Riccardo Falconi

About

Riccardo Falconi’s research lies at the intersection of multi-robot coordination, distributed control, and educational robotics. His most influential work, “A Fast Onboard Relative Positioning Module for Multirobot Systems” (105 citations), introduced a high-frequency infrared system that enables miniature robots to rapidly determine range, bearing, and messages from nearby peers—a foundational contribution to decentralized swarm sensing. Building on this, Falconi pioneered graph-based formation control strategies that ensure collision-free navigation and leader-following missions, as demonstrated in his widely cited papers on edge-weighted consensus (61 citations) and distributed formation control (28 citations). He also advanced hybrid swarm intelligence by combining Particle Swarm Optimization with consensus algorithms for autonomous exploration. Beyond research, Falconi is a passionate educator: his work on teaching robotics with LEGO Mindstorms (31 citations) and the RobotiCad MATLAB toolbox has made complex robotics concepts accessible to students worldwide. His development of the UniBot remote laboratory further extends hands-on learning to online platforms. With over 300 total citations, Falconi’s contributions continue to shape both the theory and practice of multi-robot systems and robotics education.

Research Focus

Key Achievements

Top Papers

1. 1
   A Fast Onboard Relative Positioning Module for Multirobot Systems

   105 citations · 2009
2. 2
   Edge-weighted consensus-based formation control strategy with collision avoidance

   61 citations · 2014
3. 3
   Robotic Competitions: Teaching Robotics and Real-Time Programming with LEGO Mindstorms

   31 citations · 2014
4. 4
   Graph based distributed control of non-holonomic vehicles endowed with local positioning information engaged in escorting missions

   29 citations · 2010
5. 5
   A Graph–Based Collision–Free Distributed Formation Control Strategy

   28 citations · 2011
6. 6
   RobotiCad: an Educational Tool for Robotics

   18 citations · 2008
7. 7
   Coordination and control of autonomous mobile robot groups using a hybrid technique based on Particle Swarm Optimization and Consensus

   14 citations · 2013
8. 8
   A Navigation Strategy for Multi-Robot Systems Based on Particle Swarm Optimization Techniques

   13 citations · 2012
9. 9
   ROBOTICAD: A MATLAB© TOOLBOX FOR ROBOT MANIPULATORS

   7 citations · 2006
10. 10
    UniBot Remote Laboratory: A Scalable Web-Based Set-up for Education and Experimental Activities in Robotics

    6 citations · 2011

Key Collaborators

Contact & Links