Katie Byl Room 5115, Harold Frank Hall
[email protected] Dept. of Electrical & Computer Engineering http://robotics.ece.ucsb.edu University of California Phone: (805) 893-4924 Santa Barbara, CA 93106 Fax: (805) 893-3262 Areas of Research and Teaching Expertise · Robotics · Autonomous Systems · Dynamics · Control · Manipulation · Locomotion · Learning · My research interests are robot dynamics and control: particularly, locomotion and manipulation. Developing robots that are agile, reliable and safe depends directly on addressing the challenges of underactuation and stochasticity that are inherently present in real-world robot interactions both with the environment and with humans. My work focuses on modeling and controlling such system dynamics. Current research applications include the following: (1) autonomous flapping-wing and rotary flight micro-aerial vehicles (MAVs), (2) legged robot locomotion (walking and running) over rough-terrain, (3) compliant robot manipulation, and human-robot interactions that induce neuroplasticity. Academic Positions and Education University of California Santa Barbara, CA Assistant Professor, Dept. of Electrical and Computer Engineering, 2010{present and Dept. of Mechanical Engineering Harvard University Cambridge, MA Postdoctoral Fellow, Dept. of Electrical Engineering 2008{2009 Adviser: Prof. Robert Wood (Harvard Microrobotics Lab) Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA Ph.D in Mechanical Engineering 2008 Adviser: Prof. Russ Tedrake (Robot Locomotion Group - CSAIL) Chair: Prof. Neville Hogan (Depts. of Mech. Eng. and Brain and Cog. Sci.) Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA S.M. in Mechanical Engineering 2003 Adviser: Prof. David Trumper (Precision Motion Control Lab - LMP) Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA S.B. in Mechanical Engineering 1999 Awards and Honors Sloan Research Fellow: Neuroscience, 2011.