Paolo Dario

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, 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, Bob McGhee discusses his career in robotics, in particular his work on guided missiles, walking robots, and unmanned submarines. Describing his work on robotics projects, such as the phony pony and the bionic bug, he emphasizes the animal and human influence. Discussing the fallibility of robots, he describes the research and work being done at the time, as well as comments on the change in the perception of robotics and the evolution of the field.

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, Illah Nourbakhsh discusses his work in robotics, focusing on artificial intelligence and planning, and the challenges and future of the field. Describing his involvement in projects, such as the Book Store Project and the automated highway system project, he outlines the state of robotics at Stanford, the start of his company (Blue Pumpkin Software), and his arrival and work at Carnegie Mellon. Additionally he discusses his work on educational projects, such as the Dinosaur Hall, and at NASA, and comments on the potential for robotics in education and space exploration.

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.