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About

M. Miyazaki is a robotics and control systems researcher whose work has fundamentally advanced the field of sensorless force control for robot manipulators. Over a career spanning more than two decades, Miyazaki's most significant contribution lies in developing robust methods for achieving precise force and position control without relying on dedicated force sensors — hardware that is often costly, fragile, or impractical in real-world environments. By ingeniously combining H∞ acceleration controllers with reaction force estimation and force observer frameworks, Miyazaki demonstrated that reliable hybrid control could be achieved using position information alone, eliminating a long-standing dependency in robotic manipulation. Miyazaki's most cited work, "Hybrid control of force and position without force sensor" (2003, 66 citations), exemplifies this innovative approach and has become a key reference in the sensorless robotics literature. Earlier foundational papers from the early 1990s established the theoretical groundwork using H∞ control theory, reflecting a sustained and methodical research program. Additional work exploring mixed-sensitivity H∞ design methods further refined these techniques. Beyond manipulation, Miyazaki also investigated unconventional robotic locomotion, including body-deformation-based jumping mechanisms. Collectively, this body of work — accumulating over 180 citations — has meaningfully shaped modern approaches to cost-effective, sensor-reduced robotic control systems.