Daniel Koditschek

In this interview, Brad Nelson discusses his career in robotics, focusing on control, manipulation, micro-positioning, and micro/nanorobotics. Describing his research at CMU, the University of Illinois, Minnesota, and ETH, he discusses the challenges of his work and the interactions between scientific disciplines. Commenting on the evolution of robotics and micro/nanorobotics, he goes on to discuss his various work environments, the state of Switzerland’s funding, and the future of the robotics.

In this interview, Inoue discusses his career in the field of robotics, focusing on his graduate research and his work at the ETL and the University of Tokyo. Recounting his early interest in engineering and robotics, he outlines his involvement in several robotics projects, including development of a robot arm and intelligent robots. He comments on the state of robotics labs and funding in Japan and in America, reflects on the challenges of robotics, and provides advice to young people interested in the field.

In this interview, Corke discusses his career in the field of robotics. He recounts his research work during his college and graduate years, at CSIRO, and at Queensland University. He discusses his contributions to the field, particularly his visual control textbook, his work on mining and field robots, and on sensor networks, his research in visual servoing, and his contribution to the development of open source toolboxes. Additionally, he provides advice to young people interested in robotics, and reflects on his many collaborations, and the challenges and future of the field.

In this interview, Jean-Daniel Nicoud discusses his career in robotics and at Lausanne and DIDEL. Describing the state of roboics at EPFL, he reflects on the evolution of the field and his research work. Moving from academia to form a private company (DIDEL), he outlines its motivations and influences, as well as the challenges and potential of robotics applications.

Vijay Kumar was born in Patna, India in 1962. Dr. Kumar received his Bachelor of Technology degree from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur and his Ph.D. from The Ohio State University in 1987.

In this interview, Matt Mason discusses his career in robotics, in particular in compliant motion, force control, and fine motion planning. Outlining his involvement in projects at IBM, MIT, and Carnegie Mellon, he provides insight into the state and evolution of robotics at the time. Describing his current work on manipulation and robotic hands, he comments on the future of robotics at CMU and of the field as a whole.