PEOPLE

Marco Ceccarelli received the MSc degree in mechanical engineering and PhD in Applied Mechanics at University of Rome La Sapienza, Italy, in 1982 and 1987, respectively. He was visiting scholar at Stanford University, USA, in 1987, and visiting professor at the Technical University of Valencia, Spain, in 1990 with a CNR-NATO grant. From 1990 to 2019 he worked at the University of Cassino, Italy, where he was appointed Full Professor in 2001. Between 2014 and 2019 he was also visiting professor at Beijing Institute of Technology, China. Since 2019, he has been Full Professor at the University of Rome Tor Vergata.

Prof. Ceccarelli is Scientific Editor of two Springer Book Series: Mechanism and Machine Science (MMS) and History of MMS, Editor-in-chief of Robotics, and Associate Editor of several other journals. He was awarded Doctor Honoris Causa degrees from several international Universities and the ASME Historian Award. He is ASME fellow. He was elected Secretary-General of IFToMM from 2004 to 2007 and IFToMM President from 2008 to 2011 and from 2016 to 2019. His research interests cover aspects of mechanism design, mechanics and design of robots, and history of mechanical engineering.

Full Curriculum Vitae and Publications

Matteo Russo received the BSc and MSc degrees in mechanical engineering from the University of Cassino, Italy, in 2013 and 2015, respectively. In 2019, he was awarded a European Doctorate with his PhD in mechanical and biomechanical engineering. He was a visiting researcher at RWTH Aachen University, Germany, at University of the Basque Country, Spain, and at Tokyo Institute of Technology, Japan, in 2015, 2016 and 2017, respectively. From 2019 to 2022, he has been a Research Fellow at the Rolls-Royce University Technology Centre in Manufacturing and On-Wing Technology, University of Nottingham, United Kingdom, where he worked on maintenance robotics for the aerospace and nuclear industry. In 2022, he joined the University of Rome Tor Vergata, Italy, as Tenure-Track Assistant Professor (RTDb).

His main research interests are continuum robots, mechanism design, robot kinematics, and parallel manipulators. His awards and honours include the IFToMM Young Delegate Program Award and several best paper awards at international conferences. He is Associate Editor of IEEE Robotics and Automation Magazine and IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, and a member of IEEE, IFToMM Italy, and I-RIM.

Personal webpage

Cuauhtémoc Morales-Cruz obtained his BSc in Mechatronics from the National Polytechnic Institute (UPIITA-IPN), Mexico, in 2011, followed by an MSc in Electrical Engineering from the Center for Research and Advanced Studies (CINVESTAV), Mexico, in 2014. He earned a double PhD in Robotic and Mechatronic Systems Engineering and Industrial Engineering from the National Polytechnic Institute, Mexico, and the University of Rome Tor Vergata, Italy, in 2022. Currently, he is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow working on the ASSIST project. His research interests include mechatronics, mechanism design, engineering optimization, medical device design, and instrumentation for biological systems.

Earnest Ofonaike earned a BEng in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Nigeria Nsukka (2003) and a MSc in Mechatronics Engineering from the University of Rome Tor Vergata (2023). He has extensive experience in the upstream oil and natural gas servicing sector, where he worked as a mechanical engineer providing solutions and computations for the fabrication and maintenance of oil servicing tools and components. From 2009 to 2021, he served as a consultant for the development and construction of gas conditioning and metering facilities during the development phase of several medium-sized power plants in the Niger-Delta region of Nigeria. He is currently working on the ASSIST project.

Alessandro Perini received a BSc in Mechanical Engineering (2022) at Roma Tre University, and a MSc in Mechatronics Engineering (2024, cum laude) at the University of Rome Tor Vergata. During his MSc, he has worked on the design of tendon-driven hand exoskeletons for stroke rehabilitation. His PhD research focuses on wearable robotics with a textile substrate, integrating active elements such as tendon or smart materials as well as biomechanical sensors, developed in collaboration with Sensor Medica.

Clara Kierbel received a BSc degree in Mechanical Engineering (2020) and a MSc in Engineering for Health, Specialty Mechatronic Systems for Rehabilitation (2022) from Sorbonne University, Paris VI. She is currently working on a PhD in soft robotics, developing an intra-uteral soft robot for gynecological surgeries.

Luca Quattrucci received the BSc degree in Mechanical Engineering from Roma Tre University, Italy, and MSc degree in Mechatronics Engineering from Modena and Reggio Emilia University, Italy, in 2019 and 2023, respectively. He has been working toward the PhD degree at the University of Rome Tor Vergata since November 2023. His current research topic is the design of cooperative robotic arms for the disassembly of Lithium-Ion batteries in the automotive industry.

Sergei Kotov received a MSc in Cyber Security (2006) from Cherepovets Military Engineering Institute of Radio Electronics, Russia and in Internet Business Management (2012) from State University of Management, Moscow, Russia. He is currently working on a PhD degree at University of Rome Tor Vergata, Italy, developing motion assistance exoskeletons for elderly people.

Karla Nayeli Silva Garces received the BSc degree in biomedical engineering (2018) and  MSc degree (cum laude) in mechanical engineering (2020) from the Instituto Politecnico Nacional, Mexico.  She is currently working towards a double PhD degree at University of Rome Tor Vergata, Italy, and Instituto Politecnico Nacional, Mexico, from January 2022. Her research interest include design of medical devices, biomechanics, medical robotics and vehicular passive safety. In 2020 she received the Best Postgraduate Thesis Award at Instituto Politecnico Nacional.

Daniele Cafolla received a dual MSc degree in mechanical engineering in 2012 at the University of Cassino, Italy, and Panamerican University, Mexico.  From 2013 to 2014, he was a visiting researcher at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. In 2016, he was awarded a PhD in Mechanical Engineering. He was a Research Fellow at the University of Cassino, Italy, and at the Technical University of Cluj-Napoca, Romania, in 2016 and 2017. Since July 2018, he has been the Director of the Biomechatronics Lab at the Clinical Research Institute IRCCS Neuromed, Italy. At the University of Rome Tor Vergata, he has been Adjunct Professor of Robot Mechanics and Applied Physics, and Research Fellow at LARM. In 2023, he joined the University of Swansea, United Kingdom, as Lecturer in Robotics & AI.

Dr Cafolla is involved in several projects regarding neurorobotics, assistive robotics, exploration robotics, mechatronics, sensors, biomechanics, mechanical design, and rapid prototyping. He is the author of a book and several journal and conference papers. He is member of IFToMM, IEEE and I-RIM.

Wenshuo Gao obtained his PhD in Industrial Engineering at University of Rome Tor Vergata, Italy, in 2024. His research interests include robotics and mechanics, with a focus on humanoid robot, control system, sensor application, and manipulators.

Jorge Araque got the MSc in industrial control in 2021 at the University of Pamplona, Colombia. As a doctoral student at the Department of Industrial Enginering at the University of Rome Tor Vergata, Italy, he has developed a space robot for operation on the International Space Station. From 2014 until 2020, he was Adjunct Professor at the University of Pamplona, Colombia, for technical, technological, and professional programs in the mechatronics field. He is currently a Lecturer at Santiago de Cali University, Colombia. Mr Araque’s interests include mechatronics, rehabilitation robotics, mechanism design and space robotics.

Alexander Titov got the MSc in aerospace engineering at Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia. As a PhD Student at the University of Rome Tor Vergata, he has designed the gripper for the berthing of CubeSat microsatellites. His research interests are mechanism design, robotics, and aerospace.