Sharon Stansfield

About

Sharon Stansfield is a pioneering researcher in robotics and artificial intelligence, whose career has been defined by groundbreaking work at the intersection of robotic perception, grasping, and sensory systems. Her most influential contributions lie in developing intelligent robotic systems capable of operating in unstructured, real-world environments — a challenge that remains central to modern robotics. Stansfield's most cited work, "Robotic Grasping of Unknown Objects: A Knowledge-based Approach" (1991, 112 citations), demonstrated how computer vision and heuristic reasoning could enable robots to autonomously grasp unmodeled objects — a significant leap for autonomous manipulation. Complementing this, her early research into tactile perception, including "A Robotic Perceptual System Utilizing Passive Vision and Active Touch" (1988, 91 citations), established foundational frameworks for integrating multiple sensory modalities in robotics, drawing inspiration from human psychological studies of touch. Her work on haptic exploratory procedures for multifingered robotic hands further advanced the field of dexterous manipulation, while her 2002 virtual reality training system for robot operators demonstrated a forward-thinking application of simulation technology. Notably, her 2012 research on robotic mobility for infants revealed a deeply humanistic dimension to her work, applying robotics to improve developmental outcomes. With over 400 cumulative citations, Stansfield's legacy spans foundational theory and meaningful real-world application.

Research Focus

Key Achievements

Top Papers

1. 1
   Robotic Grasping of Unknown Objects: A Knowledge-based Approach

   112 citations · 1991
2. 2
   A Robotic Perceptual System Utilizing Passive Vision and Active Touch

   91 citations · 1988
3. 3
   An interactive virtual reality simulation system for robot control and operator training

   48 citations · 2002
4. 4
   Primitives, features, and exploratory procedures: Building a robot tactile perception system

   45 citations · 1986
5. 5
   Knowledge-based robotic grasping

   30 citations · 2002
6. 6
   A haptic system for a multifingered hand

   25 citations · 2002
7. 7
   Visually-guided haptic object recognition

   22 citations · 1987
8. 8
   Haptic Perception with an Articulated, Sensate Robot Hand

   20 citations · 1992
9. 9
   Development of robotic mobility for infants: rationale and outcomes

   16 citations · 2012
10. 10
    Representing generic objects for exploration and recognition

    16 citations · 2003

Key Collaborators

Contact & Links