The University of Florence is seeking candidates interested in studies, research and developments of companion and assistive robots in biomedical applications.
The selected candidates will join the BioRobotics and Biomedical Laboratory Team of the Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Florence, Italy in the context of 1) Marie Sklodowska-Curie-UKRI Doctoral Network “SCALA – Spatial Communication and Ageing across Languages”, and 2) the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) project PE8-Spoke9 “Age-IT: Advanced gerontechnology solutions for active and healthy ageing”. This is an exciting opportunity to join our team and participate in a biomedical and technological area of research, and in the process collaborate with many partners at the international level.
Nowadays Companion and assistive robotic technologies are experimenting with an increasing number of opportunities to be exploited in several scenarios of daily living, from the home to the city and at work. Emerging technologies in robotics, artificial intelligence, and the Internet of Things have the potential to play a crucial role in assisting citizens across various domains, including healthcare, domestic settings, public services, and urban infrastructure. Companion robots offer social interaction and emotional support, especially for aging populations and individuals with disabilities, enhancing quality of life and assisting with daily activities. Assistive robotics, including devices that aid those with physical impairments, promote independence and inclusion.
In this context, we are seeking motivated candidates that will develop, implement and experiment with possible scenarios and challenges of integrating BioRobotics and IoT technologies in healthcare and active and healthy ageing applications. The design and implementation of these technologies address bioengineering and clinical aspects, from early diagnosis and objective assessment of diseases to rehabilitation, monitoring and therapeutic control and adaptation. Moreover, new developments and advancements in social robots with their interacting capabilities and artificial intelligence approaches will represent the main research topics and challenges that will be faced.
- Position #1 *
PhD Marie Sklodowska-Curie-UKRI Doctoral Position
Duration: 3 years
Start date: March 2025
Number of positions: 1
Annual Gross Salary: Based on the Marie Sklodowska-Curie-UKRI Doctoral Program (very competitive in EU)
Research topic: Adaptive behavioural models of robotic systems based on brain-inspired AI cognitive architectures
*** Position #2 ***
Postdoc researcher in social robotics and human-robot interaction
Duration: 1 year (automatically renewable)
Start date: October – November 2024
Number of positions: 1
Annual Gross Salary: 28.000€ - 33.000€, based on the selected candidate’s qualifications and experience
*** Position #3 ***
Assistant researcher in social robotics and human-robot interaction
Duration: 1 year (automatically renewable)
Start date: October – November 2024
Number of positions: 1
Annual Gross Salary: 26.500€
##Key Responsibilities
The successful candidate is expected to work in a multi-disciplinary research team, pursuing an outstanding track record of published research and promoting high research impact on the following topics:
Social robotics and advanced human-robot interaction, including affective computing, gesture recognition, proximity, social navigation, and conversational agents.
Behavioral robot modelling, reasoning and decision-making by applying knowledge-based and/or machine-learning techniques.
Robotic perception and context awareness development by using IoT solutions, particularly wearable sensors, combined with machine learning techniques.
Telepresence in robotics
##Skills, knowledge, and experience
The candidate is requested to satisfy some of the following criteria based on his/her experience and maturity:
Programming skills in C/C++, Python
Programming skills in Robot Operating System (ROS / ROS2)
Knowledge or experience in using machine learning and deep learning libraries (e.g. PyTorch, Matlab, etc.)
Knowledge or experience in developing applications on physical or simulated robots (e.g. Gazebo, Vrep, etc.)
Knowledge or experience in control and automation
In addition, the selected candidates are supposed to work on preparing reports for dissemination as well as on the scientific management of the projects.
The projects will be carried out in the sector of the Biomedical and BioRobotics Laboratory of the Department of Industrial Engineering of the University of Florence, Italy. Our Lab is located in Florence, very close to Rifredi train and tram stations and directly connected to the main research hospitals and rehabilitation centers, with which projects will be jointly developed.
For submitting candidature and further information on the positions or about the Laboratory, please contact Prof. Filippo Cavallo (filippo.cavallo@unifi.it).