POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH FELLOW (ROBOTICS AND AI) / TUTKIJATOHTORI (ROBOTIIKKA JA TEKOÄLY)

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Within the unit of Automation Technology and Mechanical Engineering, faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, we are recruiting one (1) postdoctoral position. The unit has about 20 professors and 100 research staff in the areas of Robotics, Automation, and Mechanical engineering. Robotics is one of the core areas of education and research of the faculty, in close collaboration with the units of computer science and signal processing. The position is opened in the Cognitive Robotics research group.
The Cognitive Robotics Group focuses on robotics and how they can work in close collaboration with people. Research topics include robot design (robot manipulators and soft grippers), perception for robot manipulation (grasping, assembly), perception for human-robot interaction (speech, learning from demonstration), visual-language models for robot manipulation, motion planning and control and software development. All topics have a heavy focus on AI-based methods (e.g., machine or deep learning) and their real-time execution on real robot systems. Research takes inspiration both from industrial applications in the areas of manufacturing and inspection & maintenance for large infrastructures (e.g., CERN). The group is led by Prof. Roel Pieters, has a strong network in the European Robotics scene, and good connections to industry that provide challenging use cases.
The group is well-equipped and dynamic community with a large group of doctoral researchers and research assistants.

JOB DESCRIPTION

We are looking for one (1) Postdoctoral Research Fellow.
Cognitive Robotics group:

The work will be related to the design of robot systems for manipulation and human-robot collaboration with AI-based methods: a) design, simulation and manufacturing of soft robotic systems (e.g. soft grippers) and/or b) AI-based approaches for robot manipulation and interaction (e.g. large, visual-language models). Demonstrated experience with programming (Python, C++, ROS) is required as well as experience with industrial robot manipulators and/or perception systems. In addition, experience with learning-based approaches and related simulation software tools is beneficial. The research is related to the following projects:

• Centre of Excellence of AI for Sustainable Living and Working (Horizon Europe): https://sustainlivwork.eu/
• AI-driven multimodal interaction for advanced user-centric human robot collaborative applications (JARVIS, Horizon Europe): https://www.jarvis-project.eu/
• Open Deep learning Toolkit for Robotics (OpenDR, H2020): http://opendr.eu/
• See other projects of the group: link

In addition, activities include supervision of PhD / MSc students, preparation of grants and support of the general activities of the research lab.

REQUIREMENTS

We seek a motivated and self-guided person with strong theoretical background who is interested in practical robot applications.
You should have a PhD degree in a relevant field. We expect a competence to pursue independent scientific work and adequate teaching skills. You should be fluent in spoken and written English.

HOW TO APPLY

Please submit your application through our online recruitment system. The closing date for applications is 4th April 2025 (at 23.59 EEST / UTC +3). Please write your application and all accompanying documents in English and attach them in PDF format.

Applications should include the following documents:

• Curriculum Vitae, e.g., according to TENK guidelines
• List of publications
• A letter of motivation, highlighting your achievements and ambition. Please indicate your preferred topic of research from the job descriptions and your most important work/publications and/or other achievements.
• A research plan (1 page) indicating what research questions you are interested in, and state of the art.

Please refer the Job description for details