Postdoctoral Research

About Willow Garage

Willow Garage intends to revolutionize robotic mobile manipulation and to jump start a broad scale industry in that area. We are working towards this goal through fostering robust open hardware and software platforms; doing research internally and in close cooperation with top research groups across the globe to systematically remove the key bottlenecks to robotic capability; and enabling or spinning off companies in different application areas. We are well funded and able to do this with staying power.

We have assembled a team of international leaders in a wide range of robot fields from machine perception, machine learning, planning, control, grasping, human-robotic interaction and on to mechanical and electrical engineering. We have a great work environment with large and fluid collaborations across areas of expertise. We're open, we publish, run workshops, attend conferences and collaborate widely with top researchers around the world. We have soccer games and free lunches, and company outings from ski trips to zero-g flights.

Primary Function

Create and develop new concepts in robot perception and control that will further the practical use of mobile robots operating autonomously in human-centered environments or in industrial construction or assembly.

 

Research Areas

Areas of interest include but are not limited to:

  • Perception. Especially object recognition and segmentation in 6DOF, visual mapping, real-time 3D reconstruction, people tracking and activity recognition, haptic sensing, and audio perception

  • Planning and control. Especially task-level planning, real-time 3D obstacle avoidance, manipulation planning, and whole-body control

  • Grasping and manipulation. Especially using real-life sensors, such as stereo and monocular cameras or tactile sensors, for grasping and manipulating in unstructured environments.

  • Teleoperation and mixed-mode control. Especially control system design, haptic feedback, and relevant human-machine interaction design approaches

  • Human-robot interaction. Especially human-robot communication and joint activity; robotic intermediaries between people; and the cognitive, social, and cultural dimensions of human-robot interaction

Roles and Responsibilities

  • Develop new algorithms to solve real problems in robot perception and control
  • Advance and lead the state of the art within the robotics community by writing papers and by participating in program committees, workshops, and conference organizations
  • Form collaborative relationships with researchers at outside institutions

 

Skills / Job Requirements

  • PhD with concentration in relevant area
  • Track record of important publications and interaction with the robotics community
  • Ability to generate new ideas and apply them to robotic applications
  • Good programming skills, especially for real-time implementation of complex algorithms

 

Nice to have's

  • Experience working with complex hardware systems.
  • Hardware design experience.
  • Expertise or experience with sensor design.
  • Industrial coding experience.
  • Prior involvement in Open Source.
  • Extensive knowledge of Linux/Ubuntu.
  • Expertise in more than one field of robotics.

Application Materials

* Cover letter
* Resume/CV
* Downloadable code sample(s)
* Two references and/or two letters of recommendation
* A recent publication or statement of past experiences

To Apply

Send your Application Materials and links to any projects you'd like us to take a look at to jobs@willowgarage.com

Willow Garage is an equal opportunity employer