Johan Forsberg

About

Johan Forsberg is a versatile robotics and medical technology researcher whose work spans autonomous mobile robotics, construction automation, and remote medical diagnostics. He is perhaps best known for pioneering the application of the range-weighted Hough transform (RWHT) to mobile robot navigation, a technique he developed to robustly extract geometric features—such as wall directions and distances—from laser range data. His landmark 1995 paper on this topic has accumulated over 100 citations, and subsequent work integrating time-of-flight laser scans with odometry for environment mapping and localization cemented his reputation as a key contributor to sensor-based robot navigation throughout the 1990s and early 2000s. Beyond navigation, Forsberg demonstrated impressive breadth by leading the development of an autonomous plastering robot capable of finishing walls and ceilings in construction environments, work that attracted attention across multiple publications and international conferences. Perhaps most strikingly, he later applied his expertise in remote robotics to healthcare, co-developing a remotely controlled robotic arm for real-time echocardiography—enabling specialist cardiac consultations in rural and underserved areas—a paper that has garnered nearly 50 citations and highlights his commitment to translating engineering innovation into meaningful human benefit.

Research Focus

Key Achievements

Top Papers

1. 1
   Mobile robot navigation using the range-weighted Hough transform

   103 citations · 1995
2. 2
   Mobile robot localization: integrating measurements from a time-of-flight laser

   73 citations · 1996
3. 3
   Remote-Controlled Robotic Arm for Real-Time Echocardiography: The Diagnostic Future for Patients in Rural Areas?

   48 citations · 2009
4. 4
   The Hough transform inside the feedback loop of a mobile robot

   35 citations · 2002
5. 5
   On robot navigation using identical landmarks: integrating measurements from a time-of-flight laser

   17 citations · 2002
6. 6
   An Autonomous Plastering Robot for Walls and Ceilings

   16 citations · 1995
7. 7
   A Construction Robot for Autonomous Plastering of Walls and Ceilings

   13 citations · 1997
8. 8
   AN AUTONOMOUS PLASTERING ROBOT FOR WALLS AND CEILINGS

   9 citations · 1995
9. 9
   Mobile robot navigation using non-contact sensors

   4 citations · 1998
10. 10
    Telecommands for Remotely Operated Vehicles

    2 citations · 1995

Key Collaborators

Contact & Links