Riccardo Schiavi
Papers
12
Total Citations
1,258
H-Index
10
About
Riccardo Schiavi is a robotics researcher whose work has fundamentally shaped the field of physical human-robot interaction (pHRI), with a particular focus on safe and performant actuation systems. His most significant contributions center on Variable Stiffness Actuators (VSAs) — mechanical devices capable of dynamically adjusting joint compliance to balance the competing demands of safety and speed in robots operating alongside humans. His 2006 paper on VSA design and control has garnered over 535 citations, establishing foundational principles for intrinsically safe robotic actuation, while the follow-up VSA-II prototype (2008, 360 citations) demonstrated meaningful advances in real-world performance. Schiavi's research spans mechanical design, nonlinear control theory, and system-level safety frameworks. His work on feedback linearization for decoupled motion-stiffness control and his investigations into integrating active and passive compliance strategies reflect a comprehensive approach to robot safety — one that addresses both hardware and control simultaneously. His early contributions to the EURON-2 PHRIDOM project helped catalyze European research into dependable human-robot coexistence. Through systematic enumeration of VSA mechanisms and optimization of antagonistic actuation, Schiavi has provided the robotics community with both theoretical grounding and practical tools for building safer collaborative robots.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
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- 5Physical human-robot interaction: Dependability, safety, and performance66 citations · 2008
- 6Optimal Mechanical/Control Design for Safe and Fast Robotics33 citations · 2006
- 7Physical Human-Robot Interaction in Anthropic Domains: Safety and Dependability28 citations · 2005
- 8Safe and fast actuators for machines interacting with humans21 citations · 2005
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- 10Optimization and Fail-Safety Analysis of Antagonistic Actuation for pHRI12 citations · 2006