Electrical and Computer Engineering: Robotics Focus Area

Robots have helped humans explore space and the deep oceans, and their use is expanding into healthcare, farming, food preparation, manufacturing, and even education. Robotics is a multidisciplinary area that combines electrical engineering, mechanical engineering and computer science. This area includes embedded programming, control systems, automated decision making, and power electronics. These disciplines must work together to sense, think, and act (the core properties of a robotic system). Robotics topic opportunities include computer vision, artificial intelligence, robotic dynamics, and human-robot interaction. The world-class robotics group at Oregon State is innovating in areas such as bipedal robots that can walk and run in changing terrain.

Employment opportunity range from industrial automation, designing control systems for non-robotic systems (like airplanes), and researching advances necessary to make robotics a commercially viable industry (such as iRobot). There are several companies that currently offer job opportunities locally, but many companies are located throughout the nation.

Potential Job Opportunities

Robotics engineer: Design and build robots for research and industrial uses; work for companies like ABB Robotics, AeroVironment, Boeing, Bosch, Caterpillar, 3D Robotics

Control systems engineer: Design and build control systems for automatic manufacturing equipment; work for companies like ATS Automation, Boeing, Caterpillar, Honeywell, Johnson Controls, Rockwell

Field service engineer: Service automated manufacturing systems in the field; work for companies like Hitachi.

Automation Engineer: Design and build automated manufacturing systems; work for companies like ATS Systems, Boeing, Caterpillar, GE, Johnson Controls, Siemens

Courses

Core

  • ECE 390 (Electric & Magnetic Fields)
  • ECE 451/ME 430 (Systems Dynamics and Control)
  • ENGR 421 (Applied Robotics)

Electives

  • ECE 331 (Electro-Mechanical Energy Conversion)
  • ECE 431 (Power Electronics)
  • ECE 432 (Dynamics of Electromechanical Energy Conversion)
  • ECE 464 (Digital Signal Processing)
  • ECE 473 (Microprocessor System Design)
  • ECE/CS 476 (Advanced Computer Networks)
  • ECE 413 (Sensors)
  • ROB 456 (Intelligent Robots)

 

 

 

 

 

  • ECE 550 (Linear Systems; ME graduate control courses)
  • CS 325 (Algorithms Analysis)
  • CS 331 (Introduction to Artificial Intelligence)
  • CS 434 (Machine Learning and Data Mining)
  • ME 311 (Intro to Thermo, Fluids, and Heat Transfer)
  • ME 317 (Intermediate Dynamics)

Faculty

Julie A. Adams

Julie A. Adams

Professor
College of Engineering Dean's Professor

julie.a.adams@oregonstate.edu

Collaborative Robotics and Intelligent Systems Institute | Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Artificial Intelligence and Robotics | Software Engineering and Human-Computer Interaction
Portrait of Ravi Balasubramanian.

Ravi Balasubramanian

Associate Professor

ravi.balasubramanian@oregonstate.edu

Collaborative Robotics and Intelligent Systems Institute | Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering
Artificial Intelligence and Robotics | Robotics
Joseph Davidson

Joseph Davidson

Assistant Professor

joseph.davidson@oregonstate.edu

Collaborative Robotics and Intelligent Systems Institute | Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering
Robotics
Portrait of Brian Do.

Brian Do

Assistant Professor

brian.do@oregonstate.edu

Collaborative Robotics and Intelligent Systems Institute | Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering
Robotics
Alan Fern

Alan Fern

Professor

alan.fern@oregonstate.edu

Collaborative Robotics and Intelligent Systems Institute | Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Data Science and Engineering | Artificial Intelligence and Robotics
Xiaoli Fern

Xiaoli Fern

Associate Professor

xfern@eecs.oregonstate.edu

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Data Science and Engineering | Artificial Intelligence and Robotics
Naomi Fitter

Naomi Fitter

Assistant Professor
Kearney Faculty Scholar

naomi.fitter@oregonstate.edu

Collaborative Robotics and Intelligent Systems Institute | Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering
Robotics
Portrait of Cindy Grimm

Cindy Grimm

Professor

cindy.grimm@oregonstate.edu

Collaborative Robotics and Intelligent Systems Institute | Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering
Computer Graphics and Visualization | Robotics
Ross Hatton

Ross Hatton

Associate Professor

Ross.Hatton@oregonstate.edu

Collaborative Robotics and Intelligent Systems Institute | Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering
Robotics
Portrait of Geoff Hollinger.

Geoff Hollinger

Associate Professor
Ron and Judy Adams Faculty Scholar

geoff.hollinger@oregonstate.edu

Collaborative Robotics and Intelligent Systems Institute | Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering
Artificial Intelligence and Robotics | Robotics
Portrait of Johnathan Hurst

Jonathan Hurst

Professor

jonathan.hurst@oregonstate.edu

Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering
Artificial Intelligence and Robotics | Robotics
Burak Sencer

Burak Sencer

Associate Professor, Mechanical Engineering
Tom and Carmen West Faculty Scholar

burak.sencer@oregonstate.edu

Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering
Advanced Manufacturing
Prasad Tadepalli

Prasad Tadepalli

Professor

tadepall@eecs.oregonstate.edu

Collaborative Robotics and Intelligent Systems Institute | Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Artificial Intelligence and Robotics | Data Science and Engineering | Computer Science Education
Kagan Tumer

Kagan Tumer

Professor

kagan.tumer@oregonstate.edu

Collaborative Robotics and Intelligent Systems Institute | Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering
Artificial Intelligence and Robotics | Robotics
Portrait of Cristina G. Wilson.

Cristina G. Wilson

Assistant Professor-Senior Researcher

wilsoncr@oregonstate.edu

Collaborative Robotics and Intelligent Systems Institute | Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering