Charles Bergh
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology
Papers
10
Total Citations
376
H-Index
7
About
Charles Bergh is a robotics researcher whose work spans mobile robotics, autonomous manipulation, planetary exploration, and space systems. He is perhaps best known for his pivotal contributions to the RoboSimian project at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a quadrupedal robot designed for dexterous manipulation and mobility across challenging terrain. His 2015 paper on RoboSimian's hardware design and algorithms has garnered 130 citations, while a follow-up detailing Team RoboSimian's performance at the 2015 DARPA Robotics Challenge Finals — where the team achieved a notable 5th-place finish — earned an additional 86 citations, underscoring the real-world impact of his work on semi-autonomous systems. Beyond ground robotics, Bergh has made significant contributions to planetary exploration, developing autonomous flight control systems for aerobots intended for missions to Titan and other atmospheric bodies. His earlier work on small robot path following and compact LIDAR sensor design reflects a career-long focus on enabling practical autonomy in resource-constrained platforms. More recently, he has tackled in-space robotic assembly of large modular structures, addressing one of the most ambitious challenges in future space infrastructure. Across more than two decades of research, Bergh has consistently advanced the frontier of autonomous robotic systems for both terrestrial and extraterrestrial applications.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
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- 3Algorithms and sensors for small robot path following61 citations · 2003
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- 5Towards a substantially autonomous aerobot for exploration of Titan21 citations · 2004
- 6Autonomous flight control for a Titan exploration aerobot18 citations · 2005
- 7Autonomous Flight Control for a Planetary Exploration Aerobot13 citations · 2005
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