Gerd Hirzinger

Richard D. (Dick) Klafter, one of the early leaders in the field of robotics and automation and the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society, was born on 5 August 1936 and died 11 November 2019. He received an undergraduate degree at MIT, two graduate degrees from Columbia University, and a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the City University of New York (1969).

In this interview, Kiseler discusses her career in robotics, focusing on anthropomorphic robots, human-robot interaction, and cognitive and social design. Describing her involvement with projects such as Pearl, she goes on to describe her involvement in organizing and developing the HRI conferences. She reflects on her transition from social psychology and computer interaction to human-robot interaction, and comments on its relationship to human psychology and its future development.

In this interview, Max Mintz discusses his career in robotics, focusing on control theory and decision-making under uncertainty. Describing his time at the CSL and the GRASP Lab, he outlines the influences and challenges of his work. Reflecting on the evolution of robotics, he comments on the outstanding problems of the field and its relationship with other disciplines.

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, Casals discusses her past and current work, her interest in integrating robots with humans, and her collaboration with companies and other non-academic institutions, and the challenges that come with it. She also gives advice to prospective students who are interested in the robotics field and her efforts in recruiting more women to the field of robotics.

In this interview, Ambrose discusses his Ph.D. work and NASA projects, focusing on his developments in the field of human-robot cooperation. He also briefly discusses his initial interest in engineering and the future of robotics.