Alcherio Martinoli appointed director of the EDPR
© 2011 EPFL
As of January 1st 2012, Alcherio Martinoli will be the director of the doctoral program for manufacturing systems and robotics (EDPR). In this position, he will aim to increase the visibility of the EPFL as a leader in academic research and postgraduate studies in robotics related sciences.
Professor Alcherio Martinoli sees a bright future for robotics at the EPFL. “We are already on the world map for our research in the field of robotics,” he explains. As director of the Manufacturing Systems and Robotics Doctoral Program (EDPR) he hopes to put the EPFL on the map as a prime center for postgraduate studies in robotics as well.
Through closer collaboration with other Swiss research institutions active in the field of robotics, Martinoli hopes to increase the visibility and the attractiveness of the EDPR doctoral program. One path he plans to pursue to this end is the establishment of coordinated entry points for foreign students interested in doing their postgraduate research in robotics in Switzerland. With more candidates, selection could be more competitive, ultimately raising the quality of the doctoral program.
To compete on a global level, he says, Swiss research institutions have to collaborate more closely and capitalize on each other’s strengths. Martinoli hopes to benefit from the National Center in Research (NCCR) - Robotics, an up to twelve year program he is involved in, to move in this direction. The NCCR - Robotics will bring together the Swiss research institutions involved in robotics research - among them the EPFL, the ETHZ, the University of Zurich, and the Dalle Molle Institute for Artificial Intelligence (IDSIA). Forging closer ties between these research centers, especially at the level of the doctoral programs, would allow to offer a broader range of subjects to doctoral students and researchers.
Both as a teacher and as an engineer, Martinoli is dedicated to promoting interdisciplinary research. His background in electronics and robotics may make him of a rare breed in ENAC's Environmental Engineering Institute. At the same time, it is this contrast that has enabled him to direct numerous research projects that blur the line between environmental engineering and robotics. In this new position, Martinoli will continue to encourage efficient interdisciplinary collaboration on campus by strengthening the ties between ENAC and the other schools represented at EDPR.