Vision: Creating everyday interactions with robots for work and home.
Mission: In the CARIS lab we pursue world class robotics research which is: Collaborative – we develop robots that help people and we work together to pursue that goal. Our collaborations span engineering, computer science, psychology and social sciences, physiology and the healthcare professions. Experimental – we are a “hands on” robotics lab that designs hardware and programs systems that advances the science of human robot interaction. Our projects span areas ranging from industrial, healthcare and consumer focused robotics
Values:
- Our strong values for collaboration and resource sharing translates to our work on robotic systems that collaborate with people.
- We take a team approach to design, problem solving and implementation.
- We take personal responsibility and pride in our work and expect professional conduct from all our members.
- Our members take leadership in all aspects of research, and we value networking and professional development.
- We place a strong emphasis on experimentation with real robotic systems and realistic user validation.
- We promote a supportive, friendly and positive atmosphere that combines hard work, fun and a passion for robotics.
Tag Line: Robots that work… with people
History:
The idea for the CARIS lab really began in 2003 with Dr. Elizabeth Croft and a small group of graduate students with the focus on traditional automation. Early work with Dr. Dana Kulic started to move the idea of CARIS away from traditional automation and towards safety with robots and Human Robot Interactions (HRI). In 2005, Dr. Croft founded the CARIS lab in CEME 1057, beginning work in collaborative robotics. In the spring of 2007, Dr. Machiel Van der Loos joined CARIS as associate director, and in the same year, the CARIS lab moved to its current location at ICICS x015. In 2007, the CARIS lab received an accelerator grant, and in 2009, CARIS received a CFI grant. Both of these grants were used to improve the lab and the research produced. In 2011, a larger focus was placed on HRI, as CARIS used to focus on industrial robotics.