Ing. Vladimír Kubelka, Ph.D.
Postdoc in the Northern Robotics Laboratory at the Laval University, in Quebec
Dissertation Thesis: Improving Perception and Locomotion Capabilities of Mobile Robots in Urban Search and Rescue Missions, 2018
Programme: Electrical Engineering and Information Technology
Branch of study: Artificial Intelligence and Biocybernetics
Supervisor: doc. Ing. Tomáš Svoboda, Ph.D.
Supervisor-specialist: Ing. Michal Reinštein, Ph.D.
Where do you currently work and what is the scope of your work?
I am currently a postdoc in the Northern Robotics Laboratory at the Laval University, in Quebec. The lab's expertise is in deploying robotic systems in harsh northern conditions. An average snowfall of 4m per winter allows us to test localization, mapping and autonomy in the vast area of our university forest. We can compare how the performance changes in summer and winter, and when do current state-of-the-art approaches reach their limits. I am interested in localization and mapping, but my work duties also include supervision of our master Ph.D. students and leading technical integration of the robots we develop. Recently, I have spent considerable time coordinating joint efforts of the CTU and the Laval University in the DARPA SubT robotic competition and in planning exchange student visits between our two universities.
What has your doctoral studies given you for your current career?
In course of my Ph.D. studies, I have extended my knowledge of the state-of-the-art in the field of robotics and trained to plan, execute and publish my research. However, most importantly, I have had a chance to meet and work with colleagues from many universities all over Europe (and Canada) in course of large, EU-funded robotic projects. I consider this social network the most important asset of my Ph.D. studies.
Where have you been during your doctoral studies and where have you been at postdoc?
During my Ph.D., we have regularly traveled to Italy, Germany and Netherlands to deploy and integrate our robotic system for the EU-funded TRADR project. Moreover, the project and related publications allowed us to visit Switzerland, Sweden, Finland and South Korea for conferences and summer schools. Now here in Quebec, we have visited Japan to attend a field robotics conference and also traveled to the US to support our friends from the CTU in the SubT competition. And there is more coming :)