PAL Robotics’ ERF 2023 Highlights
We are proud to have taken part as silver sponsors in the European Robotics Forum 2023 (ERF23), held in Odense, Denmark from the 14th to the 16th of March. The ERF is one of the most important and influential events in the robotics community in Europe. This year’s event in Odense gathered the robotics community in Europe, attracting experts from across the field to share their insights and ideas. As one of the key players in the industry, PAL Robotics was excited to participate in the event, organising workshops and delivering talks as invited speakers that explored the latest advancements in robotics and AI.
At ERF23 our team hosted four workshops and were asked to participate in five workshops as invited speakers, sharing insights and expertise with other leaders in the industry. Read on for our highlights of the event.
PAL Robotics’ workshops at the event including robotics in healthcare and agile production
Humanoid & legged robots: pushing the limits of performance
Our CEO, Francesco Ferro, hosted a workshop where experts from research institutions, developers in the field, and robotics companies came together to discuss pushing the limits of robot performance in humanoid and legged robots. Francesco Ferro presented PAL Robotics’ bipedal humanoid Kangaroo and the versatile research platform TALOS, as well as the latest developments planned for our research platform TIAGo.
Contributors that shared their insights and expertise included: Diego Torricelli (Cajal Institute (Spanish National Research Council), Christian Ott (Technische Universität Wien), Nicolas Mansard (LAAS/CNRS), Abderrahmane Kheddar (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Luca Marchionni (PAL Robotics), Adrià Roig (PAL Robotics), Olivier Stasse (LAAS-CNRS), Máximo Roa (DLR), and Enrico Mingo Hoffman (Leonardo Labs). Find out more about the workshop.
Robotics and AI for transforming agrifood
At this workshop hosted by Sarah Terreri, Head Of Collaborative Projects at PAL Robotics, we delved into the exciting possibilities of robotics and AI for transforming the agrifood industry. Including participants from EU projects like CANOPIES and OpenDR, we explored the advantages and challenges ahead as we consider the ways this technology can revolutionize the way we grow and produce food.
Speakers here were: Jesús Pablo González (Eurecat – DIH-Agri food), Zoe Doulgeri (AUTH), Ole Green (AgroIntelli), Andrea Gasparri (Università degli Studi Roma Tre), and Alessandro Marino (Università degli Studi di Cassino e del Lazio Meridionale). Read more about the workshop.
AI and robotics in care: the sustainability of care for older adults
In this workshop co-organised by our colleague Gizem Bozdemir and Slawomir Tobis of Poznan University of Medical Sciences, we examined the potential of these technologies to ensure the sustainability of care provision for older adults and other clients, both in the community and in care institutions. Along with experts, and partners from EU projects SHAPES and OpenDR shared their expertise and insights, for a highly informative and thought-provoking session.
Speakers and contributors here were: Paolo Barattini (Kontor46), Piotr Skrzypczyński (Poznan University of Technology), Vivi Nousi (University of Thessaloniki), Sonja Grigoleit (Fraunhofer INT), and Esperança Lladó Pascual (Humana Group). Read more about thesession.
Empowering autonomous robots to support agile production
Dr. Alessandro Di Fava, our Robotics Project Manager, organized a workshop where we explored the different ways of applying agile manufacturing methodology to robotics, and how autonomous robots can be implemented in industry 4.0 and industry 5.0. With experts on agile manufacturing from Academia, Research Centers, and Technological Companies the session included a panel session with open-ended questions on the progress to date and progress still needed to empower robotics to support agile production.
Speakers in the workshop were: Julián Cayero (Eurecat), Stéphane Doncieux (Sorbonne University), Minna Lanz (Tampere University), Georg Von Wichert (Siemens Technology), and Gianluca Palli (Bologna University). Find out more about the workshop.
Workshops we joined as invited speakers including mechatronics, companion robots and sustainable robots
At the European Robotics Forum we also had the opportunity to participate in several workshops as invited speakers.
Trustable and dependable intelligent robots for smart societies
Our CEO, Francesco Ferro contributed with a presentation in this workshop organised by Matthew Studley (Bristol Robotics Laboratory), Pedro Lima (University of Lisbon), Fabio Bonsignorio (University of Zagreb and Heron Robots), and Diego Torricelli (CSIC). The workshop covered a range of topics including European Robotics projects within the ERL framework, European Robotics Benchmarking competitions, and how competitions can foster progress in benchmarking and research.
Mechatronics: present and future
At this workshop organised by Wesley Roozing (University of Twente) and Navvab Kashiri (Leonardo Labs | Intelligent Autonomous System), our CEO, Francesco Ferro participated in a discussion about the current state, barriers, and future of mechatronics from a commercial and industrial standpoint.
Companion robots: when?
At this workshop organised by Aurélie Clodic (LAAS CNRS), Ely Repiso (LAAS CNRS), Mona Abdel-Keream (Bremen University), and Luis Merino (Pablo de Olavide University), our Head of Collaborative Projects, Sarah Terreri shared her perspective on the challenges and future of social robotics.
Social Robots: applications and sustainability priorities
Gizem Bozdemir, Project Manager from our Collaborative Team took part in this workshop organized by Amit Kumar Pandey (Socients AI and Robotics) and Franziska Kirstein (Blue Ocean Robotics), which focused on the contributions of social robots for sustainability and how the sustainability goals can be defined from a social robotics perspective. Here, Gizem shared her insights on how service robots can promote sustainability and be used for sustainable applications.
Bright and Dark Side of AI in Robotics
Our Technical Project Manager, Alessandro Di Fava gave a talk in this workshop organised by Andrea Orlandini (ISTC-CNR), Alberto Finzi (Naples University), Marco Huber (IPA Fraunhofer), and Markus Vincze (TU Wien) where we discussed the potential of AI and robotics, exploring the challenges and opportunities for real-world impact. Drawing on our experience with the deployment of PAL Robotics’ robots ARI and TIAGo in EU-funded projects.
Francesco Ferro re-appointed to euRobotics’ Board of Directors
During the European Robotics Forum 2023 we received some exciting news – our CEO, Francesco Ferro, was (re-)elected as Director of euRobotics aisbl, a role he has been dedicated to since 2015. Joining him on the board are industry experts Mike Mayer (Schunk), Franziska Kirstein (Blue Ocean), and Alessandro Eros Piscioneri (COMAU), all of whom bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the table. euRobotics aims to shape the future of robotics in Europe and beyond.
Antonio Andriella wins the Georges Giralt PhD Award
Our Research Scientist, Antonio Andriella made it to the final four for the highly prestigious euRobotics Georges Giralt PhD Award Edition 2023, and went on to win the award for the best PhD Thesis in robotics in Europe.
During the European Robotics Forum awards ceremony, Antonio presented his thesis, “Personalising Robot Assistance for Cognitive Training Therapy.” His research, was conducted under the supervision of Guillem Alenya and Carme Torras at the IRI (Instituto de Robótica e Informática Industrial, CSIC-UPC). We’re very proud of Antonio and his achievements.
PAL Robotics’ robots at the event
ARI: social robot ARI (also the face of euRobotics) is specifically designed for HRI and front-desk activities. ARI is able to speak in 30 languages, show information/applications on the touchscreen, as well as having a voice and facial recognition system.
TIAGo: TIAGo robot combines perception, navigation, manipulation & Human-Robot Interaction skills out of the box. TIAGo is a standard research platform and is one of the most used robots for research in universities and innovation centres worldwide.
TIAGo OMNI Base: TIAGo OMNI Base is an omnidirectional base robot we recently developed for a customer that is now commercially available. The solution has two LIDAR sensors for an unobstructed 360º FOV secure movement, including autonomous navigation, obstacle detection, and path planning. The robot moves in all directions with ease thanks to its precision positioning in constrained environments.
Collaborative projects we are partners in
During the event we had the chance to meet up with project partners and disseminate some of the EU projects we are taking part in. Here are some of the projects featured during the event:
- CANOPIES: This project will be the first attempt to introduce a collaborative robotic prototype in precision agriculture for permanent crops in vineyards.
- OpenDR: The Open DR project is harnessing deep learning to provide advanced perception and cognition abilities in robotics in areas such as healthcare.
- SHAPES: The project aims to create an environment that supports deployment of digital solutions to support healthy and independent living for older individuals.
- SPRING: The SPRING EU-funded project with multiple partners is working on the adaptation of Socially Assistive Robots to participate in a hospital environment.
- AGIMUS: The AGIMUS project aims to deliver an open-source breakthrough innovation in AI-powered agile production, introducing solutions that push the limits.
- METATOOL: The project will provide a blueprint for the next generation of artificial systems and robots that can perform adaptive, and anticipative, control with and without tools.
- PILLAR-Robots: This project aims at developing a new generation of robots endowed with a higher level of autonomy, that are able to determine their own goals.
- CoreSense: The project will develop a cognitive architecture for autonomous robots based on a formal concept of understanding, supporting value-oriented situation understanding and self-awareness to improve robot flexibility, resilience and more.
- PRO-CARED: In this project, we aim to develop mechanisms for personal robots to proactively interact with children in an educational context.
At the European Robotics Forum our participation as silver sponsors and organisers of several workshops demonstrates our commitment to the EU robotics ecosystem. We look forward to continuing to contribute to the future of European robotics.
We would like to thank all of our partners, workshop hosts, workshop speakers, and European robotics colleagues once again for what was a great ERF event!
If you’re searching for new project partners, don’t hesitate to ask us more – we are passionate about the value of collaborative projects for innovation. We are always looking for new opportunities to collaborate, so contact us today to find out more!
To read more news about our work and research, don’t forget to check out our blog!