University about using machine learning to train robots to adapt to new environments.
Lerrel Pinto is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at New York University (NYU). His research is aimed at getting robots to generalize and adapt in the messy world we live in. His lab focuses broadly on robot learning and decision making, with an emphasis on large-scale learning (both data and models); representation learning for sensory data; developing algorithms to model actions and behaviour; reinforcement learning for adapting to new scenarios; and building open-source, affordable robots.
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Claire chatted to Emma Hart from Edinburgh Napier University about algorithms that 'evolve' better robot designs and control systems.
Emma Hart is a computer scientist working in the field of evolutionary computation. Her work takes inspiration from the natural world, in particular biological evolution, and uses this to develop algorithms that 'evolve' both the design and control systems of a robot, customised to a specific application. She was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2022, and was awarded the ACM SIGEVO Award for Outstanding Contribution to Evolutionary Computation in 2023. She was invited to give a TED Talk on her work in 2021 that has over 1.8 million views.
Get tickets for Robot Talk live at the Great Exhibition Road Festival: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/why-are-we-building-humanoid-robots-tickets-1315475706249
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Claire chatted to Will Kinghorn from Made Smarter about how to increase adoption of new tech by small manufacturers.
Will Kinghorn is an automation and robotics specialist for the Made Smarter Adoption Programme in the UK. With a background as a chartered manufacturing engineer in the aerospace industry, Will has extensive experience in developing and implementing automation and robotic solutions. He now works with smaller manufacturing companies, assessing their needs, identifying suitable technologies, and guiding them through the adoption process. Last year he released a book called 'Digital Transformation in Your Manufacturing Business - A Made Smarter Guide’.
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Claire chatted to Miranda Lowther from the University of Bristol about soft, sensitive electronic skin for prosthetic limbs.
Miranda Lowther is a PhD researcher at the FARSCOPE-TU Centre for Doctoral Training, a joint venture between University of Bristol, University of West of England, and Bristol Robotics Laboratory, where she is pursuing her passion for using soft robotics and morphological computation to help people in healthcare. For her PhD, she is investigating how soft e-skins and morphological computation concepts can be used to improve prosthetic user health, comfort, and quality of life, through sensing and adaptation.
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Claire chatted to Jeremy Hadall from the Satellite Applications Catapult about robotic systems for in-orbit servicing, assembly, and manufacturing.
Jeremy Hadall has worked with robotics for his entire career, developing novel and innovative approaches for manufacturing and logistics industries. He's now turned his experience into the development of robots that enable those tasks in the orbital environment. Prior to joining the Satellite Applications Catapult, he served as Chief Engineer for Intelligent Automation at the Manufacturing Technology Centre for over ten years. He has previously served as a Royal Academy of Engineering Visiting Professor at Cranfield University.
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Claire chatted to Tanja Katharina Kaiser from the University of Technology Nuremberg about how applying evolutionary principles can help robot teams make better decisions.
Tanja Katharina Kaiser is a senior researcher heading the Multi-Robot Systems Satellite Lab at the University of Technology Nuremberg (UTN) in Germany. She and her team focus on the development of adaptive multi-robot systems to solve complex real-world tasks using artificial intelligence. Tanja received her doctorate in robotics from the University of Lübeck in Germany in 2022. Before joining UTN, she held postdoctoral research positions at the Technical University of Dresden and the University of Konstanz.
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Claire chatted to Benjamin Mottis from ANYbotics about deploying their four-legged ANYmal robot in a variety of industries.
Benjamin Mottis is a Robotics Engineer in charge of ANYmal Research at ANYbotics. After graduating in robotics from EPFL, he joined ANYbotics as a Field Engineer in 2023. He specializes in deploying ANYmal and training customers across all ANYbotics verticals (Oil & Gas, Nuclear, Metals, Chemicals, etc.). Since 2024, as the Global Research Community Manager, he has been working on expanding the ANYmal Research Community and helping world-leading researchers push the boundaries of robotics with ANYmal.
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Claire chatted to Josie Gotz from the Manufacturing Technology Centre about robotics for material recovery, reuse and recycling.
Josie Gotz is a Senior Research Engineer in the Intelligent Robotics Team at the Manufacturing Technology Centre, she works as the technical lead on a variety of robotics and automation projects from research and development through to integration across a wide variety of manufacturing sectors. She specialises in creating innovative solutions for these industries, combining vision systems and artificial intelligence to build flexible automation systems. Josie has a particular interest in automated disassembly for material recovery, reuse and recycling.
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Claire chatted to Kaspar Althoefer from Queen Mary University of London about soft robotic manipulators for healthcare and manufacturing.
Kaspar Althoefer is Director of the Centre for Advanced Robotics at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL). His research focuses on soft robotics, tactile perception, intelligent manipulation, and machine learning techniques for sensor signal interpretation. His research advancements have significant applications in robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery, rehabilitation, assistive technologies, and human-robot interactions within a range of scenarios, including manufacturing. Before joining QMUL, he was a Professor at King's College London, where he also earned his PhD.
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Claire chatted to Vali Lalioti from the University of the Arts London about how art, culture and robotics interact.
Vali Lalioti is a pioneering designer, computer scientist and innovator. She has a PhD in Computer Science, an MRes in Design and an MBA, and extensive international leadership, research and innovation experience in Silicon Valley, Africa, China, Japan and Europe. Vali is passionate about how technology interacts with society and talks globally on women in tech, art and technology education and her research in societal applications for well-being, healthy ageing and art. She developed the first ever BBC Augmented Reality production in 2003 and has introduced the UK's first Creative Robotics University Degrees.
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Claire chatted to Patrick Meier from the Climate Robotics Network about how robots can help scale action on climate change.
Patrick Meier has 15+ years of leadership and field experience at the intersection of emerging tech, innovation, and social impact. He founded the Climate Robotics Network and currently leads the UK FCDO project on Robotics for Global Development in low- and middle-income countries. Previously, he served as Strategy Lead for Robotics at the Swiss Institute of Technology (EPFL) and Innovation Booster Robotics. He also co-founded and led WeRobotics, an international technology nonprofit with labs in 40+ countries.
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Claire chatted to Catherine Menon from the University of Hertfordshire about designing home assistance robots with ethics in mind.
Catherine Menon is a principal lecturer at the University of Hertfordshire. Her research explores the ethics and safety of autonomous systems, and she has a particular interest in the interaction between safety requirements, ethical imperatives and trust constraints in public-facing AI including assistive robots. She has previously worked as a safety-critical systems engineer in the defence and nuclear sectors, and has been involved in producing and validating several international standards for these domains.
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Claire chatted to Dan Nicholson from MakerForge.tech about creating open source robotics projects you can do at home.
Dan Nicholson is a seasoned Software Engineering Manager with over 20 years of experience as a software engineer and architect. Four years ago, he began exploring robotics as a hobby, which quickly evolved into a large-scale bipedal robotics project that has inspired a wide audience. After making the project open-source and 3D printable, Dan built a vibrant community around it, with over 25k followers. Through his platform, MakerForge.tech, Dan shares insights and project details while collaborating with partners and fellow makers to continue expanding the project’s impact.
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Claire chatted to Anuradha Ranasinghe from Liverpool Hope University about haptic (touch) sensors for wearable tech and robotics.
Anuradha Ranasinghe earned her PhD in robotics from King's College London in 2015, focusing on haptic-based human control in low-visibility conditions. She is now a senior lecturer in robotics at Liverpool Hope University, researching haptics, miniaturized sensors, and perception. Her work has received national and international media attention, including features by EPSRC, CBS Radio, Liverpool Echo, and Techxplore. She has published in leading robotics conferences and journals, and she has presented her findings at various international conferences.
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Claire chatted to Robert Siddall from the University of Surrey about novel robot designs inspired by the way real animals move.
Robert Siddall is an aerospace engineer with an enthusiasm for unconventional robotics. He is interested in understanding animal locomotion for the benefit of synthetic locomotion, particularly flight. Before becoming a Lecturer at the University of Surrey, he worked at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart, Germany, where he studied the arboreal acrobatics of rainforest-dwelling reptiles. His work focuses on the design of novel robots that can tackle important environmental problems.
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Check out a video of the pangolin-inspired tree-planting robot that won the 2023 Natural Robotics contest: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_9kYvjXyZ0
Claire chatted to Didem Gurdur Broo from Uppsala University about how to shape the future of robotics, autonomous vehicles, and industrial automation.
Didem Gurdur Broo is an Assistant Professor and Associate Senior Lecturer at the Department of Information Technology at Uppsala University. She leads the Cyber-physical Systems Lab, directing research on intelligent systems like collaborative robots, autonomous vehicles, and smart cities. Didem is a computer scientist with a PhD in mechatronics, which can give you an idea about how much she loves to talk about the future and emerging technologies. She dreams a better world and actively works on improving inequalities regardless of their nature.
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Claire chatted to Gianmarco Pisanelli from the University of Sheffield about how to promote the safe and intuitive use of robots in manufacturing.
Gianmarco Pisanelli specialises in early-stage technology readiness level (TRL) research, with a focus on collaborative workspaces, multi-robot systems, and robotic simulations. He possesses extensive experience in industrial robotics, including PLC programming and the development of intuitive robotic interfaces such as natural speech and augmented reality. As the lead developer for the Robot Operating System (ROS) at the University of Sheffield’s Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC), he serves as the primary point of contact for SMEs and major partners.
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Claire chatted to Kirstin Petersen from Cornell University about how robots can work together to achieve complex behaviours.
Kirstin Petersen is an Associate Professor in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Cornell University. Her lab, the Collective Embodied Intelligence Lab, is focused on design and coordination of robot collectives able to achieve complex behaviors beyond the reach of an individual, and corresponding studies on how social insects do so in nature. Petersen did her postdoc at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems and her PhD at Harvard University and the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering.
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Claire chatted to Keenan Wyrobek from Zipline about drones for delivering life-saving medicine to remote locations.
Keenan Wyrobek is co-founder and head of product and engineering at Zipline, the world’s first drone delivery service whose focus is delivering life-saving medicine to the most difficult to reach places on earth. Prior to Zipline, Keenan was a co-founder and director of the Personal Robotics Program at Willow Garage. He was involved in launching the Robot Operating System (ROS) and shipping PR2, the first personal robot for software R&D. Keenan has spent years delivering high tech products to market across a range of fields including consumer electronics and medical robotics.
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I chatted to Isabella Fiorello from the University of Freiburg about plant-inspired robots made from living materials.
Isabella Fiorello is a Junior Group Leader and Principal Investigator of the Bioinspired Plant-hybrid Materials group at the University of Freiburg in Germany. She has a Master’s Degree in Industrial Biotechnology from the University of Turin in Italy and a PhD in Biorobotics from Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna in Italy. Her research focusses on the development of biologically-inspired microfabricated living materials able to precisely interact with complex unstructured surfaces for applications in precision agriculture, smart fabrics, space, and soft robotics.
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Claire chatted to Christos Bergeles from King's College London about micro-surgical robots to deliver therapies deep inside the body.
Christos Bergeles received his PhD in Robotics from ETH Zurich in Switzerland in 2011. As a Professor at King’s College London, he directs the “Robotics and Vision in Medicine Lab” whose mission is to develop micro-surgical robots that deliver regenerative therapies deep inside the human body. He holds funding for the development of instrumentation that delivers stem cells to diseased retinal layers in the eye. He and his team are very active in public engagement and patient involvement activities, such as New Scientist Live and the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition.
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Claire chatted to Mini Rai from Orbit Rise about orbital and planetary robots.
Mini Rai is the founding Director of Orbit Rise Ltd and an honorary Professor at the University of Lincoln. Previously, she was the Global Chair in Robotic Engineering at the University of Lincoln and an Associate Professor at the Surrey Space Centre. Mini has over 27 years of research and innovation experience in Space Engineering and Technology. With deep-rooted expertise in robotics, automation, control and systems engineering, she has led a large and diverse portfolio of national and international programmes on space robotic missions, spanning orbital and planetary robotics.
To celebrate the 100th episode, I'm offering new members 25% off Patreon memberships with the code ROBO100. To claim your discount and get access to the monthly bonus episodes (including the full back catalogue), sign up here: https://www.patreon.com/ClaireAsher
Claire chatted to Joe Wolfel from Terradepth about autonomous submersible robots for collecting ocean data.
Joe Wolfel is the CEO and founder of Terradepth. He is passionate about helping people make better and faster decisions regarding what we do (and don't do) in the ocean. Terradepth designs and builds ocean-going robots at scale, deploys them, and delivers data through an ocean data platform tailored for the maritime community. Prior to Terradepth, Joe has helped start a couple other companies, worked as a management consultant, and served as a US Navy SEAL officer with deployments throughout the Middle East and Africa. Joe was educated at the US Naval Academy.
Check out the fascinating documentary about Terradepth's mission to chart the deep ocean.
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Claire chatted to Gabriella Pizzuto from the University of Liverpool about intelligent robotic manipulators for laboratory automation.
Gabriella Pizzuto is a Lecturer in Robotics and Chemistry Automation at the University of Liverpool. She is also a Royal Academy of Engineering Research Fellow and ECR Co-Chair on the EPSRC AI Hub in Chemistry. She has a Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of Manchester, where she was also a Marie-Sklodowska Curie early stage researcher and a visiting scholar at the University of Edinburgh and Italian Institute of Technology. She was then a postdoctoral research associate at the Edinburgh Centre for Robotics, prior to joining the University of Liverpool.
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Claire chatted to Pratap Tokekar from the University of Maryland about how teams of robots with different capabilities can work together.
Pratap Tokekar is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science and the Institute for Advanced Computer Studies at the University of Maryland, and an Amazon Scholar. Previously, he was a Postdoctoral Researcher at the GRASP lab of University of Pennsylvania and later, an Assistant Professor at Virginia Tech. He has a degree in Electronics and Telecommunication from the College of Engineering Pune in India and a Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of Minnesota. He received the Amazon Research Award in 2022, and the NSF CAREER award in 2020.
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Claire chatted to Maria Elena Giannaccini from the University of Aberdeen about soft and bioinspired robotics for healthcare and beyond.
Maria Elena Giannaccini has a degree in Biomedical Engineering from the Università di Pisa in Italy. She conducted her Master’s thesis at Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna as part of the EU-funded OCTOPUS project. In 2015, she obtained her PhD in Robotics at the Bristol Robotics, where she focussed on developing safe, variable stiffness robotic devices. She worked at the University of Bristol on the soft, bioinspired Tactip sensor and a soft robotics artificial larynx. In 2019, Elena was appointed as a Lecturer in Robotics at the University of Aberdeen where she pioneered research in soft robotics.
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Claire chatted to Jonathan Walker from Innovate UK about translating robotics research into the commercial sector.
Jonathan Walker is the Innovation Lead for Robotics and Sensors at Innovate UK. He is working with government, universities, businesses and cross-sector teams to accelerate the development and uptake of robotics in the UK. Areas of particular interest are the built environment, circular economy, and helping people live independently for longer. Jonathan wants to support these themes through cluster development, funded collaborative R&D, skills programs from school outreach, apprenticeships and T-levels to CDTs, business support and leveraging private investment.
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Claire chatted to Esyin Chew from Cardiff Metropolitan University about service and social humanoid robots in healthcare and education.
Esyin Chew is the Director of the EUREKA Robotics Centre, one of 11 specialist robotics centres in the UK, impacting underprivileged communities with over 120 humanoid robots. She has led million-pound government or industrial-funded global projects across the UK, EU, Australia, Malaysia, China and Indonesia, including the British Council award-winning Global PIE programme for Women in STEAM-H. Esyin has impacted numerous underprivileged communities, particularly girls and women in education and healthcare sectors, refugees and Orang Asli (Indigenous people).
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Claire chatted to Matt Beane from the University of California, Santa Barbara about how humans can learn to work with intelligent machines.
Matt Beane conducts field research on robots and AI in the workplace, focusing on positive exceptions applicable to the broader world of work. He has published his award-winning research in top management journals and presented on the TED stage. He's been recognized as a Human-Robot Interaction Pioneer and named to the Thinkers50 Radar list. Matt is an assistant professor in the Technology Management department at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and as a Digital Fellow with Stanford's Digital Economy Lab and MIT's Initiative on the Digital Economy.
Check out Matt's TED Talk on 'How do we learn to work with intelligent machines?'.
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Claire chatted to Gisela Reyes-Cruz from the University of Nottingham about how humans interact with, trust and accept robots.
Gisela Reyes-Cruz investigates human-computer and human-robot interaction to understand everyday life interactions with technologies, as well as trust in them and public acceptance. These technologies include autonomous and robotic systems: from mobile apps that have, or may have, a component that works autonomously, to robots that can navigate a physical space on their own, such as telepresence robots. The goal of Gisela's work is to inform responsible system design and design practices.
Find out more about the Mixed Reality Lab at the University of Nottingham: https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/research/groups/mixedrealitylab/
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Claire chatted to John Leonard from Massachusetts Institute of Technology about autonomous navigation for underwater vehicles and self-driving cars.
John Leonard is a Professor of Mechanical and Ocean Engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and a member of the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL). His research addresses the problems of navigation and mapping for autonomous underwater vehicles, self-driving vehicles, and other types of mobile robots. He has a degree in Electrical Engineering and Science from the University of Pennsylvania and PhD in Engineering Science from the University of Oxford. He is a Technical Advisor at Toyota Research Institute.
Check out John's TEDx Talk on 'How AI helps robots see our world', and this Toyota Research Institute video of autonomous drifting.
Find out more about the Marine Robotics Group at MIT: https://marinerobotics.mit.edu/
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Robot Talk will be back for a new season on the 27th September 2024 — make sure you're subscribed to be the first to hear the latest episodes!
Robotics is helping to rehabilitate and increase human abilities in areas like mobility and stamina. Innovations in robotic devices, exoskeletons, and wearable tech aim to offer disabled people different perspectives and new experiences, as well as supporting humans more widely to access, inhabit and work safely in dangerous and extreme conditions. What does the future hold for these technologies and the people they will become a part of?
In this special live recording at the Victoria and Albert Museum as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival, Claire chatted to Milia Helena Hasbani (Imperial College London), Benjamin Metcalfe (University of Bath) and Dani Clode (Cambridge University) about robotic prosthetics and human augmentation.
Milia Helena Hasbani is a researcher in assistive technology at Imperial College London. She is passionate about improving people’s lives through innovation in healthcare and technology in multi-disciplinary environments interfacing with engineers, clinicians, and patients. Her research focuses on the control of active prosthetic arms, combining user intention for wrist movements with a computer vision system for dynamically selecting the grasp type to be used.
Benjamin Metcalfe is a biomedical engineer who specialises in neural interfaces and implanted devices. He is Head of the Department of Electronic & Electrical Engineering at the University of Bath and Deputy Director of the Bath Institute for the Augmented Human. He is also Vice-President (Academic) of the Institute of Physics and Engineering in Medicine. His interests explore the collision between technology and biology and the extent to which engineering can be used to augment and enhance human performance.
Dani Clode is an augmentation and prosthetics designer. She is the Senior Technical Specialist at the Plasticity Lab at Cambridge University and a collaborator of the Alternative Limb Project. Dani’s work investigates the future architecture of our bodies, challenging the perception and boundaries of extending the human form. Her main project the ‘Third Thumb’ is currently being utilised in collaboration with neuroscientists at Cambridge University, investigating the brain’s ability to adapt to human augmentation.
Claire chatted to Simone Schuerle from ETH Zürich all about microrobots, medicine and science.
Simone Schuerle is Assistant Professor at ETH Zurich in Switzerland, where she heads the Responsive Biomedical System Lab. With her team, she develops diagnostic and therapeutic systems at the nano- and microscale with the aim of tackling a range of challenging problems in medicine. One major focus of her current research is addressing limitations in drug delivery through scalable magnetically enhanced drug transport. In 2014, she co-founded the spin-off MagnebotiX that offers electromagnetic control systems for wireless micromanipulation.
Join the live audience!
Robot Talk will be at the Great Exhibition Road Festival this Sunday (16th June) for 'Humans 2.0: Robotically Augmented People' at the V&A Museum.
Register for a FREE ticket: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/humans-20-robotically-augmented-people-tickets-879494560907
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You can enter across multiple platforms. One lucky winner will be randomly selected each month!
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Claire chatted to Lord Ara Darzi from Imperial College London all about robotic surgery - past, present and future.
Ara Darzi is Co-Director of the Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College London and holds the Paul Hamlyn Chair of Surgery. In 2002, he was knighted for his services to medicine and surgery and in 2007 was introduced as Lord Darzi of Denham to the UK’s House of Lords as the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health. Professor Darzi leads a large multidisciplinary academic and policy research team, focused on convergence science across engineering, physical and data sciences, specifically in the areas of robotics, sensing, imaging and digital and AI technologies. He is Chair of the NHS Accelerated Access Collaborative, Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences and the Royal Society, and Honorary Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering.
Join the live audience!
Robot Talk will be at the Great Exhibition Road Festival in June for 'Humans 2.0: Robotically Augmented People' at the V&A Museum in London, at 1.30pm on Sunday 16th June.
Register for a FREE ticket: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/humans-20-robotically-augmented-people-tickets-879494560907
Win a Robot Talk T-shirt
For a chance to win your very own organic cotton Robot Talk t-shirt, all you have to do is:
- Sign up to our newsletter
- Share our competition post on social media: Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, BlueSky, Threads or Mastodon
You can enter across multiple platforms. One lucky winner will be randomly selected each month!
Find out more: https://www.robottalk.org/t-shirt-competition/.
Claire chatted to Isabelle Ormerod from the University of Bristol all about human-centred design and women in robotics.
Isabelle Ormerod is a PhD student at Bristol Robotics Lab in the Design and Manufacturing Futures Lab. Her professional path began in the medical product design industry, where she observed firsthand the application of human factors (HF) processes for dextrous and high-risk procedures. This experience sparked her interest in leveraging data-driven HF approaches in product design. Isabelle is also part of the Leadership team of Women in Robotics UK. This organization is committed to fostering an inclusive community for women and non-binary individuals in the robotics field in the UK.
Join the live audience!
Robot Talk will be at the Great Exhibition Road Festival in June for 'Humans 2.0: Robotically Augmented People' at the V&A Museum in London, at 1.30pm on Sunday 16th June.
Register for a FREE ticket: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/humans-20-robotically-augmented-people-tickets-879494560907
Win a Robot Talk T-shirt
For a chance to win your very own organic cotton Robot Talk t-shirt, all you have to do is:
- Sign up to our newsletter
- Share our competition post on social media: Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, BlueSky, Threads or Mastodon
You can enter across multiple platforms. One lucky winner will be randomly selected each month!
Find out more: https://www.robottalk.org/t-shirt-competition/.
Claire chatted to Mario Di Castro from CERN all about robotic inspection and maintenance in hazardous environments.
Mario Di Castro has a Master’s degree in electronic engineering from the University of Naples Federico II in Italy and a PhD in robotics and industrial controls from the Polytechnic University of Madrid in Spain. Since 2011 he has led the Mechatronics, Robotics and Operation section at CERN. The section is responsible for the design, construction, installation, operation and maintenance of robotic systems used for remote maintenance at the CERN accelerator complex. His research interests include tele-robotics, machine learning, and precise motion control in harsh environments.
Join the live audience!
Robot Talk will be returning for another live episode recording this June, as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival in London. 'Humans 2.0: Robotically Augmented People' will be held at the V&A Museum at 1.30pm on Sunday 16th June.
Register for a free ticket now: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/humans-20-robotically-augmented-people-tickets-879494560907
Win a Robot Talk T-shirt
For a chance to win your very own organic cotton Robot Talk t-shirt, all you have to do is:
- Sign up to our newsletter
- Share our competition post on social media: Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, BlueSky, Threads or Mastodon
You can enter across multiple platforms. One lucky winner will be randomly selected each month!
Find out more: https://www.robottalk.org/t-shirt-competition/.
Claire chatted to Margarita Chli from the University of Cyprus all about vision, navigation, and small aerial drones.
Margarita Chli is a professor of Robotic Vision and the director of the Vision for Robotics Lab, at the University of Cyprus and ETH Zurich. Her work has contributed to the first vision-based autonomous flight of a small drone and the first demonstration of collaborative monocular SLAM for a small swarm of drones. Margarita has given invited keynotes at the World Economic Forum in Davos, TEDx, and ICRA, and she was featured in Robohub's 2016 list of "25 women in Robotics you need to know about". In 2023, she won the ERC Consolidator Grant to research advanced robotic perception.
Join the live audience!
Robot Talk will be returning for another live episode recording this June, as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival in London. 'Humans 2.0: Robotically Augmented People' will be held at the V&A Museum at 1.30pm on Sunday 16th June.
Register for a free ticket now: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/humans-20-robotically-augmented-people-tickets-879494560907
Win a Robot Talk T-shirt
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Claire chatted to Steve Benford from the University of Nottingham all about art, dance, and cat sitting robots.
Steve Benford is the Dunford Professor of Computer Science at the University of Nottingham where he co-founded the Mixed Reality Laboratory. His research explores artistic applications of digital technologies through performance-led methods that engage artists in creating, touring and studying unique interactive experiences. He directs the EPSRC-funded Horizon Centre for Doctoral Training and the University’s newly founded Cobot Maker Space that is exploring human interaction with robots. He is also a keen musician.
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Robot Talk will be returning for another live episode recording this June, as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival in London. 'Humans 2.0: Robotically Augmented People' will be held at the V&A Museum at 1.30pm on Sunday 16th June.
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Claire chatted to Estelle Raffy from the University of Bristol all about animal behaviour, intelligence, and life-like artificial systems.
Estelle Raffy is a PhD student at the University of Bristol. During her Bachelor's degree in neuroscience and cognitive science, the “brained body” of the octopus kept her wondering: how can nature start with similar basic principles and end up with massive decentralized systems that we still call intelligent? She did a Master in epistemology and history of science where she addressed what embodiment principles tell us about biological and artificial systems' design and behaviour. Building on this, her PhD research aims to contribute to finding the ingredients for adaptive, 'life-like' behaviours in novel artificial systems."
Check out the MorphoTalks YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/@morphologicalcomputation/playlists
Join the live audience!
Robot Talk will be returning for another live episode recording this June, as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival in London. 'Humans 2.0: Robotically Augmented People' will be held at the V&A Museum at 1.30pm on Sunday 16th June.
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Claire chatted to Chang Liu from Extend Robotics all about teleoperation, virtual reality, and software.
Chang Liu is an entrepreneur from academia and high-tech start-ups. He is the founder, CEO and Chief Designer of Extend Robotics. He was previously a research associate in Imperial College London and University of Southampton on autonomous aerial robot navigation.
Join the live audience!
Robot Talk will be returning for another live episode recording this June, as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival in London. 'Humans 2.0: Robotically Augmented People' will be held at the V&A Museum at 1.30pm on Sunday 16th June.
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Claire chatted to Vassia Simaiaki from Wayve all about computer vision, artificial intelligence, and self-driving cars.
Vassia Simaiaki is passionate about taking research into application and has spent the last decade of her career in computer vision. She leads AI research in vision and graphics at Wayve. Her focus is pushing the boundaries of novel view synthesis and continuing to accelerate the driving performance of autonomous vehicles. Vassia has a degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering and MSc in Neuroscience from Imperial College London. She thrives on solving hard problems and building high-performing teams of engineers and scientists focusing on AI applications.
Join the live audience!
Robot Talk will be returning for another live episode recording this June, as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival in London. 'Humans 2.0: Robotically Augmented People' will be held at the V&A Museum at 1.30pm on Sunday 16th June.
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Claire chatted to Danesh Tarapore from the University of Southampton all about fault detection, division of labour, and robot swarms.
Danesh Tarapore is an Associate Professor at the School of Electronics and Computer Science at the University of Southampton. Danesh has addressed a diverse range of challenges in fault detection and recovery in robot swarms. He is also keen to push robot swarms out of their carefully controlled laboratory environments and into the real world, pursuing applications for robot swarms in marine exploration and in forest monitoring. Research on resilient robots that he has collaborated on has been featured on the front cover of the Nature magazine and received widespread media coverage.
Join the live audience!
Robot Talk will be returning for another live episode recording this June, as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival in London. 'Humans 2.0: Robotically Augmented People' will be held at the V&A Museum at 1.30pm on Sunday 16th June.
Find out more: https://www.greatexhibitionroadfestival.co.uk/event/humans-20-robotically-augmented-people/
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Claire chatted to Ella Maule from the Bristol Robotics Laboratory all about community robotics and the social side of robot design.
Ella Maule is a PhD Student in Ethical & Sustainable Futures at the Bristol Robotics Laboratory and a co-lead of Women in Robotics UK. Grounded in the principles of Responsible Innovation, her research explores the concept of Community Robotics, which centres communities as users of, and stakeholders in, robotic technology innovation. She is passionate about increasing equity, accessibility and inclusivity in robotics and, alongside her Women in Robotics UK colleagues, has developed and delivered workshops and events across the country.
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Claire chatted to Stephen Oram from Nudge the Future Fiction all about applied science fiction and the quirks and perils of new technology.
Stephen Oram writes near-future science fiction, exploring the intersection of messy humans and imperfect technology. He also works with scientists and technologists on projects that explore possible future outcomes of their research through short stories. He is published in several anthologies, including the Best of British Science Fiction 2020 and 2022, and has two published novels and three collections of sci-fi shorts. His recent collection – Extracting Humanity – includes stories from the projects with scientists.
Robot Talk will be taking a break next week, but we’ll be back in April with more interesting guests and cool robots.
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Claire chatted to Patricia Shaw from Aberystwyth University about home assistance robots, and robot learning and development.
Patricia Shaw is a Senior Lecturer in Computer Science and Robotics at Aberystwyth University. Her current research interests include technology for assistive living and she is currently leading on establishing a new Smart Home Lab at the university. This new lab will be used to research, develop and test a wide range of sensing technology for monitoring activities in the home as well as robots ranging from companions to assistants around the home. She strongly supports public engagement and has been coordinating regional robotics week events for the last 6 years.
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Claire chatted to Andrew Starr from Cranfield University all about robot maintenance and railway inspection robots.
Andrew Starr holds a PhD in condition monitoring of robotic production systems and is a Chartered Engineer. His career started with British Aerospace, before working for the University of Manchester, University of Huddersfield, and the University of Hertfordshire. At Cranfield University he is Professor of Maintenance Systems, and former Head of the Centre for Life-cycle Engineering and Management. His research is in monitoring of mechanical systems with special interests in railways, aero gears, sensor systems, and maintenance optimisation through data fusion.
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Claire chatted to Antonia Tzemanaki from the University of Bristol all about hand exoskeletons, robotic hands, and teleoperation.
Antonia Tzemanaki is Senior Lecturer in Robotics at the University of Bristol and the Bristol Robotics Laboratory. Prior to this, she was Lecturer in Mechatronics at the University of the West of England. Her research includes human and robot hands, hand exoskeletons, haptics and wearable robotics, especially with applications in surgery, preventative medicine, rehabilitation, physiotherapy and dexterous tele-operation, as well as extreme environments (nuclear and space).
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Claire chatted to Edward Johns from Imperial College London, all about robotic manipulators, learning, and artificial intelligence.
Edward Johns is the Director of the Robot Learning Lab at Imperial College London, where he is also a Senior Lecturer. He completed a PhD in Computer Vision at Imperial College and was then a Research Fellow in the Dyson Robotics Lab at Imperial College. In 2017, he was awarded a prestigious Royal Academy of Engineering Research Fellowship. Since founding the Robot Learning Lab in 2018, he and his team have been developing efficient methods for robots to learn new skills for physically interacting with objects, with a particular emphasis on everyday tasks.
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Claire chatted to Maria Jose (Marisé) Galvez Trigo from Cardiff University all about human-robot interaction, machine learning, and accessibility.
Maria Jose Galvez Trigo (Marisé) is a Lecturer in the School of Computer Science and Informatics at Cardiff University, and part of the Human-centred Computing (HCC) Research Section and its Subgroup in Computational and Human-centred Robotics. Marisé is interested in Robotics, Human-Robot Interaction, Human-Computer Interaction and applications of Machine Learning in those areas, with accessibility and co-design as key aspects of her research. Within those areas, her research explores how the uptake of robotics systems can be improved.
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Claire chatted to Rafael Lopez from Robotnik Automation all about mobile robots, logistics, and inspection.
Rafael Lopez has a degree in Telecommunications Engineering. He worked in research and development at Althea Productos Industriales before joining IBM as a System Engineer for wide area networks in Madrid and Barcelona. He co-founded Robotnik in 2002, where he was the Research and Development Manager, participating in and managing many EU projects. After the acquisition of Robotnik by United Robotics Group in 2023, he became Managing Director of the company. In 2017 he joined the board of Directors of the Spanish robotics technology platform Hisparob.
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Claire chatted to Virginia Ruiz Garate from Mondragon University all about assistive robotics, mobility, and bio-inspired control.
Virginia Ruiz Garate obtained her PhD in 2016 in bio-inspired control for leg exoskeletons at the Université Catholique de Louvain-la-Neuve in Belgium. Later, she worked on new bio-inspired grasping methods for robotic hands at the Italian Institute of Technology. She then became Associate Professor in assistive robots at the Bristol Robotics Laboratory. Currently, she is a Lecturer and Researcher in Robotics at Mondragon University. Her research interests include robotic grasping and manipulation, bio-inspired control, assistive robotics and human-robot interfaces.
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Claire chatted to Josh Caputo from Humotech all about robotic prostheses, exoskeletons and prototyping.
Josh Caputo has a background as a multi-disciplinary engineer focused on robotics. He developed a passion for wearable technology working in the Experimental Biomechatronics Laboratory at Carnegie Mellon University. His early work focused on studying powered push-off in prosthetic foot and ankle devices. In 2015, Josh founded Humotech to support clinical trials, commercialization and research and development efforts in wearable robotics. Josh’s dream is to see the field expand dramatically in size and innovativeness so that anyone, anywhere can realize their mobility goals.
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Claire chatted to Elizabeth Sklar from the University of Lincoln all about agricultural robotics, human-robot teams, and sustainability.
Elizabeth Sklar is a Professor of Agri-Robotics and Research Director at the Lincoln Institute for Agri-food Technology (LIAT), at the University of Lincoln, UK. Her research investigates the implementation of intelligent methodologies in the context of multi-robot teams, human-machine teaming, behaviour mining and data-backed decision making, most recently applied within the agri-food pipeline. She is co-founder of the international educational initiative RoboCupJunior and currently serves on the editorial board for the journal Current Robotics Reports.
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Claire chatted to Rolf Mueller from Virginia Tech all about biomimicry, flapping-wing flight, sensing, and artificial intelligence.
Rolf Mueller has studied bat biosonar from the perspectives of biophysics and bioinspired engineering for over 20 years. He has worked on statistical signal processing of sonar signals in complex, natural environments, biosonar beamforming, as well as biomimetic sonar systems. The overarching goal of his current research is meeting the sensory information needs of autonomy in complex natural environments. Besides serving as the Lynn professor of Mechanical Engineering at Virginia Tech, he directs the University of Brunei - Virginia Tech International Laboratory.
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Claire chatted to Kris Dorsey from Northeastern University all about wearable soft robots, healthcare and rehabilitation.
Kris Dorsey is an associate professor in the departments of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Physical Therapy, Movement, and Rehabilitation Sciences and a core faculty member at the Institute for Experiential Robotics at Northeastern University. Her current research interests include reconfigurable, novel morphology, and active soft sensors and the design of soft sensors for soft robot actuators and wearable medical and rehabilitation devices. Kris’ work has been recognized by an NSF CAREER award and the Emerging Leader ABIE Award in honor of Denice Denton.
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Claire chatted to Jims Marchang from Sheffield Hallam University all about security, privacy, and trust in healthcare robots.
Jims Marchang completed his Ph.D. from the CSCAN Research Laboratory, University of Plymouth, UK. He is currently a Sr. Lecturer in Cybersecurity and leads a Secure Intelligent Cyber research cluster and co-lead Digital, AI, and Robotics at Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre. His research focuses on building user-centric secure-by-design and privacy-by-design solutions in healthcare technologies.
Robot Talk will be taking a two-week break over the holidays, but we’ll be back in January with more fascinating guests and awesome robots.
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Claire chatted to Katarzyna Szopinska from KUKA all about all about software and hardware for medical robotics.
Katarzyna Szopinska studied medical and mechanical engineering in both Warsaw and Munich. She got her first professional experience at Brainlab in Munich and then at KUKA where she started as mechanical engineer to later switch to portfolio and product management for the medical robotics business of KUKA, where she had been working since 2019. Katarzyna has worked on the definition of multiple software and hardware products for the medical sector, among other things on new software features for the LBR Med robot.
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Claire chatted to Rav Chunilal from Sellafield all about robotics and AI for nuclear decommissioning.
Rav Chunilal is the Head of Robotics & Artificial Intelligence at Sellafield Ltd, the UK's largest nuclear site. He is responsible for developing and deploying Robotics and AI technologies to decommission the site safely, efficiently, and cost-effectively. Under Rav's leadership, Sellafield Ltd and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority Group has established itself as a leader in the use of Robotics and AI for nuclear decommissioning. The company has developed and deployed a wide range of robotic technologies to perform tasks such as remote inspection, waste handling, and demolition.
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Claire chatted to Ayse Kucukyilmaz from the University of Nottingham about collaboration, conflict and failure in human-robot interactions.
Ayse Kucukyilmaz is Assistant Professor in the School of Computer Science at the University of Nottingham and a founding member of the CHART research group. Her research focus is human-centered robotics, where she specialises in haptic shared and traded control for physical human-robot interaction. Her group primarily works on adjustable autonomy paradigms to enable dynamic switching behaviours between different levels of robotic autonomy (e.g. full human control vs. full autonomy) during shared control of a physical task, enabling effective human-autonomy teaming.
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Claire chatted to Jorvon (Odd-Jayy) Moss from Digikey about making robots at home, and robot design and aesthetics.
Commonly known as Odd-Jayy, Jorvon Moss is an accomplished Maker best known for his Robotic Oddities. Jayy’s art background, BFA in Illustration, and self-taught electronics skills have combined to help launch his career and promote the wonderful world of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Math). This achievement, and the many viral videos under his belt, gained him recognition from major forces in the industry; including Digi-Key Electronics, Tested Inc. with Adam Savage, various electronic and tech Faires, and as the first Black person in Make Magazine.
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Claire chatted to Masoumeh (Iran) Mansouri from the University of Birmingham about culturally sensitive robots and planning in complex environments.
Masoumeh Mansouri is an Associate Professor in the School of Computer Science at the University of Birmingham. Her research includes two complementary areas: (i) developing hybrid robot planning methods for unstructured environments shared with humans, and (ii) exploring topics at the intersection of cultural theories and robotics. In the latter, her main goal is to study whether/how robots can be culturally sensitive given the broad definitions of culture in different fields of study.
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Claire chatted to Carl Strathearn from Edinburgh Napier University all about humanoid robots, realistic robot faces and speech.
Carl Strathearn is a researcher interested in creating assistive social humanoid robots with embodied AI systems that appear, function, and interact like humans. He believes that creating realistic humanoid robots is significant to humanity as the human face is the most natural interface for human communication, and by emulating these conditions, we can increase accessibility to state-of-the-art technology for everyone and support people with specific health conditions and circumstances in their day-to-day lives.
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Claire chatted to Ffion Llewellyn from Oshen about sea-faring robots and ocean sensing.
Ffion Llewellyn graduated from Imperial College London in 2022 with a masters in Aeronautical Engineering. Following this, she joined Oshen who are building low cost, autonomous micro-vessels for remote ocean sensing. Ffion has been focused on the integration and testing of sensors onto Oshen's autonomous micro-vessels, including metocean sensors and hydrophones for the monitoring of marine mammals. Her role also includes the design and manufacture of the micro-vessels, conducting sea trials and analysing the data collected.
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Claire chatted to Lorenzo Jamone from Queen Mary University of London all about robotic hands, dexterity, and the sense of touch.
Lorenzo Jamone is a Senior Lecturer in Robotics at Queen Mary University of London, where he is the founder and director of the CRISP group: Cognitive Robotics and Intelligent Systems for the People. He received a PhD degree in humanoid technologies at the Italian Institute of Technology. He was previously an Associate Researcher at Waseda University in Japan, and at the Instituto Superior Técnico in Portugal. His current research interests include cognitive robotics, robotic manipulation, force and tactile sensing, robot learning.
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Claire chatted to Kate Devlin from King's College London about the social and ethical implications of robotics and AI.
We touch on a range of different topics from concerns over job losses and privacy to issues of inequality, trust and power. In the second half of the interview, we talk a bit about robotics, AI and relationships. The conversation isn’t explicit, but if you’d prefer to give that part of the conversation a miss, you can stop the podcast at around 22 minutes, when you hear the music.
Kate Devlin is Reader in Artificial Intelligence & Society in the Department of Digital Humanities, King's College London. She is an interdisciplinary computer scientist investigating how people interact with and react to technologies, both past and future. Kate is the author of Turned On: Science, Sex and Robots, which examines the ethical and social implications of technology and intimacy. She is Creative and Outreach lead for the UKRI Responsible Artificial Intelligence UK programme — an international research and innovation ecosystem for responsible AI.
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Claire chatted to Guillaume Doisy from Dexory about autonomous warehouse robots, mobile robotics, and software.
Guillaume Doisy is the current Lead Systems Architect at Dexory, the leading UK robotics and AI company building state-of-the-art fully autonomous mobile robots for use in warehouses. Guillaume has a wide range of responsibilities including building the robots ability to function autonomously. The French native has significant expertise in the field of autonomous mobile robots having begun his career at French start-up Wyca as Chief Robotics Officer. Guillaume is also a long-term contributor to ROS (Robotic Operating Software), the open-source robotics software project.
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Claire chatted to Sara Adela Abad Guaman from University College London about adaptable robots inspired by nature.
Sara Adela Abad Guaman is a Lecturer at University College London's Mechanical Engineering Department. She is also the head of the Adaptable Robotics Lab. Inspired by biological organisms, Sara aims to develop robots and mechanical systems with enhanced adaptability to variable environmental conditions. Her vision is to use bioinspiration and morphological computation to address global challenges such as climate change, biodiversity loss, and sustainability.
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Check out the Living with AI podcast
If you enjoy Robot Talk and you're looking for a new podcast to listen to, you might like to check out the Living with AI podcast!
Robot Talk will be back for Season 4 on the 29th September - make sure you're subscribed to be the first to hear the latest episodes.
Robotics, artificial intelligence and autonomous machines have become a necessity for our future world but what are the implications of robots for society and how much influence does science fiction have on how we embrace our new friends?
In this special live recording at the Great Exhibition Road Festival, Claire chatted to Glyn Morgan (Science Museum), Bani Anvari (University College London) and Thrishantha Nanayakara (Imperial College London) to explore how our intelligent friends from the world of science fiction match up with state-of-the art robotics and artificial intelligence reality.
Glyn Morgan is a curator of exhibitions at the Science Museum, most recently: “Science Fiction: Voyage to the Edge of Imagination” (open until August 20th). He also teaches a course on Science Fiction at Imperial College, and has published widely on many aspects of the genre writing for the Los Angeles Review of Books, the Royal Society, and the Science Fiction Research Association, amongst others. His research is interested in the interface between science fiction and other disciplines from history to psychology and beyond, and the ways science fiction can be used as a cognitive tool to help us understand ourselves and our society.
Bani Anvari is a Full Professor of Intelligent Mobility at the Centre for Transport Studies in the Faculty of Engineering at University College London (UCL). She is the founder and director of Intelligent Mobility at UCL. Her vision is to enable humans to trust and fully exploit the benefits of future mobility services through new technology and innovation. Her research focuses on Intelligent Mobility and exploring interactions with semi- and fully-autonomous vehicles in various contexts, benefiting significantly from Robotics and AI.
Thrishantha Nanayakkara is a Professor of Robotics and the Director of the Morphlab at Dyson School of Design Engineering (DSDE), Imperial College London. His group has used soft robots to understand how compliance of the body helps to stabilise dynamic interactions with the environment. He is and has been PI on projects of more than £5 million that have pushed the boundaries of our understanding on how conditioning the body improves the efficacy of action and perception in human-human and human-robot interactions.
This week, Claire chatted to Robert Richardson from the University of Leeds all about 3D printing, robot design, and infrastructure repair.
Robert Richardson is Professor of Robotics in the School of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Leeds, and executive chair of EPSRC UK-RAS network. His research interests include robotics for civil infrastructure inspection and repair, making smart bodies for smart robots, and robotics for 3D printing applications. As Innovation Director for University of Leeds spin out company Acuity robotics, he is working towards real world impact in civil inspection tasks. In 2011 he led an international team to develop and deploy robots into the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt.
Join us for Robot Talk Live
Claire will be chatting about Robotics and Science Fiction with three very special guests at Imperial College London this Sunday at 1pm, as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival and the UK Festival of Robotics. Drop-in spaces will be available on the day.
This week, Claire chatted to Sara Bernardini from Royal Holloway University of London all about decision-making, reconfigurable robots, and oceanography.
Sara Bernardini is a Professor of AI at Royal Holloway University of London, the Principal Research Scientist in AI and Data Science at the National Oceanography Centre and a Fellow at the Alan Turing Institute. Her research in decision-making for autonomous systems lies at the intersection of AI, cognitive robotics, and mathematical optimisation. Most of her work focuses on planning for single-agent and multi-agent systems to enable them to act intelligently in real time despite resource and environmental constraints, noisy or faulty sensors, imperfect abilities and extreme conditions.
Join us for Robot Talk Live
Claire will be chatting about Robotics and Science Fiction with three very special guests at Imperial College London at 1pm on Sunday 18th June, as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival and the UK Festival of Robotics. Drop-in spaces will be available on the day.
This week, Claire chatted to James Kell from Jacobs Engineering UK all about civil infrastructure, nuclear robotics and jet engine inspection.
James Kell is Robotics Technical Director at Jacobs Engineering UK. He is responsible for the internal robotics technical strategy and is actively looking to apply the decades worth of robotics and remote handling experience that Jacobs has to the wider market in other sectors. The overall intention is to extend the life of critical national infrastructure like roads, rail, and water. James's previously worked for Rolls-Royce where his role was to develop keyhole surgery technologies to service jet engines. James is also a member of the Robotics Growth Partnership, supported by BEIS.
Join us for Robot Talk Live
Advance tickets are available for the live recording of Robot Talk in June: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/robotics-and-science-fiction-tickets-623492231047 Claire will be chatting about Robotics and Science Fiction with three very special guests at Imperial College London at 1pm on Sunday 18th June, as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival and the UK Festival of Robotics.
This week, Claire chatted to Elena De Momi from the the Polytechnic University of Milan all about surgical robotics, artificial intelligence, and the upcoming ICRA robotics conference in London.
Elena De Momi received her MSc in Biomedical Engineering in 2002, PhD in Bioengineering in 2006, and she is currently Associate Professor in the Electronic Information and Bioengineering Department (DEIB) of Politecnico di Milano. She is co-founder of the Neuroengineering and Medical Robotics Laboratory, in 2008, being responsible of the Medical Robotics section. Her academic interests include computer vision and image-processing, artificial intelligence, augmented reality and simulators, teleoperation, haptics, medical robotics, human robot interaction.
Join us for Robot Talk Live
Advance tickets are now available for the live recording of Robot Talk in June!
Register here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/robotics-and-science-fiction-tickets-623492231047 Claire will be chatting about Robotics and Science Fiction with three very special guests at Imperial College London at 1pm on Sunday 18th June, as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival and the UK Festival of Robotics.
This week, Claire chatted to Nick Hawes from the University of Oxford all about robot decision-making, long-term autonomy, and artificial intelligence.
Nick Hawes is a Professor of AI and Robotics at the University of Oxford, where he directs the Oxford Robotics Institute (ORI). Within the ORI he leads the Goal-Oriented Autonomous Long-Lived Systems (GOALS) group which researches decision-making for autonomous systems under uncertainty, including robots and human-robot teams. Recent highlights include the deployment of an autonomous mission planning stack on a quadruped at an active nuclear site, and on an autonomous underwater vehicle harvesting data from a sensor network.
Join us for Robot Talk Live Robot Talk will be returning for another live episode recording in June! Claire will be chatting about Robotics and Science Fiction with three very special guests at Imperial College London at 1pm on Sunday 18th June, as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival and the UK Festival of Robotics.
Find out more: https://www.greatexhibitionroadfestival.co.uk/event/robotics-and-science-fiction/
This week, Claire chatted to Georgia Chalvatzaki from the Technical University of Darmstadt all about mobile assistive robots, learning, and planning.
Check out the trailer for the UK-RAS Network's one-of-a-kind livestream event, Robot Lab Live, returning to YouTube this June: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LC8LBdjCtD8.
Join us for Robot Talk Live Robot Talk will be returning for another live episode recording in June! Claire will be chatting about Robotics and Science Fiction with three very special guests at Imperial College London at 1pm on Sunday 18th June, as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival and the UK Festival of Robotics.
Find out more: https://www.greatexhibitionroadfestival.co.uk/event/robotics-and-science-fiction/
Georgia Chalvatzaki is a Professor of Robot Perception and Learning at the Technical University of Darmstadt, Germany. Before that, she was an Assistant Professor and Independent Research Group Leader since March 2021, after getting the renowned Emmy Noether grant of the German Research Foundation. She completed her Ph.D. in 2019 at the Intelligent Robotics and Automation Lab at the National Technical University of Athens, Greece, with her thesis “Human-Centered Modeling for Assistive Robotics: Stochastic Estimation and Robot Learning in Decision-Making.”
This week, Claire chatted to Helmut Hauser from the University of Bristol all about soft robotics, sensing, and smart robot bodies.
Check out the video of the swimming trout that Helmut talks about here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtuHgl35TT4&ab_channel=LauderLab
Join us for Robot Talk Live We're thrilled to announce that Robot Talk will be returning for another live episode recording in June! Claire will be chatting about Robotics and Science Fiction with three very special guests at Imperial College London at 1pm on Sunday 18th June, as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival and the UK Festival of Robotics.
Find out more: https://www.greatexhibitionroadfestival.co.uk/event/robotics-and-science-fiction/
Helmut Hauser is an Associate Professor in Robotics at the University of Bristol and the Bristol Robotics Laboratory. He is also the Director of the EPSRC Centre of Doctoral Training for Robotics and Autonomous Systems. Helmut’s research is focused on morphological computation and soft robotics. In particular, he is interested in understanding the underlying principles of how biological systems exploit their complex physical bodies to facilitate sensing, controlling and learning, and how these principles can be employed to design better bodies to build better robots.
This week, Claire chatted to Carlotta Berry from the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology all about robotics education, science outreach, and increasing participation.
Join us for Robot Talk Live We're thrilled to announce that Robot Talk will be returning for another live episode recording in June! Claire will be chatting about Robotics and Science Fiction with three very special guests at Imperial College London at 1pm on Sunday 18th June, as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival and the UK Festival of Robotics.
Find out more: https://www.greatexhibitionroadfestival.co.uk/event/robotics-and-science-fiction/
Carlotta Berry has a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Spelman College, bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology, master’s in electrical engineering from Wayne State University, and PhD from Vanderbilt University. Her research interests include robotics education, human-robot interaction, and increasing marginalized and minoritized populations in STEM fields. Berry is a prolific speaker and author of the text, “Mobile Robotics for Multidisciplinary Study” and Black STEM romance novel, "Elevated Inferno: Monet's Moment".
This week, Claire chatted to Francesco Giorgio-Serchi from the University of Edinburgh all about underwater robots, weather-proofing, and soft robotics.
Join us for Robot Talk LiveWe're thrilled to announce that Robot Talk will be returning for another live episode recording in June! Claire will be chatting about Robotics and Science Fiction with three very special guests at Imperial College London at 1pm on Sunday 18th June, as part of the Great Exhibition Road Festival and the UK Festival of Robotics.
Find out more: https://www.greatexhibitionroadfestival.co.uk/event/robotics-and-science-fiction/
Francesco Giorgio-Serchi is a Lecturer and Chancellor’s Fellow in Robotics and Autonomous Systems at the University of Edinburgh. His work encompasses the design and control of underwater vehicles for operation in extreme weather conditions. Previously he was a Research Fellow at the University of Southampton, within the Fluid-Structure-Interaction group, where he worked on the design of soft-bodied, bioinspired, aquatic vehicles. Dr. Giorgio-Serchi holds an MSc from the University of Pisa, Italy, in Marine Technologies and a PhD in Fluid Dynamics from the University of Leeds.
This week, Claire chatted to Kat Thiel from Manchester Metropolitan University all about collaborative robots, micro-factories, and fashion manufacturing.
Kat Thiel is a Senior Research Associate at Manchester Metropolitan University's Manchester Fashion Institute with a research focus on Fashion Practice Research and Industry 4.0., investigating agile cobotic tooling solutions for localised fashion manufacturing. Previously a researcher at the Royal College of Art, she worked on the Future Fashion Factory report 'Benchmarking the Feasibility of the Micro-Factory Model for the UK Fashion Industry' and co-produced produced the highly influential report ‘Reshoring UK Garment Manufacturing with Automation’ with Innovate UK KTN.
This week, Claire chatted to Maitreyee Wairagkar from the University of California all about neurotechnology, artificial intelligence, and assistive robotics.
Maitreyee Wairagkar is a postdoctoral fellow at University of California, Davis, developing assistive neurotechnology using artificial intelligence to restore lost function in people with neurological disorders. She builds brain-computer interfaces to enable people with severe motor and speech impairments to communicate directly via their brain signals by breaking barriers between humans and technology. Previously, she was at Imperial College London and UK Dementia Research Institute where she developed conversational AI and social robots for dementia support.
This week, Claire chatted to Thom Kirwan-Evans from Origami Labs all about computer vision, machine learning and robots in industry.
Thom Kirwan-Evans is a co-founder at Origami Labs where he applies the latest AI research to solve complex real world problems. Thom started as a physicist at Dstl working with camera systems before moving to an engineering consultancy and then setting up his own company last year. A keen runner and father of two, a key aim in starting his business was a good work-life balance.
This week, Claire chatted to Alessandra Rossi from the University of Naples all about social robotics, theory of mind, and robots playing football.
Alessandra Rossi is Assistant Professor at the University of Naples Federico II in Italy. Her PhD thesis was part of the Marie Sklodowska-Curie ETN SECURE project at the University of Hertfordshire in the UK, and she is now a Visiting Lecturer and Researcher there. Her research interests include human-robot interaction, social robotics, explainable AI, multi-agent systems and user profiling. She is the team leader of RoboCup team Bold Hearts at the University of Hertfordshire, and Executive Committee member of the RoboCup Humanoid League.
This week, Claire chatted to Edward Timpson from QinetiQ all about robots in the military, uncrewed vehicles, and cyber security.
Ed Timpson joined QinetiQ in 2020 after 11 years serving in the Royal Navy as a Weapons Engineering Officer (Submarines) across a number of ranks. Joining QinetiQ Target Systems as a Project Engineer and also managing the Hardware team, he had success in developing new capabilities for the Banshee family of UAS. He then moved into future systems within QinetiQ as a Principal Systems Engineer specialising in complex trials and experimentation of uncrewed vehicles. He now heads up the Robotics and Autonomous Systems capability within QinetiQ UK.
This week, Claire chatted to Maria Bauza Villalonga from DeepMind all about robot learning, transferable skills, and general AI.
Maria Bauza Villalonga is research scientist at DeepMind. In 2022, she earned her PhD in Robotics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, working with Prof. Alberto Rodriguez. Her research focuses on achieving precise robotic generalization by learning probabilistic models of the world that allow robots to reuse their skills across multiple tasks with high success. Maria has received several fellowships including Facebook, NVIDIA, and LaCaixa.
This week, Claire chatted to Jonathan Aitken from the University of Sheffield all about manufacturing, sewer inspection, and robots in the real world.
Jonathan Aitken is a Senior University Teacher in Robotics at the University of Sheffield. His research is focused on building useful, useable, and expandable architectures for future robotics systems. Most recently this has involved building complex digital twins for collaborative robots in manufacturing processes and investigating localisation for robots operating in sewer pipes. His teaching focuses on providing students with the tools to bring distributed computing to complex robotic processes.
This week, Claire chatted to Yang Gao from the University of Surrey all about space robotics and planetary exploration.
Yang Gao is Professor of Space Autonomous Systems and Founding Head of the STAR LAB that specializes in robotic sensing, perception, visual guidance, navigation, and control (GNC) and biomimetic mechanisms for industrial applications in extreme environments. She brings over 20 years of research experience in developing robotics and autonomous systems, in which she has been the principal investigator of over 30 inter/nationally teamed projects and involved in real-world mission development.
This week, Claire chatted to Ignazio Maria Viola from the University of Edinburgh all about aerodynamics, dandelion-inspired drones, and swarm sensing.
Ignazio Maria Viola is Professor of Fluid Mechanics and Bioinspired Engineering at the School of Engineering, University of Edinburgh, and Fellow of the Royal Institution of Naval Architects. He is the recipient of the ERC Consolidator Grant Dandidrone to explore the unsteady aerodynamics of dandelion-inspired drones.
This week, Claire chatted to Emily S. Cross from the University of Glasgow and Western Sydney University all about neuroscience, social learning, and human-robot interaction.
Emily S. Cross is a Professor of Social Robotics at the University of Glasgow, and a Professor of Human Neuroscience at the MARCS Institute at Western Sydney University. Using interactive learning tasks, brain scanning, and dance, acrobatics and robots, she and her Social Brain in Action Laboratory team explore how we learn by watching others throughout the lifespan, how action experts' brains enable them to perform physical skills so exquisitely, and the social influences that shape human-robot interaction.
This week, Claire chatted to Sabine Hauert from the University of Bristol all about swarm robotics, nanorobots, and environmental monitoring.
Sabine Hauert is Associate Professor of Swarm Engineering at University of Bristol. She leads a team of 20 researchers working on making swarms for people, and across scales, from nanorobots for cancer treatment, to larger robots for environmental monitoring, or logistics. Previously she worked at MIT and EPFL. She is President and Executive Trustee of non-profits robohub.org and aihub.org, which connect the robotics and AI communities to the public.
This week, Claire chatted to Dan Stoyanov from University College London all about robotic vision, surgical robotics, and artificial intelligence.
Dan Stoyanov, FREng, FIET, is a Professor at UCL Computer Science holding a Royal Academy of Engineering Chair in Emerging Technologies. He is Director of the Wellcome/EPSRC Centre for Interventional and Surgical Sciences (WEISS), a large research centre combining engineering and clinical expertise. His research interests are focused on surgical robotics, surgical data science and the development of surgical AI systems for clinical use. He is Chief Scientist at Digital Surgery, and he co-founded Odin Vision Ltd as a UCL spin-out focused on AI in gastroenterology.
This week, Claire chatted to Mollie Claypool from Automated Architecture all about robot house-building, zero-carbon architecture, and community participation.
Mollie Claypool is CEO of AUAR Ltd, a tech company revolutionising house building using automation. Mollie is a leading architecture theorist focused on issues of social justice highlighted by increasing automation in architecture and design production. She is also Associate Professor in Architecture at The Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL.
This week, Claire chatted to Chris Atkeson from Carnegie Mellon University all about humanoid robots, human-aware environments and the future of AI and robotics.
Chris Atkeson is a professor in the Robotics Institute and Human-Computer Interaction Institute at Carnegie Mellon University. His research focuses on developing humanoid and super-human robots. His work inspired aspects of the design of the character Baymax (an inflatable robot that takes care of people) in the Disney movie Big Hero 6. His life goal is to fulfil the science fiction vision of machines that achieve human levels of competence in perceiving, thinking, and acting.
As a special treat for the holiday season, Claire asked her guests some extra questions about their careers, their advice, and their favourite robots. In this clip, UK roboticists describe their daily lives working in robotics.
As a special treat for the holiday season, Claire asked her guests some extra questions about their careers, their advice, and their favourite robots. In this clip, UK roboticists share their thoughts on becoming friends with robots.
As a special treat for the holiday season, Claire asked her guests some extra questions about their careers, their advice, and their favourite robots. In this clip, we hear from UK roboticists about their favourite machine or tool in the lab.
As a special treat for the holiday season, Claire asked her guests some extra questions about their careers, their advice, and their favourite robots. In this clip, UK roboticists share their advice for getting started in a career in robotics.
As a special treat for the holiday season, Claire asked her guests some extra questions about their careers, their advice, and their favourite robots. In the first clip, we hear from UK roboticists about their favourite fictional robots.
This week, Claire chatted to Ana Cavalcanti from the University of York all about software development, testing and verification, and autonomous mobile robots.
This is our last episode before we take a little break for the holiday season. Robot Talk will be back in the New Year on the 6th January.
Ana Cavalcanti is a Royal Academy of Engineering Chair in Emerging Technologies. She is the leader of the RoboStar Centre of Excellence on Software Engineering for Robotics. The RoboStar approach to model-based software engineering complements current practices of design and verification of robotic systems, covering simulation, testing, and proof. It is practical, supported by tools, and yet mathematically rigorous.
This week, Claire chatted to Sina Sareh from the Royal College of Art all about industrial inspection, soft robotics, and robotic grippers.
Sina Sareh is the Academic Leader in Robotics at Royal College of Art. He is currently a Reader (Associate Professor) in Robotics and Design Intelligence at RCA, and a Fellow of EPSRC, whose research develops technological solutions to problems of human safety, access, and performance involved in a range of industrial operations. Dr Sareh holds a PhD from the University of Bristol, 2012, and served as an impact assessor of Sub-panel 12: Engineering in the assessment phase of the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021.
This week, Claire chatted to Amanda Prorok from the University of Cambridge all about self-driving cars, industrial robots, and multi-robot systems.
Our t-shirt competition has now ended - congratulations to our five lucky winners!
Amanda Prorok is Professor of Collective Intelligence and Robotics in the Department of Computer Science and Technology at Cambridge University, and a Fellow of Pembroke College. She is interested in finding practical methods for hard coordination problems that arise in multi-robot and multi-agent systems.
This week, Claire talked to Simon Wanstall from the Edinburgh Centre for Robotics all about soft robotics, robotic prostheses and taking inspiration from nature.
To celebrate the new season of Robot Talk, we’re running a competition to win one of our awesome t-shirts! To enter, either share the latest episode on Twitter and tag @UKRobotics or on LinkedIn and tag the EPSRC UK-RAS Network. Five lucky listeners will be randomly selected at the end of November to receive a free t-shirt – we’ve got a unisex version and a fitted version for ladies. To find out more and read the terms and conditions, click here.
Simon Wanstall is a PhD student at the Edinburgh Centre for Robotics, working on advancements in soft robotic prosthetics. His research interests include soft robotics, bioinspired design and healthcare devices. Simon's current project is to develop soft sensors so that robotic prostheses can feel the world around them. In order to develop his skills in this area, Simon is also undertaking an industrial placement with Touchlab, a robotics company specialising in sensors.
This week, Claire chatted to Séverin Lemaignan from PAL Robotics all about social robots, behaviour, and robot-assisted human-human interactions.
To celebrate the new season of Robot Talk, we’re running a competition to win one of our awesome t-shirts! To enter, either share the latest episode on Twitter and tag @UKRobotics or on LinkedIn and tag the EPSRC UK-RAS Network. Five lucky listeners will be randomly selected at the end of November to receive a free t-shirt – we’ve got a unisex version and a fitted version for ladies. To find out more and read the terms and conditions, click here.
Séverin Lemaignan is Senior Scientist at Barcelona-based PAL Robotics. He leads the Social Intelligence team, in charge of designing and developing the socio-cognitive capabilities of robots like PAL TIAGo and PAL ARI. He obtained his PhD in Cognitive Robotics in 2012 from the CNRS/LAAS and the Technical University of Munich, and worked at Bristol Robotics Lab as Associate Professor in Social Robotics, before moving to industry. His research primarily concerns socio-cognitive human-robot interaction, child-robot interaction and human-in-the-loop machine learning for social robots.
This week, Claire chatted to Ferdinando Rodriguez y Baena from Imperial College London about medical robotics, robotic surgery, and translational research.
To celebrate the new season of Robot Talk, we’re running a competition to win one of our awesome t-shirts! To enter, either share the latest episode on Twitter and tag @UKRobotics or on LinkedIn and tag the EPSRC UK-RAS Network. Five lucky listeners will be randomly selected at the end of November to receive a free t-shirt – we’ve got a unisex version and a fitted version for ladies. To find out more and read the terms and conditions, click here.
Ferdinando Rodriguez y Baena is Professor of Medical Robotics in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Imperial College, where he leads the Mechatronics in Medicine Laboratory and the Applied Mechanics Division. He has been the Engineering Co-Director of the Hamlyn Centre, which is part of the Institute of Global Health Innovation, since July 2020. He is a founding member and great advocate of the Imperial College Robotics Forum, now the first point of contact for roboticists at Imperial College.
This week, Claire chatted to Gopal Ramchurn from the University of Southampton about artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, and renewable energy.
To celebrate the new season of Robot Talk, we’re running a competition to win one of our awesome t-shirts! To enter, either share the latest episode on Twitter and tag @UKRobotics or on LinkedIn and tag the EPSRC UK-RAS Network. Five lucky listeners will be randomly selected at the end of November to receive a free t-shirt – we’ve got a unisex version and a fitted version for ladies. To find out more and read the terms and conditions, click here.
Sarvapali (Gopal) Ramchurn is a Professor of Artificial Intelligence, Turing Fellow, and Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology. He is the Director of the UKRI Trustworthy Autonomous Systems hub and Co-Director of the Shell-Southampton Centre for Maritime Futures. He is also a Co-CEO of Empati Ltd, an AI startup working on decentralised green hydrogen technologies. His research is about the design of Responsible Artificial Intelligence for socio-technical applications including energy systems and disaster management.
Find out more about the Trustworthy Autonomous Systems hub here: https://www.tas.ac.uk/
This week, Claire talked to Mickey Li from the University of Bristol about aerial robotics, building inspection and multi-robot teams.
To celebrate the new season of Robot Talk, we’re running a competition to win one of our awesome t-shirts! To enter, either share the latest episode on Twitter and tag @UKRobotics or on LinkedIn and tag the EPSRC UK-RAS Network. Five lucky listeners will be randomly selected at the end of November to receive a free t-shirt – we’ve got a unisex version and a fitted version for ladies. To find out more and read the terms and conditions, click here.
Mickey Li is a Robotics and Autonomous systems PhD researcher at the Bristol Robotics Laboratory and the University of Bristol. His research focuses on optimal multi-UAV path planning for building inspection, in particular how guarantees can be provided despite vehicle failures. Most recently he has been developing a portable development and deployment infrastructure for multi-UAV experimentation for the BRL Flight Arena inspired by advances in cloud computing.
This week, Claire talked to Dr Iveta Eimontaite from Cranfield University all about psychology, human-robot interaction, and industrial robots.
To celebrate the new season of Robot Talk, we’re running a competition to win one of our awesome t-shirts! We've expanded and extended the competition and there are now two ways to enter - share the latest episode on Twitter and tag @UKRobotics or on LinkedIn and tag the EPSRC UK-RAS Network. Five lucky listeners will be randomly selected at the end of November to receive a free t-shirt – we’ve got a unisex version and a fitted version for ladies. To find out more and read the terms and conditions, click here.
Iveta Eimontaite studied Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of York and completed her PhD in Cognitive Psychology at Hull University. Prior to joining Cranfield University in June 2019, Iveta held research positions at Bristol Robotics Laboratory and Sheffield Robotics. Her work mainly focuses on behavioural and cognitive aspects of Human-Technology Interaction, with particular interest in user needs and requirements for the successful integration of technology within the workplace/social environments.
This week, Claire chatted to Sean Katagiri from The National Robotarium all about underwater robots, offshore energy, and other industrial applications of robotics.
To celebrate the new season of Robot Talk, we’re running a competition to win one of our awesome t-shirts! For a chance to win, all you have to do is share the latest episode of Robot Talk on Twitter and tag @UKRobotics. Five lucky listeners will be randomly selected at the end of October to receive a free t-shirt – we’ve got a unisex version and a fitted version for ladies. To find out more and read the terms and conditions, click here.
Sean Katagiri is a robotics engineer who has the pleasure of being surrounded by and working with robots for a living. His experience in robotics mainly comes from the subsea domain, but has also worked with wheeled and legged ground robots as well. Sean is very excited to have recently started his role at The National Robotarium, whose goal is to bring ideas from academia and turn them into real world solutions.
To find out more about The National Robotarium, visit their website: https://www.hw.ac.uk/uk/research/the-national-robotarium.htm
This week, Claire talked to Dr Paul Dominick Baniqued from The University of Manchester all about brain-computer interface technology and rehabilitation robotics.
To celebrate the new season of Robot Talk, we’re running a competition to win one of our awesome t-shirts! For a chance to win, all you have to do is share the latest episode of Robot Talk on Twitter and tag @UKRobotics. Five lucky listeners will be randomly selected at the end of October to receive a free t-shirt – we’ve got a unisex version and a fitted version for ladies. To find out more and read the terms and conditions, click here.
Paul Dominick Baniqued received his PhD in robotics and immersive technologies at the University of Leeds. His research tackled the integration of a brain-computer interface with virtual reality and hand exoskeletons for motor rehabilitation and skills learning. He is currently working as a postdoc researcher on cyber-physical systems and digital twins at the Robotics for Extreme Environments Group at the University of Manchester.
In the first episode of the new season, Claire chatted to Roopika Ravikanna from the University of Lincoln all about farm robots, fruit-picking and human-robot interaction.
To celebrate the new season, we’re running a competition to win one of our awesome Robot Talk t-shirts! For a chance to win, all you have to do is share the latest episode of Robot Talk on Twitter and tag @UKRobotics. Five lucky listeners will be randomly selected at the end of October to receive a free t-shirt – we’ve got a unisex version and a fitted version for ladies. To find out more and read the terms and conditions, click here.
Roopika Ravikanna is a second year PhD student at the University of Lincoln pursuing research under 'AgriForwards' Centre for Doctoral training. Her research interests include Human Robot Interaction and Multi Robot Systems. She focuses on developing a fully autonomous system of agricultural transportation robots for assisting farm workers in horticulture and commercial fruit growing environments. She is passionate about taking part in STEM outreach activities, to help inspire young people take up a main stream education in Science.
The first robots went into space over 60 years ago and robotics have become a familiar sight in many industrial settings, but it took a bit longer for robots to make their way into our homes. Robotic vacuum cleaners first started to make an appearance in homes about 20 years ago now, and according to a recent survey by the UK-RAS Network, 28% of people say that robots are now an occasional part of their everyday lives while 13% say they are fully integrated into their day to day lives. But home robots can do a lot more than clean the floors. Social and assistive robots can offer company and help around the home which can be game-changing for people with limited mobility or dementia.
In this special live recording for the UK Festival of Robotics, Claire chatted to Dr. Patrick Holthaus (University of Hertfordshire / Robot House), Prof. Praminda Caleb-Solly (University of Nottingham) and Dr Mike Aldred (Dyson).
Patrick Holthaus researches how robots can socially engage with humans letting them interact with each other in a special research facility, the Robot House at the University of Hertfordshire. He is particularly interested in non-verbal communication like body movements, gestures, and gaze and how they can influence the social credibility and trust of assistive and companion robots. At the same time, he maintains the robots and all the interactive technology in the house and coordinates and advises other users of the house as the Robot House manager.
Praminda Caleb-Solly is Professor of Embodied Intelligence at the University of Nottingham where she leads the Cyber-physical Health and Assistive Robotics Technologies research group. Prior to joining Nottingham, she led research in Assistive Robotics at the Bristol Robotics Laboratory for over ten years. In 2020 she co-founded Robotics for Good CIC, a 'robots-as-a-service' start-up which is currently supporting the deployment of telepresence robots.
Having gained a PhD in robotics from the University of Kent, Mike Aldred left in 1998 to be part of the original team of 5 roboticists at Dyson. He spent 15 years taking the company’s first robot vacuum cleaner from technology research right the way through to a manufactured product. He has worked on pretty much every area of domestic robotics from developing vision based navigation systems, to helping define international robot standards and ensuring the production line runs smoothly. The common theme running across all his roles at Dyson has been turning academic theory into practical reality.
In many areas of robotics, scientists and engineers are taking inspiration from nature in their designs. Bioinspired robotics now encompasses a huge number of different research fields and applications that we’ve discussed before, from sensing to locomotion and from medical to agricultural robotics. This month, I’m chatting to three roboticists who’ve taken a leaf out of nature’s book to develop innovative new robots.
Robot Talk Live will be back again for the UK Festival of Robotics in June, so if you’d like to join us for a live recording of the podcast, click here to book free ticket: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/robot-talk-live-home-robotics-tickets-325690317507
Valentina Lo Gatto is a PhD student in Robotics and Autonomous Systems at the Bristol Robotics Lab, where she is part of the SoftLab and the Morphological Computation Group. The main goal of her research at BRL is to investigate the application of the concepts of Bioinspiration, Soft Robotics and Morphological Computation to space probes design, specifically probes that will need to be able to autonomously explore delicate marine environments such those hidden under the icy surfaces of some of the moons of the outer solar system (e.g., Europa, Enceladus, Ganymede).
David Hardman is a PhD student in the Bio-Inspired Robotics Lab at the University of Cambridge, where he works on the design and development of soft, flexible sensors and sensing materials. After receiving his MEng in mechanical and materials engineering from Cambridge in 2020, he began focussing on including stretchy, bendy, and compliant sensors into robotic systems, where they function as artificial skins which conform to and sense a robot’s surroundings.
Adrian Thomas is Professor of Biomechanics in the Zoology Department, Oxford University. He founded the Oxford Animal Flight Group in 1996, and led that group until 2015 when he founded his Oxford Spinout company Animal Dynamics. Animal Dynamics works on bio inspired autonomous vehicles and systems, mainly cargo delivery in air or underwater. Animal Dynamics has raised over £20 million from venture capital. Its main product is a large cargo delivery drone 'Stork' capable of carrying 135kg over 400km.
One of the most dangerous and unpredictable Earth environments we can send robots into are disaster zones – sites devastated by natural disasters or conflict — but here they can play some of their most impactful roles, such as surveying, search and rescue, even detecting land mines or defusing bombs. To find out more about these daring rescue robots, I’ll be chatting to two roboticists who’ve worked on disaster response: Russell Buchanan (University of Oxford) and Dr. Mario Gianni (University of Plymouth).
Robot Talk Live will be back again for the UK Festival of Robotics in June, so if you’d like to join us for a live recording of the podcast, click here to book free ticket: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/robot-talk-live-home-robotics-tickets-325690317507
Russell Buchanan is a PhD student in robotics at the University of Oxford. He is originally from Canada and has a Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering from McGill University and a Master of Science in Robotics from ETH Zurich. His current work at the Oxford Robotics Institute is focusing on perception for legged robots in challenging environments such as underground mines and sewers.
Mario Gianni is an Associate Professor of Robotics at the University of Plymouth. His knowledge and expertise mainly focus on the development of methods combining AI, machine learning, control theory and optimization to robotics for extreme environments. He is working to enhance automation and situational awareness of robotic systems for mapping nuclear sites, explosive ordinance disposal and inspections in offshore wind farms. In 2012 and 2016 he deployed a team of ground and aerial robots to support rescue responders in two earthquakes that occurred in Italy.
Robots are becoming a more and more important part of our home and work lives and as we come to rely on them, trust is of paramount importance. Successful teams are founded on trust, and the same is true for human-robot teams. But what does it mean to trust a robot? I’ll be chatting to three roboticists working on various aspects of trustworthiness in robotics: Dr Anouk van Maris (University of the West of England), Faye McCabe (University of Birmingham), Daniel Omeiza (University of Oxford).
Anouk van Maris is a research fellow in responsible robotics. She received her doctorate at the Bristol Robotics Laboratory, where she investigated ethical concerns of social robots. She is currently working on the technical development and implementation of the robot ethical black box, which will be used to generate explanations of the robot's decision-making process. She is a member of the committee on Ethics for Robots and Autonomous Systems at the British Standards Institute, where she uses her insights and knowledge to support the progress of a standard for ethical design and implementation of robots.
Faye McCabe is a member of the Human Interface Technologies team at the University of Birmingham. She received a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Computer Systems Engineering from the University of Birmingham in 2017. Her PhD focuses on how to design interfaces which support rich, dynamic and appropriate trust-building within Human-Autonomy Teams of the future. Faye’s main area of focus is autonomous maritime platforms, with her research focusing on sonar analysis, and how this could be aided through the use of autonomous decision-aids.
Daniel Omeiza is a PhD student in the department of computer science at the University of Oxford. He is a member of the responsible innovation group and the cognitive robotics group. As part of the RoboTIPS and SAX project, he is investigating and designing new techniques for effective explainability in autonomous driving. Before joining Oxford, he obtained a masters degree from Carnegie Mellon University and conducted research at IBM Research as an intern.
One of the most familiar types of robot are drones – we’ve seen them replace fireworks at Olympic opening ceremonies and you might have even seen people flying their own. But this is one method of locomotion we haven’t yet covered on Robot Talk, so for episode 14 we’re taking to the skies to find out more about the challenges and opportunities of aerial robotics.
I’ll be chatting to two roboticists: Dr Stephen Prior (University of Southampton) and Dr. Jinya Su (University of Essex).
Stephen Prior gained a BEng Mechanical Engineering degree and a PhD in Robotics from Middlesex University. He is a Chartered Mechanical Engineer, Corporate Member of the IMechE and Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. His research interests are in Aeronautics, Autonomous Unmanned Systems, Robotics and Design Engineering. He was Project Lead for the MoD Grand Challenge i-Spy team in 2008 and led Team HALO, winner of the DARPA UAVForge Competition 2012. He is non-executive director of Tethered Drone Systems Ltd and CEO of Hybrid Drones Ltd.
Jinya Su is a Lecturer in Computer Science and AI in the School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering at University of Essex. He has published more than 50 journal and conference papers in Control Engineering, AI/UAV and their applications in industrial inspection. He has been working at the University of Essex since 2019 on several projects on UAV for agriculture and solar inspection.
Unlike the characteristics of most robots, the adaptations of living organisms weren’t designed - they evolved through natural selection over millions of years. Evolutionary robotics takes inspiration from this process of natural selection to create new robot designs, and allow robots to adapt to their environment over many generations.
In the first episode of 2022, I’ll be chatting to three roboticists about robot evolution and adaptation: Dr Edgar Buchanan (University of York), Prof Fumiya Iida (University of Cambridge), and Dr Hemma Philamore (University of Bristol).
Edgar Buchanan is a Research Associate in Evolutionary Robotics working as part of the Autonomous Robot Evolution project at the University of York. He is conducting research into the autonomous design and fabrication of robots through the use of evolutionary algorithms. He has a master's degree in Autonomous Robot Engineering and a PhD degree in Swarm Robotics from the University of York. In 2016, he won "Kathleen Mary Stott Memorial Prize for excellence in scientific research" at the University of York.
Fumiya Iida is a Professor of Robotics at the University of Cambridge. While he worked as a postdoctoral associate at the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he was awarded the Fellowship for Prospective Researchers from the Swiss National Science Foundation, and then, the Swiss National Science Foundation Professorship hosted by ETH Zurich. In 2014 he moved to the University of Cambridge as the director of Bio-Inspired Robotics Laboratory.
Hemma Philamore is a Lecturer in Robotics at the University of Bristol and is based at the Bristol Robotics Lab. Her research is about environmental robots that function as part of natural ecosystems and the social ecosystems we create as humans. Her work includes soft robotics, bio-inspired and bio-hybrid robots, bio-electrical systems for power and sensing and human-robot-interaction.
The manufacturing industry’s need for accuracy and repeatability in repetitive manual tasks made it an early adopter of robotics technology. Now, as machines become more intelligent and more autonomous, manufacturing robots are taking on more challenging tasks and working more closely with humans.
In this episode, I’ll be chatting to three roboticists researching and working in manufacturing and automation: Dr Gilbert Tang (Cranfield University), Dr Paul Shepherd (University of Bath) and Dr Prasad Manorathna (Siemens).
Gilbert Tang is the Course Director for the MSc in Robotics at Cranfield University and he is the Robotics Course Development Lead for MK:U. He has been conducting robotics research for over 10 years and he has worked with a range of companies including manufacturers and users of automation systems. Gilbert is a Chartered Engineer and a Member of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. He is also a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.
Prasad Manorathna is a leading industrialist in the Robotics, Automation and Digitalisation sector in the UK. He currently leads the Robotics and Automation team at Siemens, in Congleton. Since completion of his PhD at Loughborough University, he has gained experience in the automation industry in various sectors including automotive, aerospace and electronics manufacturing. Prasad has a growing interest in industrial robotics, automation, digital transformation, smart manufacturing, artificial intelligence and machine learning
Paul Shepherd is a Chartered Mathematician, Scientist and Engineer with over 20 years’ experience in the Construction Industry. Paul worked for international Engineering consultancy BuroHappold, developing software to overcome the challenges posed by working with high-profile architects & clients on some iconic buildings. Now in academia, the aim of his research team is to facilitate the creation of complex geometry forms, and to use computational techniques to improve the structural and environmental performance, and the constructability, of the resulting shapes.
In the last decade, autonomous cars have gone from being SciFi fantasy to a commercial reality on our roads, and as with most major technological developments, self-driving cars have been met with a mixture of excitement and fear. Autonomous vehicles have the potential to improve safety on the roads and take over time-consuming and difficult tasks off road, but researchers must be able to demonstrate their safety if we are to entrust these vehicles with more responsibility.
In this episode, I’m talking to two roboticists working to make these vehicles safer, smarter, and more reliable: Dr Richard Hawkins (University of York) and Dr Frederic Labrosse (Aberystwyth University).
Richard Hawkins is Senior Research Fellow working as part of the Assuring Autonomy International Programme at the University of York. He is conducting research into safety assurance for autonomous systems across a range of different application domains. Richard has been a lecturer in safety critical systems engineering at the University of York and also worked for BAE Systems as a software safety engineer.
Frederic Labrosse has been working in the field of robotics and computer vision (mainly in the context of robotics) for many years. His interests are mainly about field robotics, in other words having robots operating in real, unconstrained environments. This spans having off-road robots operating in the hills of Wales (and elsewhere) as well as automated wheelchairs in people's homes.
Welcome to a brand-new season of Robot Talk, hosted by Dr Claire Asher!
In season 1 we talked about many different types of robot, working alone or directly with humans. One thing we didn’t get to touch upon very much is when robots work together with other robots, for example, as part of a swarm. In the first episode of the new season, Claire chats to two roboticists working on swarm robotics: Merihan Alhafnawi (University of Bristol) and Dr John Oyekan (The University of Sheffield).
Merihan Alhafnawi is a Robotics and Autonomous Systems PhD researcher at the University of Bristol. Working in the Bristol Robotics Laboratory under the supervision of Professor Sabine Hauert and Dr Paul O'Dowd, she researches swarm robotic systems, particularly how we can build swarm systems that are expressive so we can enhance the interaction between humans and robot swarms.
John Oyekan is a Lecturer in Digital Manufacturing in the Department of Automatic Control and Systems Engineering at The University of Sheffield, with expertise in sensing, AI, human-robot collaboration and swarm robotics. His work is characterised by both fundamental and applied research in collaboration with partners in the automotive, aerospace and manufacturing sectors. He is researching various novel algorithms that would enable robots to swarm and perform tasks such as mapping of hazardous environments and collaborating with humans to transport bulky materials.
We often hear about robots working in controlled, predictable environments, like an assembly line or an operating theatre, but as a former field biologist, Claire is most interested in what happens when we take robots outside into wild environments, where everything — from the elements to the local wildlife — seems to be against you.
In this special live recording for the UK Festival of Robotics, Claire chatted to Sophie Armanini (TU Munich / Imperial College London), Ben Scott-Robinson (Small Robot Company) and Matthew Ryan Tucker (University of Bristol).
Find out more about the UK Festival of Robotics here: https://www.ukras.org/robotics-festival/
Dr Sophie Armanini is an assistant professor at the Technical University of Munich, Germany, and a guest researcher at Imperial College London, where she previously worked as a research associate. She obtained her PhD from Delft University of Technology (the Netherlands), and has been a visiting researcher at Cranfield University and Cornell University (USA). Sophie’s research focuses on the dynamics and control of unconventional and bioinspired aerial vehicles, including flapping-wing and aerial-aquatic robots.
Ben Scott-Robinson is an accomplished digital entrepreneur focused on geospatial and mobility technologies. Ben co-founded the Small Robot Company in 2017 which endeavours to replace tractors with accurate, smart, lightweight robots. With 20 years experience in digital innovation, including the digital transformation of Ordnance Survey, Ben is also an experienced technology entrepreneur having founded two agencies, two consultancies, an app start-up and a phone for the blind.
Matthew Ryan Tucker is a Physics PhD Student at the University of Bristol, researching the use of ground based mobile robots for mapping radiation and finding radiation hotspots. Last year he was part of a University field trip to the Chernobyl Exclusion zone, where he deployed a Boston Dynamics Spot robot in a variety of different locations, including beneath the New Safe Confinement at the Chernobyl Power plant.
Throughout the series so far, soft robotics has come up over and over in different areas, from medicine to agriculture. In this episode, I’ll be chatting to three roboticists working on different applications of this fascinating and fast-developing area of robotics: Dr Thomas Thuruthel (University of Cambridge), Angus Clark (Imperial College London) and Dr Jelizaveta Konstantinova (Ocado Technology).
Get your ticket for Robot Talk Live: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/149424567905
Dr Thomas George Thuruthel is a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Cambridge. He has a BTech in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad, India and a Master’s in Biorobotics from Waseda University, Japan. He received a PhD in Biorobotics from Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, Italy in 2019. His research focuses on the modelling and control of soft-bodied robotics systems using machine learning techniques.
Angus Clark is a researcher in the Robotic manipulation: Engineering, Design, and Science Lab, focussing on the development of Malleable Robotics – a new type of reconfigurable serial robot arms. He received the M.Eng. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Southampton in 2017 and is currently pursuing a PhD in Design Engineering Research at Imperial College London. His research interests include manipulation and grasping, soft robotics, extreme environment robotics, and exoskeletons and prosthetics.
Dr Jelizaveta Konstantinova is a research coordinator at Ocado Technology. She holds a PhD in Robotics from King’s College London, and her previous academic research was focused on medical robotics, force and tactile sensing for grasping, sensor fusion and intelligent grasping. Jelizaveta is currently working on developing external and internal collaborative research projects and connections with the focus on robotics and cutting-edge innovation.
Although as consumers we may sometimes feel quite detached from food production, agriculture is central to all our lives. As an industry, agriculture has often been at the forefront of technological development, and today researchers are developing robots that can lighten the load at virtually every stage of the growing process.
In this episode, I’ll be striding into the muddy world of agricultural robotics with help from Petra Bosilj (University of Lincoln) and Chris Chavasse (MuddyMachines).
We've also just launched tickets for a special live online recording of Episode 9 in June - find out more here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/robot-talk-live-robots-into-the-wild-tickets-149424567905
Dr Petra Bosilj is a Senior Lecturer in Agri-Robotics at the Lincoln Institute for Agri-Technology, University of Lincoln, and specialises in robotic vision for agriculture. Her research focuses on visual scene analysis and interpretation, and has been applied to different agricultural processes such as robotic weeding, assessing soil quality and estimating yields from crop counts. The goal of her research is not only to improve the efficacy of agricultural practices, but to ensure the food production chain has a sustainable and even a regenerative effect on our environment.
Chris Chavasse has spent his entire career in robotics innovation. At school, he was involved with the First Lego League robotics competitions and RoboCup Junior. He went on to complete his Masters in Electronics Engineering at the University of Warwick, developing new UAVs and Search & Rescue Robots. Upon graduating, he spent four years at Dyson, inventing the next generation of household robots, followed by two years leading the development of novel commercial kitchen robots at Deliveroo, before founding Muddy Machines, where he is now focused on solving domestic growers most pressing issues.
Although robots have been in our lives for decades, they have often been kept quite separate from the humans they help, whether that's huge industrial manufacturing robots that operate behind fences on the factory floor or remote handling robots in nuclear and surgical settings. But increasingly, we want to design robots that work with us in close collaboration.
In this episode, I take a look at the rapidly-developing world of human-robot collaboration — from nimble robotic assistants in the smart factories of the future, to robotic toys and assistants in homes, classrooms, and hospital wards — with the help of Javier Chiyah (Heriot-Watt University), Dr Helena Webb (University of Oxford) and Dr Lola Cañamero (University of Hertfordshire).
Javier Chiyah is a PhD student at Heriot-Watt University working on human-robot collaboration using conversational agents. He is exploring new methods of interaction for robots in smart factories with Siemens. Previously, he worked on the development of a system for remote operation of autonomous underwater vehicles, funded by the Ministry of Defence. One of his goals is to make robots more intuitive to use through speech, and he is very excited about all the amazing things that human-robot teams can achieve together.
Dr Helena Webb is a Senior Researcher in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Oxford. She specialises in detailed, qualitative research that explores the lived experience of technology and the different ways in which users interact with technological systems. She is currently part of a project called RoboTIPS, a collaboration between Oxford and Bristol Robotics Lab to develop an innovative safety mechanism for social robots – the Ethical Black Box.
Dr Lola Cañamero is Head of the Embodied Emotion, Cognition and (Inter-)Action Lab at the University of Hertfordshire in the UK. Following an undergraduate degree in Philosophy, she turned to Embodied AI and robotics as a postdoctoral fellow. Her research investigates the interactions between motivation, emotion and embodied cognition and action from the perspectives of adaptation, development and evolution, using autonomous and social robots and artificial life simulations.
One way in which robots can be put to particularly good use is for performing tasks in environments that are too dangerous for humans to work, for example deep below ground or underwater, or in industrial environments like nuclear power plants.
In this episode, I’m joined by Dr Simon Watson (University of Manchester) and Jonathon Witty (UK Atomic Energy Authority) to chat about some of the ways robotics is being used in hazardous places like these.
Dr Simon Watson is a Senior Lecturer in Robotic Systems in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at the University of Manchester. His research focus is on mobile robots for the exploration and characterisation of hazardous and extreme environments, such as those found in the nuclear, offshore energy and mining industries. He has led the development of aquatic, aerial and ground robots and works closely with industry to take robotic platforms from University prototypes through to commercially viable systems.
Jonathon Witty is a mechatronics engineer in the cybernetics group of RACE, a department of the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), having completed their graduate scheme after his engineering science degree at Oxford University. He largely works on integrating sensors with robotic systems, supporting maintenance, upgrades, and research for fusion energy devices. One key project has been supporting upgrades to the remote handling system for JET - the world’s most powerful active fusion machine - based in Oxfordshire.
If we want to create smart, adaptable robots, the first thing they need to be able to do is to sense and understand the world around them.
In this episode, I explore how robots sense and perceive the world around them with help from Matt Watson (Opteran Technologies), Dr Perla Maiolino (University of Oxford) and Dr Dimitrios Kanoulas (University College London).
Matthew T. Watson received a Masters in electronic engineering and a PhD in robotics from the University of Sheffield. In 2019 he joined Opteran Technologies as a senior engineer, helping to advance and bring to market Opteran’s natural intelligence technologies. His research interests include autonomous mobile robot and UAV trajectory planning and tracking, dynamically stable robot locomotion systems, and computationally efficient approaches to combined robot perception and control.
Dr Perla Maiolino is currently Associate Professor at the Engineering Science Department of the University of Oxford and director of the Soft Robotics lab at The Oxford Robotics Institute. She worked at the development of CySkin Technology, an artificial skin for providing robot with sense of touch. This technology has been shown at the Robots exhibition at London Science Museum in 2017. Her research includes the development of tactile sensing technologies for robots, tactile perception and soft robotics.
Dr Dimitrios Kanoulas is a Lecturer in Robotics and Computation at the University College London (UCL), Department of Computer Science, member of the UCL Robotics Institute, and the PI of the Robot Perception and Learning (RPL) lab. His research aims to apply perception and learning in robotics. In particular, he is developing new estimation and planning algorithms for articulated robots that locomote and manipulate in uncertain environments, including real-time methods for sensing, map building, and self/environment modelling.
Claire asked her guests some extra questions about their careers, their advice, and their favourite robots. In the final clip, we hear from UK roboticists about the robots they'd most like to have in an apocalypse to help them survive.
Claire asked her guests some extra questions about their careers, their advice, and their favourite robots. In the fourth clip, we hear researchers' tips and advice for starting a career in robotics.
Claire asked her guests some extra questions about their careers, their advice, and their favourite robots. In this clip, we hear from UK roboticists about what made them decide to pursue a career in robotics.
As a special treat for the holiday season, Claire asked her guests some extra questions. In the second clip, we hear from UK roboticists about their favourite robot characters from film and television.
As a special treat for the holiday season, Claire asked her guests some extra questions about their careers, their advice, and their favourite robots. In the first clip, we hear from UK roboticists about their career paths.
One of the most fundamental things a robot can do is to move around in its environment, and engineers have developed lots of different solutions to robotic locomotion – legs, wheels, rotors, and everything in between.
In this episode, I’m joined by Dr Romeo Orsolino (Dynamic Robot Systems Group, University of Oxford), Chris Cieslak (BladeBUG), and Dr Chengxu Zhou (Real Robotics Lab, University of Leeds) to talk about the amazing and sometimes surprising ways that robots get moving.
Dr Romeo Orsolino is a postdoctoral researcher at the Oxford Robotics Institute (ORI) focusing on the development of efficient locomotion strategies that allow humanoid and quadruped robots to walk and navigate across complex environments. He has a master’s degree in robotics engineering and a PhD in advanced and humanoid robotics. Romeo's research interests encompass a wide range of topics such as artificial intelligence, optimization, dynamics and computer science.
Chris Cieslak is a Chartered Engineer with a Mechanical Engineering degree from Sussex University and a master’s degree in Composite Materials from Imperial College. He is a former wind turbine blade designer with over a decade of experience in the industry. Chris firmly believes that now is the time to bring blade maintenance into the 21st century with the BladeBUG robot, applying the deep knowledge and understanding he has gained to ensure that wind farms perform at their maximum efficiency and last the full life span for which they are designed.
Dr Chengxu Zhou is a lecturer in Mobile Robotics at the University of Leeds working on intelligent motion generation for legged robots. He received his PhD degree in Robotics in 2016 from the Italian Institute of Technology. His research focusses on dynamic locomotion of humanoid robots using machine learning technologies and is interested in whole-body coordination in complex environments. His work on humanoid robots as part of the DARPA Robotics Challenge was highlighted by the Journal of Bionic Engineering in 2017.
Of all the different areas that robotics is being applied to, space robotics might be the one that most captures people’s imaginations and inspires us to make what seems impossible, possible. From robots in orbit to planetary rovers and wearable tech, in this episode we’ll explore the latest developments in space robotics and technology.
In this episode, I’m joined by Xander Hall (Airbus Defence and Space), Dr Arthur Bouton (Surrey Space Centre, University of Surrey) and Steph Pau (Hamlyn Centre, Imperial College London) to talk about the challenges and opportunities for robots in space - present and future.
Xander Hall is a Mission Systems Engineer at Airbus in Stevenage and specialises in robotics, in-orbit servicing and UK national missions. His time at Airbus has seen him work on projects to build >100m reflectors in orbit, perform Mars rover field trials in the Atacama desert in Chile, and develop the RemoveDEBRIS space harpoon (amongst many others). He is passionate about developing the next generation of spacecraft/services and is an advocate for keeping the space environment sustainable.
Dr Arthur Bouton did his PhD in Paris on the topic of compliant wheel-legged locomotion systems. Two years ago, he joined the Future of AI and Robotics in Space (FAIR-SPACE) project at the University of Surrey to work on planetary rover mobility. Robotics is for him the best way to engage with all the engineering topics he is passionate about, from the mechanical design to machine learning and control.
Stephanie Pau is a research associate at the Hamlyn Centre at Imperial College London, where she works with medical robotics researchers to create the links with space and industry. She has masters degrees in Electronics and Electronics Engineering from Imperial College and in Healthcare and Design from the Royal College of Art. She worked for 6 years in the space industry as a solutions architect and is now writing a book chapter on the Future of Human Robot Interaction in Space. She recently ran a webinar series, “From PPE to Spacesuits”.
It’s not an exaggeration to say that robotics research is driving life-saving innovations – robots are already making a difference in clinics and operating theatres around the world. In our first episode, we’ll chat to researchers about how robotics is revolutionising medicine and surgery.
In this episode, I’m joined by Dr James Chandler (STORM Lab, University of Leeds) and Dr Matina Giannarou (Hamlyn Centre, Imperial College London) to talk about the exciting world of medical and surgical robotics and find out what they’ve been working on.
Dr James Chandler is a Research Fellow in the Science and Technologies of Robotics in Medicine (STORM) Lab at the University of Leeds, working on low-cost, soft robotic technology for intravascular and endoscopic applications. He has a master’s degree in Automotive Engineering and a PhD in surgical sensing of cancer from the University of Leeds. In his research he is interested in soft and flexible robotic systems for surgery and sensing technologies for identifying tissue disease.
Dr Stamatia (Matina) Giannarou is a Royal Society University Research Fellow at the Hamlyn Centre for Robotic Surgery, Imperial College London, with a PhD in Image Processing. Her research focuses on enhanced surgical vision for navigation during minimally invasive and robot-assisted operations. She leads the Vision for Robotic Surgery research group at the Hamlyn Centre and is the chair of the annual Hamlyn Winter School on Surgical Imaging and Vision. In 2017 she won “The President’s Award for Outstanding Early Career Researcher” at Imperial College London.
Robot Talk is a brand new podcast that sits down with some of the UK's top robotics researchers and asks them questions like, "How does that work?", "What's better, legs or wheels?", and "How soon can I get one of these robots in my house?".
Hosted by Claire Asher, Robot Talk explores the science and technology behind everything from robotic surgery to planetary rovers and self-driving cars, on the last Friday of every month.