Nic Carey
San Francisco, California, United States
Research Scientist, Autodesk Robotics Lab
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My background is in Mechatronic Engineering and bio-inspired technology, in particular the development of multimodal sensor arrays for intuitive interpretation of natural environments and human-oriented control algorithms and interfaces for robots in industrial, field, and entertainment settings.
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After completing undergraduate degrees in Mechatronic Engineering and Pure Mathematics, I undertook a PhD as part of the Centre of Excellence in Vision Science in Australia, working alongside biologists and ethologists to develop bio-inspired visual sensors and algorithms for unmanned aerial vehicles. My subsequent research has focussed on interdisciplinary projects requiring strong collaborations between team members with a wide variety of backgrounds - these are often projects that take inspiration from and help us understand or sustain the natural world.
Prior coming to Autodeak as a Research Scientist and Perception Engineer at the Autodesk Robotics Lab, I developed visual sensors that used neurologically-based filtering methods at Germany’s Centre of Excellence in Cognitive Interaction Technology, built biomimetic humanoid robots (RoboThespian / Byron / Socibot / Mesmer) at a science communication firm in the UK, and most recently have spent several years at Harvard University on an NIH-funded grant to construct low-cost portable sensing tools for termite researchers working in the remote desert regions of Namibia. I’ve also published several papers with global health researchers on the uses and abuses of robots in the care sector, and in my spare time I’ve helped develop in-the-field infrastructure solutions for Engineers Without Borders. My hands-on skills and experience include a variety of digital design and CAD tools, additive and subtractive manufacture, microcontroller programming, digital and analog component integration, higher-level programming languages, and practical field engineering with limited materials. I believe strongly in building technology that supports human endeavors and contributes to a healthy human society that is sustainably embedded in our natural ecosystem.
