MechE Seminar: Soft Matters - The Future of Human-Machine Interaction
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Event details
Date | 11.02.2025 |
Hour | 09:00 › 10:00 |
Speaker | Dr. Cosima Du Pasquier, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University |
Location | Online |
Category | Conferences - Seminars |
Event Language | English |
Abstract: Would you trust a machine to bathe your grandmother, comb her hair, or blow her nose? The robotic systems of today are mostly used for the Three Ds (dull, dirty, or dangerous tasks). With advances in computing efficiency, AI, and mobile sensing, robotic systems are set to become ubiquitous in our daily lives, creating new opportunities to better support our growing elderly population, reduce workloads, and improve both accessibility and quality of healthcare.
One crucial challenge remains: standard rigid machines are unsettling to interact with. They can also be unsafe, requiring massive computational effort to prevent accidents. If we want to bring robots into hospitals and our homes, they must be able to safely and naturally handle physical interaction with humans. In other words, the future of human-machine interaction must be soft.
Imagine medical systems as personalized as tailored suits—seamlessly interacting with soft tissues, providing gentle yet strong support, and delivering intuitive tactile feedback.
Customizing such devices is complex, and safe interactions are often hindered by slow, trial-and-error development. Soft materials offer inherent safety and comfort by conforming to the body, absorbing impacts, and enabling adaptive interactions. Yet harnessing their potential for real-world applications requires solving major hurdles in reproducible and scalable fabrication, effective force transmission, and accurate predictive modeling.
In this talk, I will show how I have started addressing these challenges, streamlining design and reducing waste by using a combination of innovative manufacturing processes and
computational methods. Ultimately, these advances enable scalable, personalized, and intrinsically safe solutions for communication, clinical applications, and beyond.
Biography: Dr. Cosima du Pasquier is a Postdoctoral Scholar in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University, working under the guidance of Allison Okamura. Collaborating with academic partners at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Georgia Tech, and the University of Houston. Her research centers on computational modeling, design, and fabrication of soft materials for human-robot interaction. Dr. du Pasquier earned her BSc, MSc, and PhD in Mechanical Engineering from ETH Zurich in 2014, 2017, and 2022 respectively. Her PhD dissertation was awarded the ETH Medal. Dr. du Pasquier’s research combines structural mechanics, materials, and computational design. During her PhD at the Engineering Design and Computing (EDAC) Lab at ETH Zurich, she focused on modeling and optimizing deformation of morphing structures using soft printed actuators. In her postdoc, she focuses streamlining the design of assistive technologies, such as rehabilitative devices for stroke survivors and wearable haptic platforms. Dr. du Pasquier’s work has appeared in a number of leading journals, including Science Robotics, Soft Robotics, Additive Manufacturing, and Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization. During her MSc and PhD, she collaborated with academic partners from MIT, which culminated in the founding of the startup Rapid Liquid Printing Co., for which she is an advisor. Her current work is funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation through the Convergence Accelerator and Human-Centered Computing programs. Dr. du Pasquier further broadens her perspective on the societal impact of emerging technologies through her affiliation with Stanford’s Hoover Institution, where she contributes to interdisciplinary discussions on robotics and policy.
One crucial challenge remains: standard rigid machines are unsettling to interact with. They can also be unsafe, requiring massive computational effort to prevent accidents. If we want to bring robots into hospitals and our homes, they must be able to safely and naturally handle physical interaction with humans. In other words, the future of human-machine interaction must be soft.
Imagine medical systems as personalized as tailored suits—seamlessly interacting with soft tissues, providing gentle yet strong support, and delivering intuitive tactile feedback.
Customizing such devices is complex, and safe interactions are often hindered by slow, trial-and-error development. Soft materials offer inherent safety and comfort by conforming to the body, absorbing impacts, and enabling adaptive interactions. Yet harnessing their potential for real-world applications requires solving major hurdles in reproducible and scalable fabrication, effective force transmission, and accurate predictive modeling.
In this talk, I will show how I have started addressing these challenges, streamlining design and reducing waste by using a combination of innovative manufacturing processes and
computational methods. Ultimately, these advances enable scalable, personalized, and intrinsically safe solutions for communication, clinical applications, and beyond.
Biography: Dr. Cosima du Pasquier is a Postdoctoral Scholar in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University, working under the guidance of Allison Okamura. Collaborating with academic partners at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Georgia Tech, and the University of Houston. Her research centers on computational modeling, design, and fabrication of soft materials for human-robot interaction. Dr. du Pasquier earned her BSc, MSc, and PhD in Mechanical Engineering from ETH Zurich in 2014, 2017, and 2022 respectively. Her PhD dissertation was awarded the ETH Medal. Dr. du Pasquier’s research combines structural mechanics, materials, and computational design. During her PhD at the Engineering Design and Computing (EDAC) Lab at ETH Zurich, she focused on modeling and optimizing deformation of morphing structures using soft printed actuators. In her postdoc, she focuses streamlining the design of assistive technologies, such as rehabilitative devices for stroke survivors and wearable haptic platforms. Dr. du Pasquier’s work has appeared in a number of leading journals, including Science Robotics, Soft Robotics, Additive Manufacturing, and Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization. During her MSc and PhD, she collaborated with academic partners from MIT, which culminated in the founding of the startup Rapid Liquid Printing Co., for which she is an advisor. Her current work is funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation through the Convergence Accelerator and Human-Centered Computing programs. Dr. du Pasquier further broadens her perspective on the societal impact of emerging technologies through her affiliation with Stanford’s Hoover Institution, where she contributes to interdisciplinary discussions on robotics and policy.
Practical information
- General public
- Free