IHMC Robert Griffin represents the America on IEEE Technical Committee

Dr. Robert Griffin has been named co-chairman of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society Technical Committee on Humanoid Robots, representing the Americas.

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) is the premier professional organization in the field. Griffin’s selection to co-chair the technical committee reflects the high regard for his work and for IHMC’s leadership in the field of humanoid robotics.

“IHMC has been a pioneer in the field of humanoid robotics. Robert’s selection to the IEEE RAS Technical Committee is a much-deserved accolade for him and for the team at IHMC,” said Dr. Ken Ford, IHMC’s founder and chief executive officer.

The Society’s Technical Committee, among other things, leads the annual Conference on Humanoid Robots, the leading international event of the humanoid robotics community. Last year, the conference was hosted in Austin, Texas. Previous locations have included Okinawa, Japan, and Munich, Germany.

The IEEE-RAS includes the flagship conferences of the robotics field, International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS) and International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), each of which see more than 5,000 attendees annually.

The robotics team at IHMC has often been lauded at the conference for their work. In 2016, 2019, and 2022, the team won Best Paper accolades at the conference. The most recent winning paper “A Fast, Autonomous Bipedal Walking Behavior Over Rapid Regions,” focused on a newly constructed behavior control system for smooth walking over rough, unbalanced terrain.

“To be appointed as a co-chair to represent the Americas is a great honor. I am excited to work alongside the other co-chairs, whose work and impact on the field of humanoid robots cannot be overstated,” Griffin said. “To be counted among their ranks is an incredible recognition that I am deeply humbled by.”

“This recognition is only possible because of the incredible team at IHMC, whose tireless effort and talents cannot be understated. It’s an exciting time to be working on humanoid robots, and I look forward to seeing what the future in this field brings,” Griffin said.

IHMC is a not-for-profit research institute of the Florida University System where researchers pioneer science and technology aimed at leveraging and extending human capabilities. IHMC researchers and staff collaborate extensively with the government, industry and academia to help develop breakthrough technologies. IHMC research partners have included: DARPA, the National Science Foundation, NASA, Army, Navy, Air Force, National Institutes of Health, IBM, Microsoft, Honda, Boeing, Lockheed, and many others.