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About

Fernando Coutinho is a robotics researcher whose work bridges the critical gap between surgical precision and advanced manufacturing. His primary research areas include medical robotics, particularly for minimally invasive surgery, and automated wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM). Coutinho’s most impactful contribution is his 2015 paper on a moving remote center of motion for robotic surgery, which has garnered 44 citations and introduced a novel control architecture that allows robots to dynamically adjust their entry point during procedures—a key advancement for patient safety and surgical dexterity. In manufacturing, he leads the development of the iWAAM system, an automated monitoring and control platform for WAAM that integrates ROS-based communication for real-time quality assurance. His work on online coordinated motion control for redundant robotic WAAM systems (13 citations) addresses critical process parameters like torch angle and gravity compensation to ensure part integrity. Coutinho also contributes to operational space control theory for constrained manipulators and has explored virtual reality for offshore oil and gas robotics. His research is distinguished by its practical focus on translating complex control algorithms into deployable systems, making him a notable figure in both surgical and industrial robotics.