My main research interests are social-physical human robot-interaction, optimization and optimal control for robots, collaborative robots, humanoid robots, and human motion analysis.
Here you can find preprints of my publications, overviews of past and ongoing research projects, teaching materials (coming soon), and my contact information.
I am a tenure track Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical & Mechatronics Engineering at University of Waterloo since 2021, I belong to the Automation and Control group, and I am leading the Active & Interactive Robotics Laboratory (A.I.R. Lab).
Before Waterloo, I lived and worked in several countries.
I got my bachelor degree in Electronics Engineering in 2011 from University of Genova, in Italy.
Then in 2013 I obtained my masters' degree (MSc) in Advanced Robotics (EMARO - European Master on Advanced Robotics) from both University of Genova and Ecole Centrale de Nantes (France).
From 2013 to 2018 I was in Heidelberg, Germany, working mainly on the humanoid robot iCub, and the analysis of human walking. I carried out my PhD in robotics (Computer Science) with the Optimization in Robotics and Biomechanics (ORB) group, at Heidelberg University, under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Katja Mombaur and Dr. Francesco Nori (Italian Institute of Technology). I obtained my degree with Summa cum laude in April 2017. I was then postdoc at ORB until February 2018.
In 2018 I was postdoc at the Dynamic Interaction Control Research Line lead by Dr. Daniele Pucci, at the Italian Institute of Technology in Genova, Italy, where I worked mainly on whole-body control and teleoperation of the iCub.
Between 2018 and 2021 I was in Japan, developing my own research direction of active physical human-robot interaction, starting from (but not limited to) collaborative manipulators.
From 2018 to 2020 I was a JSPS (Japan Society for the Promotion of Sciences) postdoctoral fellow under the supervision of Dr. Eiichi Yoshida, and in collaboration with Prof. Gentiane Venture and Dr. Mehdi Benallegue at the CNRS-AIST JRL (Joint Robotics Laboratory), National Institute of Advanced Industrial Sciences and Technology (AIST), in Tsukuba.
Between 2020 and 2021, I was an assistant professor at the GVLab lead by Prof. Gentiane Venture, in the Department of Mechanical Systems Engineering at Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology.
Currently considering applications from students at all levels:
Undergraduate: URA (Undegraduate Research Assistant), Co-op (USRA - Undergraduate Student Research Awards), or if you want to volunteer!
FYDP/Capstone: reach me out if you think I can help and advise your team! Available also to provide ideas for potential projects.
MASc and PhD: please contact me directly. If you are a domestic applicant, if eligible, please apply to scholarships such as OGS and NSERC CGS. If you are an international applicant, your application will be subject to available funding.
Contact me if you are interested in any of the projects listed in this website or doing research in topics including (but not limited to): human-robot interaction, optimal control applied to robotics, collaborative robotics, humanoid robotics, human motion analysis.
