Jonathon M. Smereka

About

Jonathon M. Smereka is a researcher whose work sits at the dynamic intersection of autonomous systems, robotics security, and multi-agent coordination. His research spans robot operating system security, autonomous mobile robot navigation, and optimization methods for multi-vehicle routing — areas that collectively address the growing demands of deploying intelligent systems in real-world civilian and military environments. Smereka's most-cited contribution, "Security and Performance Considerations in ROS 2" (2018, 40 citations), established him as a key voice in cyber-physical systems security, critically examining vulnerabilities in ROS 2's DDS communication infrastructure. Complementing this, his early work on robotic anomaly detection highlights a sustained commitment to system reliability and resilience. More recently, he has advanced algorithmic solutions for complex routing challenges, including min-max routing for electric vehicles and multi-vehicle human-robot interaction scenarios, demonstrating strong applied mathematics foundations. His research on hybrid reinforcement learning controllers and Koopman operator-based vehicle control reflects sophisticated engagement with modern AI-driven approaches to autonomous navigation. His development of open-source tools for human-robot interaction experiments further underscores his commitment to reproducible, community-oriented research. With over 120 cumulative citations, Smereka's diverse yet cohesive portfolio positions him as a significant emerging contributor to autonomous systems engineering and robotics.

Research Focus

Key Achievements

Top Papers

1. 1
   Security and Performance Considerations in ROS 2: A Balancing Act

   40 citations · 2018
2. 2
   Heuristics for Multi-Vehicle Routing Problem Considering Human-Robot Interactions

   17 citations · 2023
3. 3
   Hybrid Reinforcement Learning based controller for autonomous navigation

   13 citations · 2022
4. 4
   Efficient algorithms for electric vehicles’ min-max routing problem

   11 citations · 2023
5. 5
   Task Allocation with Load Management in Multi-Agent Teams

   9 citations · 2022
6. 6
   Analytical Construction of Koopman EDMD Candidate Functions for Optimal Control of Ackermann-Steered Vehicles

   8 citations · 2023
7. 7
   Spot Report: An Open-Source and Real-Time Secondary Task for Human-Robot Interaction User Experiments

   7 citations · 2024
8. 8
   Virtual Evaluation of Deep Learning Techniques for Vision-Based Trajectory Tracking

   7 citations · 2022
9. 9
   Open Problems in Robotic Anomaly Detection

   7 citations · 2018
10. 10
    Two-stage stochastic programming approach for path planning problems under travel time and availability uncertainties

    7 citations · 2019

Key Collaborators

Contact & Links