RI Seminar : Dave Rollinson : Building a Force-Controlled Actuator (Company)

Dave Rollinson
Co-Founder
HEBI Robotics
January 18, 2019
Building a Force-Controlled Actuator (Company)
Abstract: In 2014, I was lucky enough to be one of 5 people to start HEBI Robotics, with the dream of eventually making the task of building custom robots as easy as building with Lego. A few years later we are now 10 people, and our first product, a series of modular force-controlled actuators, is rapidly being adopted for research and development. This talk will discuss the technical aspects of developing force-controlled actuators and the software tools for controlling them, why we are pursuing series-elastic actuation, and various challenges that we face during development. I will also talk about what it’s like to be an engineer who is increasingly involved with the business aspects of a growing company.
Brief Bio: Dave Rollinson is a co-founder and mechanical/controls engineer at HEBI Robotics. He lives and works in Pittsburgh, PA. He received a PhD in Robotics from Carnegie Mellon University in 2014, as well as a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering in 2006, also from CMU. From 2006 to 2009, he worked as a robotics engineer for RedZone Robotics, designing, building, and deploying systems to inspect large diameter sewers in the U.S., Canada, and Singapore. In 2006, he did a solo bicycle trip across the continental United States.