Sergio Jácobo Zavaleta https://sjacobozavaleta.github.io/talks.html Mechatronics engineer and robotics researcher at RoboticsLab, UC3M, working on rehabilitation exoskeletons, soft actuation, embedded control, and experimental validation. https://sjacobozavaleta.github.io/assets/img/social-card-personal.png Sergio Jácobo Zavaleta https://sjacobozavaleta.github.io/talks.html 76 144 quarto-1.9.38 Tue, 09 Jun 2026 22:00:00 GMT Indirect Thermal-Aware Supervision for Agonist–Antagonist SMA Ankle Actuation Sergio Jácobo Zavaleta https://sjacobozavaleta.github.io/talks/2026/cea-bilbao/ document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function () { document.body.classList.add("section-talk"); });

CEA 2026 · Bilbao

Indirect thermal-aware SMA ankle actuation

This talk presents a thermal-aware supervision strategy for an agonist–antagonist Shape Memory Alloy actuator applied to a modular ankle rehabilitation device.

The associated paper received a Best Paper Mention in Robotics at the symposium.

0.218° published RMSE

0.163° published MAE

40 min continuous tracking

5° safety threshold

These values correspond to the analysis reported in the conference paper. The later master’s-thesis processing uses an updated analysis window and reports separate endurance metrics, including 0.220° RMSE and 0.167° MAE.

Main idea

SMA actuators can be used in rehabilitation robotics if their thermal behavior is supervised indirectly and safely.

Instead of only asking whether the ankle reached the desired angle, the controller also asks which artificial muscle should be active, which one should rest, and when it is safer to stop heating.

Slides

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Event details

Event: Simposio CEA de Robótica, Bioingeniería, Visión por Computador y Automática Marina 2026
Date: 10–12 June, 2026
Location: Bilbao, Spain
Affiliation: Universidad Carlos III de Madrid · RoboticsLab research environment
Recognition: Best Paper Mention in Robotics

Research context

The work forms part of Robótica blanda para la rehabilitación del tobillo (SRAR), R&D grant PID2023-149141OB-I00, funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and FEDER/EU.

Back to top ]]> Soft robotics Ankle rehabilitation SMA actuators Thermal-aware control CEA 2026 https://sjacobozavaleta.github.io/talks/2026/cea-bilbao/ Tue, 09 Jun 2026 22:00:00 GMT The Future of Commercial Robots Sergio Jácobo Zavaleta https://sjacobozavaleta.github.io/talks/2024/future-commercial-robots/ document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function () { document.body.classList.add("section-talk"); });

Course talk · 2024

Commercial robotics across three horizons

This presentation reviews the current state of commercial robots and organizes future possibilities across five-, ten-, and twenty-year horizons. The focus is on realistic capabilities, deployment challenges, and applications in healthcare, assistance, and manufacturing.

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Topics

  • Current commercial systems and their limitations
  • Healthcare and assistive robotics
  • Manufacturing and industrial applications
  • Five-, ten-, and twenty-year scenarios

Slides

Back to top ]]> Commercial robots State of the art Teaching https://sjacobozavaleta.github.io/talks/2024/future-commercial-robots/ Tue, 17 Dec 2024 23:00:00 GMT Robot Intelligence Sergio Jácobo Zavaleta https://sjacobozavaleta.github.io/talks/2024/robot-intelligence/ document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function () { document.body.classList.add("section-talk"); });

Course talk · 2024

What is robot intelligence?

This presentation discusses practical meanings of intelligence in embodied systems and separates the concept from autonomy. It then uses commercial robots to examine how sensing, decision-making, and action appear in deployed systems.

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Topics

  • Working definitions of robot intelligence
  • Intelligence versus autonomy
  • Whether robots should be intelligent or autonomous
  • Commercial examples and limitations

Slides

Back to top ]]> Robotics Artificial intelligence Teaching https://sjacobozavaleta.github.io/talks/2024/robot-intelligence/ Wed, 09 Oct 2024 22:00:00 GMT Robot Autonomy Sergio Jácobo Zavaleta https://sjacobozavaleta.github.io/talks/2024/robot-autonomy/ document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function () { document.body.classList.add("section-talk"); });

Course talk · 2024

What does autonomy mean for a robot?

This presentation introduces working definitions of robotic autonomy, surveys contemporary autonomous systems, and considers how increasing autonomy changes the relationship between robots and society.

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Topics

  • Defining autonomy in robotic systems
  • Whether and when a robot should act autonomously
  • Examples from the current state of the art
  • Social effects of high-level autonomy

Slides

Back to top ]]> Robotics Autonomy Teaching https://sjacobozavaleta.github.io/talks/2024/robot-autonomy/ Sun, 15 Sep 2024 22:00:00 GMT Bachelor Thesis Presentation Sergio Jácobo Zavaleta https://sjacobozavaleta.github.io/talks/2022/bachelor-thesis/ document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function () { document.body.classList.add("section-talk"); });

Thesis defense · 2022

Robot-assisted needle guidance with 3D ultrasound

Presentation delivered for the professional degree in Mechatronics Engineering. The project investigated a clinical robotic system for guiding needle insertion in percutaneous breast biopsy using three-dimensional ultrasound information.

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Event details

Event: Bachelor thesis defense
Date: 14 January 2022
Location: Universidad Nacional de Trujillo, Peru

Slides

Back to top ]]> Clinical robotics 3D ultrasound Bachelor thesis https://sjacobozavaleta.github.io/talks/2022/bachelor-thesis/ Thu, 13 Jan 2022 23:00:00 GMT