Robot-aided exploration is crucial for planetary explorations. However, many high-value scientific sites, such as Martian dunes and lunar craters, present significant challenges due to loose, deformable regolith, rugged terrain, and steep slopes, limiting the scope of scientific exploration and discoveries. To bridge this gap, my group’s work integrates locomotion science, granular physics, and proprioceptive sensing, to develop new strategies for robots to individually and cooperatively explore challenging planetary surfaces, opening new frontiers for exploration and transforming our understanding of planetary environments. The seminar will cover recent progress on these important problems.
Feifei Qian is an Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at University of Southern California. Qian received her PhD in Electrical Engineering and M.S. in Physics from Georgia Institute of Technology. Prior to her appointment at USC, she worked in the GRASP lab at University of Pennsylvania as a postdoctoral fellow. Her research interests include bio-inspired robotics, legged locomotion, terrain mechanics, proprioceptive sensing and human-robot teaming, with applications to robot-aided earth and planetary explorations. Qian’s research has been recognized with NSF CAREER award, Charles Lee Powell Foundation Faculty Research Award, Best student paper award from the Robotics Science and Systems (RSS) conference, and has been featured by media outlets including BBC News, CBS News, Reuters, NPR Weekend Edition, IEEE Spectrum, Wired, and R&D Magazine.