The Contextual Robotics Institute held the 6th annual Forum on November 7, 2019.
Attendees connected with San Diego's top researchers, students and industry professionals working on cutting edge robotics.
The UC San Diego Contextual Robotics Institute held the 2019 San Diego Robotics Forum on Thursday, November 7. We brought together the broader robotics community in San Diego to continue to grow the regional ecosystem. The Forum showcased the breadth and depth of robotics work underway here.
The day-long program featured presentations, panel discussions, posters, demonstrations and networking.
JSOE News Block
Tania Morimoto Recognized with MassRobotics Rising Star in Robotics Medal
November 5, 2025
The 3rd Annual MassRobotics Robotics Medal award, sponsored by Amazon Robotics, is presented to Dr. Maja Matari?, Chaired and Distinguished Professor of Computer Science, Viterbi School of Engineering, University of Southern California, for her pioneering work in the field of socially assistive robots and for making significant advancements to the field of distributed robots and learning in human-robot systems. Dr. Tania Morimoto, Associate Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of California, San Diego, is awarded the MassRobotics Rising Star in Robotics Medal for her contributions to novel soft and flexible medical robots and human-machine interfaces designed to improve access to high-quality care. Full Story
This Robotic Skin Allows Tiny Robots to Navigate Complex, Fragile Environments
October 15, 2025
Researchers developed a soft robotic skin that enables vine robots that are just a few millimeters wide to navigate convoluted paths and fragile environments. To accomplish this, the researchers integrated a very thin layer of actuators made of liquid crystal elastomer at strategic locations in the soft skin. The robot is steered by controlling the pressure inside its body and temperature of the actuators. Full Story
The Jacobs School Represents at San Diego Comic-Con
August 25, 2025
From discussing the best invention to examining the way AI has been represented in movies, Jacobs School researchers took the stage at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con. Full Story
The Robot Will See You Now
July 9, 2025
As waiting rooms fill up, doctors get increasingly burnt out, and surgeries take longer to schedule and more get cancelled, humanoid surgical robots offer a solution. That’s the argument that UC San Diego robotics expert Michael Yip makes in a perspective piece out July 9 in Science Robotics. Full Story
A New Robotic Gripper Based on Measuring Tape is Sizing Up Fruit and Veggie Picking
April 9, 2025
This robotic gripper has two fingers made from measuring tape. It can pick up fragile objects, including fruits and veggies. It can also use a screwdriver, screw in a lightbulb and open a jar of spices. Full Story