Kenichi Sonoda

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Total Citations

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About

Kenichi Sonoda is a robotics researcher whose work centers on advancing the autonomy and control of robotic manipulation and locomotion systems. His primary research areas include sensor-less grasping control for robot hands and high-speed motion control for inverted pendulum robots. Sonoda’s major contributions lie in developing innovative control techniques that reduce hardware complexity while maintaining performance. His 2010 paper on joint angle sensorless grasping control for two-fingered robot hands, which has garnered 4 citations, introduces a method that uses visual feedback instead of conventional tactile or force sensors, enabling more cost-effective and robust grasping. Similarly, his 2009 work on tilting control for inverted pendulum robots, also with 4 citations, leverages a disturbance observer and Kalman filtering to achieve high-speed motion by intentionally exploiting instability—a novel departure from traditional stabilization approaches. Another key paper from 2009, with 3 citations, further refines sensor-less grasping by using mechanically compliant fingers with springs. Though his citation counts are modest, Sonoda’s work is notable for its creative, minimalist approach to robotics, offering practical solutions that reduce sensor dependency and open new possibilities for simpler, more reliable robot designs.