Minh Ta

Recent advances in robotics and automation have transformed manufacturing industries, while growing interest in nanotechnology and biological sciences has created a need for robotic manipulation at micro and nano scales. This seminar presents state-of-the-art techniques in robotic manipulation across varied scales, from microscopic objects and biological cells to sub-centimeter industrial components.

For micro-manipulation, we introduce innovative robotic and control strategies using micro-hands with laser-driven fingertips, enabling grasping, rotation, movement, and bimanual cooperative manipulation of microscopic objects and biological cells. At larger scales, we explore automated assembly of sub-centimeter components with off-the-shelf industrial robots, integrating object pose estimation, robotic picking, motion planning, and precise assembly. Our research has appeared in top-tier journals and conferences in robotics and control, including IEEE Transactions on Robotics, Automatica, IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics, RAL, ICRA, CDC, and IROS.

Biography:

Minh Ta received a Ph.D. in robotics from Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore, in 2018. From 2018 to 2021, he was a Research Fellow at the Rehabilitation Research Institute of Singapore and NTU, researching wireless sensor networks for home-based rehabilitation and robotic dexterous manipulation. From 2022 to 2024, he was a lecturer and postdoctoral researcher at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), working with Timothy Bretl, Nancy Amato, Katie Driggs-Campbell, and Minh Do. His research focuses on robotic manipulation, human–robot interaction, micro-manipulation, and control theory. He joined the University of West Florida as an Assistant Professor in 2024, where he continues to mentor students and pursue innovative research in robotics.