Bertrand Merminod

École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

Papers

Total Citations

138

H-Index

About

Bertrand Merminod is a leading figure in the field of autonomous mobile robotics, with a particular focus on locomotion and navigation for extreme environments. His groundbreaking work on wheeled locomotion for rough terrain is exemplified by his highly cited paper, "An Innovative Space Rover with Extended Climbing Abilities" (2000, 131 citations), which introduced novel concepts for planetary rovers capable of traversing challenging, uneven surfaces. This research laid critical groundwork for the design of high-mobility robots, such as the Shrimp rover, enabling unprecedented access to scientifically valuable but difficult-to-reach areas on other planets. Beyond locomotion, Merminod has made significant contributions to sensor fusion, pioneering the integration of photogrammetry and inertial sensors for robotics navigation and mapping. His work addresses the fundamental challenge of Simultaneous Localisation and Mapping (SLAM), a core problem in enabling autonomous robots to navigate unknown environments. With a career spanning foundational hardware design to advanced perception algorithms, Merminod’s research has profoundly shaped the capabilities of autonomous systems, from planetary exploration to terrestrial applications in challenging off-road conditions.