Yoshihito Shikanai
Papers
7
Total Citations
65
H-Index
5
About
Yoshihito Shikanai is a Japanese robotics and mechatronics researcher whose work spans autonomous mobile robot navigation, assistive technology, and engineering education. He is best known for pioneering the use of environmental magnetic fields as a navigation resource for outdoor autonomous robots — a novel approach at a time when GPS and laser range finders dominated the field. His most-cited work (29 citations) demonstrated that spatially varying magnetic field intensity, rather than being a navigational liability, could serve as a reliable positional landmark, a concept he extended into trajectory tracking and outdoor localization across several companion studies. Beyond navigation, Shikanai has applied his robotics expertise to practical humanitarian challenges, developing an autonomous manual wheelchair prototype aimed at reducing caregiver burden in nursing facilities and contributing to agricultural automation through a delicate strawberry-picking robot designed to harvest fruit without skin contact. He has also shown a commitment to broadening access to technical knowledge, developing hands-on mechatronics teaching materials grounded in the ARCS motivational model, helping high school students internalize control theory through embodied, experiential learning. His body of work reflects a researcher who bridges fundamental robotics research with real-world social impact.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
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