Research Associate/Fellow in Robotics (Fixed term)

Reference

SCI100722X1

Closing Date

Sunday, 12th June 2022

Job Type

Research

Department

Computer Science

Salary

£27924 to £40927 per annum (pro rata if applicable) depending on skills and experience (minimum £31406 with relevant PhD). Salary progression beyond this scale is subject to performance

We are looking to recruit an exceptional postdoctoral researcher to join our robotics research team in the School of Computer Science at the University of Nottingham. Successful applicants will undertake research in the context of EU CHIST-ERA project HEAP (https://heap-chist-era.github.io )  on benchmarking for robotic grasping and manipulation and human-in-the-loop  learning in the first year and later will integrate their developments within Horizon 2020 project METRICS (https://metricsproject.eu/ ) for extending robotic benchmarking activities. 

HEAP is a European consortium that investigates robotic sorting of unstructured heaps of unknown objects. The applicant will develop benchmarking scenarios for shared control teleoperation  to integrate autonomous robot manipulation and grasping abilities with motion planning, as well as learning from human demonstrations and switching the control responsibilities between the robot and the operator, e.g. changing robot autonomy level between manual control and full autonomy. The successful applicant will take a leading role in the research, development, integration and orchestration of the overall system, with a focus on algorithm and software development, as well as conducting and analysing human-subjects studies.

METRICS aims to develop an evaluation and benchmarking framework based on metrological principles. The postdoc will work in line with their development witin the HEAP project to contribute to research and the organisation of challenge-led robotics benchmarking competitions in the Healthcare priority area and will have the opportunity to collaborate with researchers on the other Inspection and Maintenance, Agri-Food, and Agile Production challenge areas.

We offer an excellent working environment within one of the world's top research universities, as well as opportunities to develop a strong individual research portfolio while being engaged in impactful and exciting research solving real-world problems of great societal need. The postdoc will also benefit from strong networking and career development opportunities provided by the EPSRC Healthcare Technologies NetworkPlus grants held by the PIs, EMERGENCE and RehabTech . They will be part of the Cyber-physical Health and Assistive Robotics Technologies (CHART) research group and have access to state-of-the-art research facilities within Cobot Maker Space(https://cobotmakerspace.org), including research space and robot arms (Franka Emika Panda, UR3, Kinova), haptic interfaces (Haption Virtuose 6D TAO, Geomagic Touch X), computer vision equipment, physiological sensors, as well as dedicated data storage, and access to GPU cluster and 3D printing facilities. 

Evidence of authorship of research outputs of international standing is essential, as is the ability to work collaboratively as part of a team, including excellent written and spoken communication skills. Opportunities to mentor and co-supervise MSc and PhD students working in the project team will also be available to outstanding candidates. Applicants should have, or expect to soon obtain, a PhD in a relevant area. You must have excellent mathematical and coding skills (C++/Python, ROS). Research experience and/or keen interest in collaborative robotics, shared control, machine learning, human state estimation, and assistive technologies is desirable. 

The post is available immediately. This role is available on a fixed term basis for 2 years. Hours of work are full time (36.25 hours). Job share arrangements may be considered.

Informal enquiries may be addressed to Ayse Kucukyilmaz, email - [email protected]. Please note that applications sent directly to this email address will not be accepted.

Our University is a supportive, inclusive, caring and positive community. We warmly welcome those of different cultures, ethnicities and beliefs – indeed this very diversity is vital to our success, it is fundamental to our values and enriches life on campus. We welcome applications from UK, Europe and from across the globe. For more information on the support we offer our international colleagues, see our Moving to Nottingham pages.

For successful international applicants, we provide financial support for your visa and the immigration health surcharge, plus an interest-free loan to help cover the cost of immigration-related expenses for any dependants accompanying you to the UK. For more information please see the our webpage on Financial support for visas and the immigration health surcharge .