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About

Nobuhiko Yamaguchi is a robotics researcher whose work bridges artificial intelligence, assistive technology, and autonomous systems. His primary research areas include edge-AI robotics, human-robot interaction, and reinforcement learning for real-world applications. Yamaguchi’s most notable contribution is the development of an edge-AI-based autonomous mobile robot capable of voice and object recognition, enabling users to command the robot to detect and approach specified objects using only speech. This work, published in 2021, has garnered 7 citations and demonstrates his commitment to making robotics more accessible and intuitive. He has also advanced assistive robotics through a person-following robotic walker with compliant-control arbitrated role-switching, designed to support elderly or mobility-impaired users. In 2024, Yamaguchi extended this line of research to develop a target-following robot for navigation assistance specifically for people with visual impairments, addressing the limitations of traditional white canes in identifying indoor landmarks. Additionally, his work on model-based reinforcement learning with missing data tackles a critical challenge in real-world robotics, where incomplete sensor data is common. Through these contributions, Yamaguchi is shaping the future of human-centered robotics.