RIA to Present 2014 Engelberger Robotics Awards to Dr. Rodney Brooks, Dr. Rory Cooper and Dr. Vijay Kumar
Posted 29 May 2014
The robotics industry’s highest honor, the Engelberger Robotics Award, will be presented to Dr. Rodney Brooks, Dr. Rory Cooper and Dr. Vijay Kumar at a special ceremony on Monday, June 2 in Munich, Germany. The ceremony is held in conjunction with the joint 45th International Symposium on Robotics (ISR 2014) and 8th German Conference on Robotics (ROBOTIK 2014). The ISR 2014 and ROBOTIK 2014 conference is organized as part of AUTOMATICA, the International Trade Fair for Automation and Mechatronics, June 3-6, 2014 in Munich.
The awards, named after the worldwide “father of robotics,” Joseph F. Engelberger, are presented annually by the Robotic Industries Association (RIA), the industry’s trade group. Each recipient will receive a special plaque, commemorative medallion and a $5,000 honorarium. Beginning with the initial presentation in 1977, 119 industry leaders from 17 nations have now been selected for this honor.
Dr. Vijay Kumar will be awarded the 2014 Engelberger Award for Education. Dr. Kumar is the UPS Foundation Professor in the School of Engineering and Applied Science at the University of Pennsylvania. He has been on the faculty there since 1987, serving many roles including Deputy Dean for Education in the School of Engineering and Applied Science. He also served as the assistant director for robotics and cyber physical systems at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy from 2012 – 2014, where he was instrumental in the Obama Administration’s National Robotics Initiative.
Dr. Kumar’s primary research interests are specifically in multi-robot systems and micro aerial vehicles. Some of Dr. Kumar’s awards include National Science Foundation Presidential Young Investigator award, Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching from the University of Pennsylvania and IEEE Robotics and Automation Society Distinguished Service Award. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, a Fellow of the Institution of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and a member of the National Academy of Engineering. He received his Ph.D. from the Ohio State University after completing his education from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur.
“The Engelberger award is truly special since it’s from the RIA, an organization that represents the leading robotics industries,” stated Kumar. “As an academic, this is particularly meaningful to me.”
RIA is now accepting nominations for the 2015 Engelberger Robotics Awards, to be presented in Chicago, Illinois, USA in March, 2015. For more details about the award or to submit a nomination, visit www.robotics.org.