Centre for Computational Neuroscience and Robotics, University of Sussex
The Sussex group is based around collaborative research involving computer scientists, engineers and neuroscientists. They are interested in developing biologically inspired robotic control systems as an alternative to more mainstream design approaches. They also use robots as an experimental tool to help investigate hypotheses about behavioural strategies and behaviour generating mechanisms in animals, a strong theme of which is Evolutionary Robotics.
Professor Phil Husbands
Phil Husbands' research is based around all aspects of the long-term investigation of artificial evolution of nervous systems for robots, with emphasis on visually guided robots acting in the real world, the computational modelling of aspects of invertebrate neuronal networks, and the analysis of evolved robot control systems with particular emphasis on lessons for cognitive science.
Mr Bill Bigge
Bill Bigge's research is based on autonomous robots that operate in unconstrained and unpredictable environments. The main focus of his research is on the development of cost effective actuators for robots that can function as dynamically controllable spring damping systems. The end goal of this research is to develop a 'Dynamic Robotics' toolkit consisting of low cost actuator and sensor modules that can be easily combined to construct and validate a variety of robotic systems, particularly systems that exploit dynamic body/environment interactions or 'Morphodynamics' such as passive dynamic walking and running.
His wider research interests include Autonomous Robotics, Adaptive Motor Systems, Adaptive Power Controllers, Passive Dynamics, Evolutionary Robotics, Evolutionary Electronics, Controllable Compliance Actuators and Educational Robotics.