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Congratulations and welcome to the following newly organized IEEE Robotics and Automation Society (RAS) Chapters:
REGION 3
USA
- Atlanta Section Joint Chapter, Robotics and Automation Society and Sensors Council
REGION 8
KENYA
- Technical University of Kenya, Robotics and Automation Society Student Branch Chapter
NIGERIA
- Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Robotics and Automation Society Student Branch Chapter TUNISIA
- I. Information and Communication Technologies, Robotics and Automation Society Student Branch Chapter
REGION 9
- Universidad Nacional de San Agustin, Robotics and Automation Society Student Branch Chapter
REGION 10
INDIA
- Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham-Mysuru, Robotics and Automation Society Student Branch Chapter in the Bangalore Section
- Anil Neerukonda Institute of Technology and Sciences, Robotics and Automation Society Student Branch Chapter
- Bansal Institute of Engineering and Technology-Lucknow, Robotics and Automation Society Student Branch Chapter
- College of Engineering - Karunagappally, Joint Computer and Robotics and Automation Society Student Branch Chapter
- National Institute of Engineering-Mysore, Robotics and Automation Society Student Branch Chapter
- P A College of Engineering-Mangalore, Robotics and Automation Society Student Branch Chapter
- Reva University, Robotics and Automation Society Student Branch Chapter in the Bangalore Section
- Sree Vidyanikethan Engineering College-Tirupati, Robotics and Automation Society Student Branch Chapter
- Symbiosis Institute of Technology-Pune, Robotics and Automation Society Student Branch Chapter
- Vidya Jyothi Institute of Technology, Robotics and Automation Society Student Branch Chapter
Kazakhstan
- IEEE Kazakhstan Computational Intelligence and Robotics and Automation Societies Joint Chapter
Sri Lanka
- Informatics Institute of Technology, Robotics and Automation Society Student Branch Chapter
Congratulations to the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society Members recently elevated to Senior Member status by the IEEE Admission and Advancement Senior Member Review Panel.
To be eligible for application or nomination, candidates must
- be engineers, scientists, educators, technical executives, or originators in IEEE-designated fields
- have experience reflecting professional maturity
- have been in professional practice for at least 10 years (with some credit for certain degrees).
In addition, candidates for Senior Member grade must supply three references from current IEEE Members holding the grade of Fellow, Senior Member, or Honorary Member. For more information, visit https://www.ieee.org/membership/senior/ or email senior-member@ieee.org. The names and affiliations of the new Senior Members are as follows, listed alphabetically by Region:
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Region 1 Taskin Padir Worcester County Section Paul Robinette Boston Section Milad Siami Boston Section |
Region 2 Axel Krieger Baltimore Section Rahul Mangharam Philadelphia Section Eric Stich Worcester County Section |
Region 3 Nicola Bezzo Central Virginia Section Gokhan Erdemir Chattanooga Section Yu Wang Gainesville Section |
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Region 4 Siddharth Agarwal Southeastern Michigan Section Brenna Argall Chicago Section Bing Li Milwaukee Section Byung-Cheol Min Central Indiana Section Mario Santillo Southeastern Michigan Section Patrick Wensing Calumet Section |
Region 5 Hemadri Doma High Plains Section Christoffer Heckman Denver Section Amol Kakade Houston Section |
Region 6 David Yushan Fong Santa Clara Valley Section Wen Lik Lui Santa Clara Valley Section Balamurugan M Santa Clara Valley Section Santhosh Nag Santa Clara Valley Section Thomas Stevens Tucson Section |
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Region 7 Mokhles Abdulghani Vancouver Section Tuheen Ahmmed Ottawa Section Allen Upward Vancouver Section |
Region 8 Tamim Asfour Germany Section Daniele Cafolla United Kingdom and Ireland Section Roberto Calandra Germany Section Graziana Cavone Italy Section Dimitris Chrysostomou Denmark Section Omar Garcia Crespillo Germany Section Filippo Dippolito Italy Section Sami Elmadssia Saudi Arabia Section Pietro Falco Italy Section John Kagoro Uganda Section Federica Pascucci Italy Section Felice Andrea Pellegrino Italy Section Jose-Luis Sanchez-Lopez Benelux Section Matteo Saveriano Italy Section Abdalla Swikir Germany Section Barkan Ugurlu Turkiye Section |
Region 9 J Anibal Arias Morelos Section Jorge Cruz Duarte Monterrey Section Luis Gutierrez Colombia Section Roberto Moreno Chile Section Eduardo Espinoza Quesada Mexico Section |
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Region 10 Ponmalara A Madras Section Sanjeevi Gandhi A Madras Section Shabir Ahmad Seoul Section Ms. Sangeerani Devi Aranganathan Madras Section Ponshanmugakumar Arunachalam Madras Section Ebubekir Avci New Zealand Central Section Richard Bowyer South Australia Section He Chen Beijing Section Diwadalage Kasun Prasanga De Silva Sri Lanka Section Rui Fan Shanghai Section Lihang Feng Nanjing Section Jayanthi Ganesan Madras Section Liu Gangfeng Harbin Section Kumar Gaurav Delhi Section Dr. S Venu Gopal Hyderabad Section Mahmudul Hasan Bangladesh Section Shilpa Hudnurkar Pune Section Walter Hyde Beijing Section Kamalakannan J Madras Section Jegan Amarnath J Madras Section Deepak Joshi Delhi Section Ayoung Kim Seoul Section Sreeja Kochuvila Bangalore Section Balaji Navaneetha Krishnan Madras Section Baoquan Li Beijing Section Raymond Wing-Fai Leung New South Wales Section Huashan Liu Shanghai Section Xiao-feng Liu Nanjing Section Pachhaiammal Priya M Madras Section Narayan Mane Pune Section Biao Mei Beijing Section Banibrata Mukherjee Kharagpur Section Sridharan P Madras Section Suthahar P Madras Section Hardik Pandya Bangalore Section Manh Duong Phung Vietnam Section Chenkun Qi Shanghai Section Qiquan Quan Harbin Section Sampath R Madras Section Vigneswaran R Madras Section Edward Rankin Singapore Section Anjan Ray Kolkata Section Parag Rughani Gujarat Section Premalatha S Madras Section Mandar Sapre Bombay Section Ahn Ho Seok New Zealand North Section Christopher Ezhil Singh Sreedharan Kerala Section Girish Subbarao Bangalore Section Sathies Kumar T Madras Section U-Xuan Tan Singapore Section Karthick Thiyagarajan New South Wales Section Tamilarasan Uthirapathy Madras Section Uma Maheswari V Hyderabad Section Mohini Vyawahare Bombay Section Zhongkui Wang Kansai Section Xiaochen Xie Guangzhou Section Rong Xiong Nanjing Section Pandurangaiah Y Hyderabad Section Haibin Yan Beijing Section Qilong Yuan Singapore Section Yimin Zhang Beijing Section Guyue Zhou Beijing Section |
RAS is seeking applications for the Member Activities Board’s Student Activities Committee (SAC). There are openings for one Chair and one or more Co‐Chairs. These positions offer great opportunities to learn more about the Society, have an international impact, and expand one’s professional network. The Chair will serve for two calendar years (2024-2025) with an onboarding phase until ICRA 2024, and the co‐chairs will serve a one‐year term in 2024, which is renewable for a second year.
The RAS SAC promotes student participation in Society activities in co‐operation with all Society Boards, Committees, and Working Groups, under the supervision of the Member Activities Board. The SAC’s mission includes working on issues of interest to Student Members and interacting with Student Members and Student Branch Chapters. Current areas of focus include:
- Lunch with Leaders held at flagship conferences (ICRA, CASE, IROS)
- Fun informal social events at RAS-sponsored conferences
- Educational webinars
- Membership development
- SAC website and social media content management
- Coordination with Student Branch Chapter Chairs
- SAC column in IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine (quarterly publication)
Description of Roles:
Chair: The Chair will be responsible for managing the SAC and its efforts. The Chair of the SAC will be one of 24 voting members on the RAS Administrative Committee (AdCom). The Chair is expected to attend semi-annual AdCom meetings, which are held in conjunction with ICRA and IROS conferences. Travel support of up to $4000 USD is provided by the Society to attend these meetings. The Chair shall also serve on and report to the Member Activities Board.
Social Media & RA-M Co-Chair: This Co-Chair is responsible for managing media communications to promote the activities of the SAC and the Society to students, which includes maintaining an online presence as well as making announcements on social media. This Co-Chair will also be responsible for contributing and collecting reports for the Student’s Corner column articles for the quarterly IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine (RA-M).
RSR Coordinator Co-Chair: This Co-Chair will be the primary channel of communication between the Regional Student Representatives (RSRs) and the SAC, as well as various Student Chapters directly as required. They are also expected to promote communication between various Chapters in the Society and assist RSRs when necessary. The Co-Chair is also expected to work with the RSRs to highlight student chapter activities for the RA-M Chapter and International Activities column.
Technical Activities Co-Chair: Several of the 45 IEEE Technical Committees of RAS, which cover different scientific and technical areas in robotics and automation, are introducing student representatives, and these numbers are expected to grow. This new Co-Chair will organize the activities of these student representatives and serve as a liaison to SAC.
Conference Event Co-Chair: This is a more fluid role that exists to help coordinate or organize events or volunteers during ICRA, IROS, or CASE. This individual will likely be expected to work closely with conference Organizing Committees to accomplish various tasks, e.g., organizing student-led tutorial sessions.
Candidates may be undergraduate or graduate students, but they must be Student Members of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society in good standing. The ideal candidate has strong social, professional, and communication skills and is willing to take part in ongoing activities and propose new initiatives. Past participation in SAC is preferred but not required. There is no geographical preference.
Currently, the SAC has several initiatives to promote active networking, interdisciplinary dialogues, and robotics education. Some initiatives require weekly SAC involvement while other activities are conference specific (such activities are currently developed around the RAS flagship conferences: IROS, ICRA, and CASE). More information about current activities can be found at the RAS SAC webpage.
Interested applicants should be:
- Self-motivated
- Organized
- Responsive to email discussions
- Able to commit 5+ hours a week to SAC material, potentially more when required for specific activities (g., reviewing volunteer proposals, organizing conference activities, etc.)
If you wish to be considered, please complete an application form by 15 November 2023; please indicate whether you are applying for the Chair or Co-Chair position (please specify one or more Co-Chair positions). Be sure to include the following information:
- A letter indicating the applicant’s interest in serving on the SAC and relevant experience (2 pages maximum)
- A CV or résumé (2 pages maximum)
- A letter of support from a faculty member at your college or university (preferably a current member of IEEE and RAS)
For more information on the SAC and current activities, refer to the IEEE RAS SAC webpage.
We are pleased to announce that Volume 16, Issue 3 of IEEE Transactions on Haptics (ToH) is now available on IEEE Xplore. Click here for the Table of Contents and check out the issue now!
We are pleased to announce that the September 2023 issue of IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine (Volume 30, Issue 3) is now available on IEEE Xplore. Click here for the table of contents and check out the issue now on Xplore!
We are pleased to announce that a new batch of IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters (RA-L) papers is now available on IEEE Xplore. Check it out!
The paper submission deadline for the 2024 IEEE International Conference on Soft Robotics (Robosoft 2024) is now less than one month away! Robosoft 2024 will take place in San Diego, CA, USA from 14-17 April 2024.
The conference theme is Soft Robotics for Exploration. For more information, check out the website.
Key Deadlines
- Paper Submission Deadline: 15 October 2023 1 November 2023
- Workshop/Tutorials Submission Deadline: 15 November 2023
- Competition Submission Deadline: 15 December 2023
We are pleased to announce that the 2024 IEEE International Conference on Automation Science and Engineering (CASE 2024) will take place in Bari in Puglia (or Apulia), Italy from 28 August-1 September 2024.
The conference theme is Automation 5.0: Automation Everywhere for Better and Smarter Living and will include tutorials and workshops, a technical program of presentations, keynote lectures, and social events. The conference will cover a wide range of topics on Systems, Automation, Control Theory, Autonomous Systems, Discrete Event Systems, Smart Cities, Robotics, Building Automation, Smart Mobility, Information and Communication Technologies, and Factory 4.0.
CASE 2024 invites special session and workshop proposals, regular papers, industry papers, and presentation-only papers related to the conference topics.
IEEE RAS Robotics Foundation Cluster Forum
Robotics Foundations and Future Challenges
Saturday, September 30 1-5pm (Note: this is one day before IROS officially begins)
Room 331, Level 3, Huntington Place
Chairpersons
- Marcelo Ang, National University of Singapore, Singapore
- Giuseppe Loianno, New York University, USA
- Josie Hughes, EPFL, Switzerland
- Jen Jen Chung, The University of Queensland, Australia
Speakers:
- Rebecca Kramer-Bottiglio, Yale University, USA
- Dawn Tilbury, University of Michigan, USA
- Aude Billard, EPFL, Switzerland
This is the second forum hosted by the IEEE RAS Robotics Foundation Technical Cluster. This forum will provide an opportunity for students to hear from distinguished researchers across the breadth of robotics, including plenary talks and panels that cover the foundations of a topic as well as a view to the future.
Early career research students are especially encouraged to participate in the forum.
There is no charge for this event; however, space is limited. Please register in advance.
IEEE RAS TAB X SAC Dinner - For Student and Post-Doctoral Researchers
Saturday, September 30 6-8pmn (Note: this is one day before IROS officially begins)
Rooms 310A & 310B, Level 3, Huntington Place
Students and postdoctoral researchers attending IROS 2023 are cordially invited to the IEEE-RAS TAB (Technical Activities Board) X SAC (Student Activities Committee) Dinner, an event that aims to foster community engagement between current/former Technical Committees (TCs) and students and postdoctoral researchers prior to IROS 2023.
Please Note: Students must be registered for the conference to attend this event. Seating is limited and will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis.
At this gathering, each TC will be seated at designated tables, which provides a unique opportunity to interact and engage with your preferred TCs. We are confident that this event will greatly enhance your understanding of the TCs and SAC.
Learn more about IEEE RAS Technical Committees here.
Learn more about the IEEE RAS Student Activities Committee (SAC) here.
There is no charge for this event; however, space is limited. Please register in advance.
We look forward to sharing this special moment with you.
IEEE Robotics and Automation Society (RAS) Town Hall
Sunday, October 1, 5-6pm
(Directly after the conclusion of the first day of Workshops/Tutorials and immediately before the Welcome Reception)
Room 310A/B, Level 3, Huntington Place
Calling all Robotics and Automation Society (RAS) members, and those interested in learning more about RAS! We want to connect with you at the upcoming RAS Town Hall. RAS leaders will be present to discuss current initiatives and future programs, and to hear your voice on the priorities of RAS and our community.
RAS has many new initiatives in the works for our members:
- An expanded member support program to provide travel and registration support to authors and contributors of our flagship conferences.
- Expanded in-person and online career fairs and services to connect employers with members seeking careers in robotics and automation.
- The proposed launch of two new journals: IEEE Robotics and Automation Practice, to engage our growing community of practitioners, and IEEE Transactions on Field Robotics to engage the field robotics community.
- The empowerment of our Technical Committees (TCs) with greater autonomy and financial support.
- A restructuring of our conference programs to better respond to the needs of our rapidly growing and evolving community.
- The development of online educational content, from certified core curricula to advanced courses.
All in-person attendees of the Town Hall will be provided with newly designed RAS T-shirts!
The Robotics and Automation Society (RAS) oversees all activities related to the organisation of IEEE-RAS conferences and IEEE journals on robotics. The RAS Executive and Administrative Committees are composed of leading scientists from around the world who devote some of their free time for the benefit of our community.
WIE Luncheon and Networking - Women Shaping the Future of Robotics
Monday, October 2, 12:30 - 2:00 pm
Room 310A (Level 3), Huntington Place
Join us for an interactive panel discussion and networking.
Pioneer women roboticists will share their insights on how one can navigate industry and academia, and on the role of women in bringing robotics to the real world! Also, don’t miss the chance to network with other roboticists!
Panelists:
- Andra Keay, Silicon Valley Robotics, USA
- Dawn Tilbury, University of Michigan, USA
The goal for this event is to be more than a luncheon with women. All are encouraged to participate and enjoy the discussion.
There is no charge for this event; however, space is limited. Please register in advance.
For questions, please contact: ieee-ras-wie@ieee.org
Social Hour hosted by RAS Student Activities Committee (SAC)
Monday, October 2, 6-8 pm
The Elephant Room, 439 E Congress St, Detroit, MI 48226
Join the RAS Student Activities Committee’s Social Hour to meet fellow student attendees, grab a snack and beverage, and make networking easier at the conference. Attending a conference as a student can be overwhelming, particularly if you are without an advisor, lab mates, or colleagues. Attending the SAC Social Hour before the conference starts will give you the opportunity to connect with others, which makes it easier to engage in thoughtful conversations on the future of robotics and automation during the remainder of the conference.
There is no charge for this event; however, space is limited. Please register in advance.
Telerobotics and Haptics Joint TC Social Event
Monday, October 2, 6-8 pm
Room 338, Level 3, Huntington Place
The IEEE RAS Technical Committee on Telerobotics and the IEEE RAS Technical Committee on Haptics are happy to invite you to the Telerobotics and Haptics Joint TC Social Event at IROS 2023.
Join the event to meet fellow attendees interested in these topics while grabbing a snack and beverage. The leadership of the two Technical Committees will be present to discuss planned initiatives, answer your questions, and seek feedback from you on your ideas!
There is no charge for this event; however, space is limited. Please register in advance if possible.
RAS Lunch with Leaders (LwL) — for Students and Young Professionals
Wednesday, October 4 - 12:30-1:30 pm
Huntington Place, Room 310A (Level 3)
As a student or young professional attendee, you will meet and interact with distinguished RAS leaders from academia and industry. The event will feature informal roundtable discussions over lunch, which allows participants to receive career advice, gain insight into the
future, or simply engage in general conversation to get to know pioneers in the field.
Don’t miss out on this chance to elevate your networking experience and make meaningful
connections with figures in the world of robotics and automation.
There is no charge for this luncheon; however, space is limited. Please register in advance.
RAS WIE Diversity Cocktail Hour
Tuesday, October 3, 7-9pm
Firebird Tavern, 419 Monroe St, Detroit, MI 48226
Join the RAS WiE for an evening celebrating the strength in our diverse backgrounds and shared aspirations. Grab a snack and beverage and meet some of your colleagues, and network!
There is no charge for this social event; however, space is limited. Please register in advance. Please note: drink tickets will be distributed at the event on a first-come, first-served basis.
RAS Member Booth at IROS
Huntington Place, Exhibit Floor
The IEEE Robotics and Automation Society will again have a Member Booth at IROS. Please visit us on the Exhibit Floor, Booth 443. Come and meet the Staff, and get your questions answered about IEEE and RAS. Pick up your Member Ribbon, and perhaps meet an RAS Leader. Hope to see you there!
We are pleased to announce that a new batch of IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters (RA-L) papers is now available on IEEE Xplore. Check it out!
We are pleased to announce a new special issue for IEEE Transactions on Automation Science and Engineering (T-ASE) on Engineering and Operating Digital Twins for Automated Production or Construction Systems.
Check out the flyer for more details on the Special Issue aims and scope.
Key Dates and Deadlines
- Submission deadline: 31 March 2024
- Tentative publication date: 1 October 2025
We are pleased to announce that Volume 5, Issue 3 of IEEE Transactions on Medical Robotics and Bionics (T-MRB) is now available on IEEE Xplore. Click here for the table of contents and check out the issue now on Xplore!
IEEE RAS TAB X SAC Dinner Invitation
For Student and Post-Doctoral Researchers attending IROS 2023
Dear Students and Postdoctoral Researchers attending IROS 2023,
We cordially invite you to the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society (RAS) TAB (Technical Activities Board) X SAC (Student Activities Committee) Dinner, an event that aims to foster community engagement between current/former Technical Committees (TCs) and students and postdoctoral researchers prior to IROS 2023.
Event Details:
- Date: Saturday, September 30th, 2023 (Note: this is one day before the conference officially begins)
- Time: 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
- Venue: Huntington Place, 1 Washington Boulevard, Detroit, MI 48226
- Dinner: buffet style
- Note: Students must be registered for the conference to attend this event. There are limited slots, which will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis.
To RSVP, please fill out this form. Please note that the deadline to RSVP is Friday, 15 September 2023 (EoD).
At this gathering, each TC will be seated at designated tables, providing a unique opportunity to interact and engage with your preferred TCs. We are confident that this event will greatly enhance your understanding of the TCs and SAC.
About Technical Committees (TCs):
Technical Committees (TCs) oversee research in the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society; they encourage innovation in various technical areas. RAS’s 45 TCs foster specialized research collaboration; new TCs are formed as emerging topics gain importance. These committees offer valuable opportunities for members to connect and work together within specific subsets of the field.
Learn more about TCs here.
About the Student Activities Committee (SAC):
The Student Activities Committee (SAC) of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society aims to represent students in robotics and automation worldwide. The SAC provides students with opportunities to advance their careers and improve their professional experience. To achieve these goals, SAC organizes events to give students the chance to find high-quality information, as well as to find the best places where robotics innovators and scientists meet to exchange their knowledge and experience.
Learn more about the SAC here.
We look forward to sharing this special moment with you.
Thank you,
Amy Kyungwon Han,
Associate Vice President of Technical Activities Board
Enrica Tricomi,
Chair of the Student Activities Committee
The RAS Media Services Board (MSB) and Student Activities Committee (SAC) are searching for social media ambassadors for the upcoming IROS 2023 conference in Detroit, Michigan, USA. So if you’re a social media–savvy RAS student member planning on attending IROS, apply now! Social Media Ambassadors will receive up to $500 in travel support.
What do we expect? You will meet with the conference publications chair to prepare and post the major announcements before, during, and after the conference. You can apply at this google form.
The RAS leadership is delighted to announce the launch of the IEEE RAS Member Support Program. This pilot program is designed to support the member content creators of RAS mission-related activities.
The application deadline is 31 August 2023 (23:59:59 EDT). For more information, including eligibility and application instructions, click here. For questions, please contact ras-msp@ieee.org.
We are pleased to announce that Volume 39, Issue 4 of IEEE Transactions on Robotics (T-RO) is now available on IEEE Xplore. Click here for the Table of Contents and check out the issue now on Xplore!
RAS has developed new video submission guidelines for T-RO, RA-L, T-ASE, and RA-M. Check them out!
RAS is pleased to present two luncheon networking events for our Members attending the 19th IEEE International Conference on Automation Science and Engineering (CASE) in Auckland, New Zealand. Space is limited for these popular events. Don’t miss the chance to attend, please register in advance.
RAS Lunch with Leaders (LwL) for Students and Young Professionals
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Sunday, 27 August 12:30 – 13:30 Gallery Room 4, Cordis Hotel, Auckland, New Zealand |
This luncheon is open to student and young professional attendees. The luncheon offers the chance to meet and interact with leaders from RAS and industry. Informal discussion over lunch will take place round table style. Join us for career advice, insights into where the field is headed, or general conversation to get to know leaders in the field of robotics and automation.
The luncheon is free to attendees, but you must be registered in advance here.
Leaders include George Q. Huang, Weiming Shen, Dawn Tilbury, Birgit Vogel-Heuser, Peter Xu, and more.
RAS Women in Engineering (WIE) Luncheon - Panel Discussion on Diversity
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Diversity in Automation Science and Engineering MONDAY, 28 August 12:15 – 13:30 Gallery Room 4, Cordis Hotel, Auckland, New Zealand The WIE luncheon provides the opportunity to foster discussion on the role of women in robotics and automation, inspire girls, and promote collaborations and initiatives to advance women in leadership. The goal for this event is to be not only a lunch for women but, moreover, a lunch with women. Therefore, all are more than welcome to participate and enjoy the discussion. The luncheon is free to attendees, but you must register in advance here. |
We are pleased to announce the call for papers for the 2024 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), which will be held 13-17 May 2024 in Yokohama, Japan.
Check out the website and flyer for more details. Below are some of the key dates and deadlines:
- Paper submission deadline: 15 September 2023
- Workshop/tutorial program submission deadline: 25 September 2023
- Robot competition proposal submission deadline: 15 October 2023
Held as part of ICRA 2023 in London, the inaugural RAS Automation Technical Committee (TC) Cluster Forum convened on 30 May 2023. This groundbreaking event, chaired by Birgit Vogel-Heuser and Angela Faragasso, brought together pioneers in the field of automation. The central theme of this forum was How can automation contribute to a livable and sustainable society in the future? Addressing this question is critical for the world to progress amidst rapid technological advancements.
Figure 1. Birgit Vogel-Heuser chaired the 2023 Automation TC Cluster Forum, which featured discussions on how to envision automation for a sustainable future.
A future where operations are dominated by automation is not merely possible—it’s our current trajectory. The forum fostered comprehensive discussions on what society will look like in 2035-2050, resource limitations, social acceptance of autonomous systems, and the sheer scope of fields that automation could revolutionize.
The forum featured a distinguished lineup of speakers from academia and industry who shared their insights on topics including: automation in healthcare, agriculture, and smart buildings; the role of collaborative robots in logistics and manufacturing; human-centered automation; sustainability; and cloud computing. For more details and an in-depth look at the forum’s program, visit the website, where you can also download some of the slides presented during the event.
The RAS Automation TC Cluster plans to address many other pressing topics moving forward. One in particular concerns the usage, benefits, and potential risks of open-source software. By focusing on this topic, the Cluster aims to foster community inclusion in developing new, interconnected systems, and similarly, in defining interfaces to facilitate connectivity between legacy and proprietary systems.
The Automation Cluster looks forward to continuing to engage the RAS community in the future. The Cluster represents a fresh initiative by RAS to merge and coordinate TCs, which will create a more unified front in advancing automation research and applications. The Cluster welcomes feedback and contributions from the community; it hopes to foster an environment of collaboration and innovation.
Figure 2. The audience at the 2023 Automation TC Cluster Forum was engaged and keen to explore the pivotal role of automation in shaping our sustainable future.
