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About

Viola Schiaffonati is a leading voice in the philosophy and methodology of robotics, bridging the gap between experimental science and autonomous systems. Her research centers on three key areas: experimental methodologies for robotics, the role of simulation in robot design, and the ethics of emerging robotic technologies. Schiaffonati’s major contributions include establishing rigorous frameworks for benchmarking robotic performance, most notably through her work on the RoCKIn competitions, which treat robotic trials as scientific experiments to improve replicability and evaluation. Her highly cited paper “Competitions for Benchmarking” (71 citations) draws critical parallels between robotics challenges and scientific experimentation, while her foundational “Insightful comparison between experiments in mobile robotics and in science” (55 citations) solidifies this methodological bridge. She has also advanced the ethical discourse with “Ethics for Robots as Experimental Technologies” (19 citations), arguing for anticipatory and exploratory approaches to assess societal impact. More recently, her work on “Computer simulations and surrogative reasoning for the design of new robots” (2023) explores how simulations serve as tools for reasoning and innovation in engineering. With a career spanning over two decades, Schiaffonati’s interdisciplinary approach has shaped how researchers design, test, and ethically evaluate autonomous systems, making her a pivotal figure in responsible robotics innovation.