Our People

Jonathan is Professor in Robotics at Queensland University of Technology (QUT). His main research interests are in the areas of Field Robotics, Design Robotics and Medical Robotics. Jonathan was a co-inventor of the UAV Challenge, an international flying robot competition. Before joining QUT, Jonathan was the Research Director of CSIRO’s Autonomous Systems Laboratory where he developed projects in the area of museum robotics and telepresence. Jonathan is a Past President of the Australian Robotics & Automation Association, was a member of the Founding Editorial Board of the IEEE Journal of Robotics and Automation Letters and currently serves as a Senior Editor.

Will is Professor and Chair in Manufacturing Robotics at Queensland University of Technology (QUT) with ARM Hub and CSIRO. Possessing expertise in artificial cognitive systems, with interest in how systems, such as robots, can interact with the real-world to solve problems of interest. Will’s topics of interest include computer vision and perception, explainable Artificial Intelligence (AI), transfer learning and collaborative robotics. Will is also co-lead on the Science for Technological Innovation team on ‘Adaptive learning robots to complement the human workforce’, Robotics Spearhead in New Zealand. Academic service includes editorial board membership of the ACM Transactions on Evolutionary Learning and Optimization and the Applied Soft Computing journals. Will’s interdisciplinary background in Mechanical Engineering, Energy Studies, Control, Cybernetics, Computer Science, Computational Neuroscience as well as AI and Robotics, is further expanding the disciplines of the ARM Hub expert team.

Glenda is an Associate Professor in Architecture, School of Design, Creative Industries Faculty at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT). She is a chief investigator in the IMCRC Design Robotics for Mass Customisation Manufacturing project in collaboration with UAP and RMIT. Embracing trans-disciplinary approaches from architecture and human computer interaction, Glenda’s research places design at the forefront of robotic research for design-led and mass customization manufacturing. She is an active researcher in the QUT Design Lab and is the author of numerous publications in the areas of media architecture, urban informatics, and design robotics.

Jared is a Senior Lecturer in Interaction Design at the Queensland University of Technology. He currently leads the ‘Design Robotics for Mass Customised Manufacturing’ research project with industry partner UAP (funded by IMCRC), which is developing new ways to use robots and vision systems for design led manufacturing. His main research interest is in how technologies can be made more useful and easier to use for people and how end-users can be involved in the design process to make technologies better.

Muge is a creative maker and transdisciplinary designer, specialised in advanced manufacturing, digital fabrication, and parametric design. She is one of the chief investigators of QUT's Design Robotics project. In her career, she has worked with prominent architectural firms such as Zaha Hadid Architects, taught in several institutions including AA Visiting Schools, published articles, gave interviews, and presented in many international conferences and exhibitions. She has also been awarded in multiple competitions and events on the future of architecture and the use of novel digital technologies.

Peter is a robotics researcher and educator with over 30 years’ experience in robotics theory and practice. He is the distinguished professor of robotic vision at Queensland University of Technology, director of the QUT Centre for Robotics, and director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Robotic Vision. His research is concerned with enabling robots to see, and the application of robots to mining, agriculture and environmental monitoring. He wrote the bestselling textbook “Robotics, Vision, and Control” and the Robot Academy online teaching resource.

Markus is an Associate Professor in Interaction Design at Queensland University of Technology (QUT). He is the Associate Director of the QUT Design Lab which hosts innovative research at the interplay of Design and Technology, such as the Design Robotics project. Markus is an experienced researcher with over 20 years of experience in the design of human-centred technology. His work focusses on the design and study of emerging technologies, including collaborative systems, human-robot collaboration, social robotics, and extended reality.

Matthew joined QUT as a Principal Research Fellow (Autonomous Systems) in 2013 from CSIRO, where he held various roles including Principal Research Scientist and the Robotics Systems and Marine Robotics team leader. He is known internationally for his research into field robotics, particularly environmental robots, and their application to large-scale marine and aquatic ecosystem process monitoring. His research interests include vision-based navigation, image-based habitat classification, adaptive sampling, and path planning, as well as robot and sensor network interactions. His current research within the Australian Centre for Robotic Vision involves the development and use of advanced computer vision techniques to detect and quantify change within the environment, and to improve the perception and monitoring performance of robots operating in challenging and dynamic environments.

Amelia is a Mechatronics Engineer currently working in robotic manufacturing. She is passionate about mass customisation, biofabrication and robotics. Amelia has previously worked in a research capacity for the Biofabrication and Tissue Morphology Lab where she employed 3D scanning and modelling to fabricate personalised assistive devices using additive manufacturing techniques. Her current work is in the Design Robotics project which is a partnership between QUT and UAP where she is developing advanced solutions for industry using collaborative robotic arms: reducing the dull, dirty and dangerous tasks in the manufacturing process.

Chris is a Lecturer within the Robotics and Autonomous Systems (RAS) group at QUT. His research interests lie in the development of novel methods for robotic manipulation in real world and challenging environments. A particular focus of his research has been on enabling robots to perform autonomous harvesting operations in horticulture. He was part of the Australian Centre for Robotics Vision team competing in the 2017 Amazon Robotics Challenge, where he led the development of the grasping and planning algorithms which could successfully grasp a large variety of objects in a cluttered environment. He is part of the Future Food Systems Co-operative Research Centre, and will receive $35 million in funding over 10 years from the Federal Government, along with almost $150 million in support from the research centre’s educational and commercial participants. He will be working on developing robotics and smart technology for vertical and indoor protected cropping.

Elliot has been involved in the area of field robotics for more than 20 years, in particular the development of sensing systems that allow machines to operate autonomously outdoors in hostile and unstructured environments. This work has included the automation of large mining excavators, underground ore haulage vehicles and explosive loading machines. For a number of years, he led the robotic perception team with interests in localisation and mobile mapping in GPS denied areas. More recently, he managed the Autonomous Systems Program with interests in field robotics, sensor networks and cognitive systems. Today he is overseeing a number of emerging markets: including Spatial Intelligence and the Industrial Internet.

David is a Senior Research Scientist at CSIRO, Australia's national science body. He works and leads multiple projects at the intersection of robotics, evolutionary machine learning, and the computational design of novel physical objects. His interests include nature-inspired algorithms, learned autonomy, soft robotics, the reality gap, and evolution of form. His work has been featured in local and national media, TechXplore, and Wired. He received his BSc in Computing from the University of Leeds in 2005 and completed a MSc in Cognitive Systems at the same institution in 2006. In 2011 he received his PhD from the University of the West of England. He is a member of the IEEE and ACM, and an avid proponent of education, STEM, and outreach activities.

Professor Greg Hearn is Director of Commercial R&D in the Creative Industries Faculty at QUT and a research leader in the ARM Hub and QUT Design Lab. His research focuses on strategic industry futures, knowledge policy, and the future of work. He is author of over 20 major books and reports, most recently as editor of The Future of Creative Work: Creativity and Digital Disruption (Edward Elgar, 2020). This book examines the impact of digital disruption, robotics, and AI, on jobs in design, art and media, and the creation of high value products and services across all sectors of the economy. He has worked in large R&D projects with private industry and public sector organizations over 3 decades, across many sectors including, aviation, defence, agriculture and manufacturing.

Dr. Ozgur (Oz) Dedehayir’s research focuses on the strategic implications of technological evolution, disruptive innovations, and the diffusion of innovations, studying various empirical settings including the computer gaming industry, copper production industry, cancer drug innovations, vegan food innovations, and advanced manufacturing. Over the past couple of years, Oz has broadened his research scope, and directed a focal lens on the emergence of innovation ecosystems and entrepreneurial ecosystems. These interests are fuelled by the impact such research can have on the formulation of effective policy strategies for economic growth, while guiding the strategic actions of new and established firms. Oz is passionate about connecting research with the larger community, and has co-founded bizartX (www.bizartX.com) in pursuit of this goal.

As the Head of Project Services, David’s role is centred around field robotics and safety in industrial automation. Before joining the ARM Hub, David worked as a Robotics Engineer at Carnegie Mellon University’s National Robotics Engineering Center in Pittsburgh. There, he worked on full-scale robotics prototypes for various aerospace, logistics, and government organisations, with a focus on river erosion management for the US Army Corps of Engineers. David also assisted in the delivery of prototypes of self-driving vehicles, safety and interface systems for autonomous civil engineering projects, and industrial automation systems.
Prior to his relocation to the USA, David obtained his Bachelor of Engineering (Mechatronics) at Queensland University of Technology and held multiple research assistant and STEM ambassador roles, as well as being a significant contributor in QUT’s Robotronica events.

Associate Professor Felipe Gonzalez is within the School of Electrical Engineering and Robotics (EER) and a CI in QUT Centre for Robotics (QCR) Engineering Faculty. Felipe has a passion for innovation in the fields of aerial robotics and automation, and a particular interest in creating aerial robots, drones or UAVs that possess a high level of cognition using efficient on-board computer algorithms using advanced optimization and game theory approaches to assist us in understanding and improving our physical and natural world. A/Prof Gonzalez lead the Airborne Sensing Lab at QUT. He is the co-author of several books in UAV based remote sensing and design based on evolutionary optimization and game strategies. To date he has been awarded $40.1M in chief investigator / partner investigator grants ($6.5M total cash + in-kind contributions). This grant income represents a mixture of sole investigator funding, ARC DP, ARC LIEF, ARC Linkages, international, multidisciplinary collaborative grants, and funding from industry.

He is also a Chartered Professional Engineer, Engineers Australia – National Professional Engineers Register (NPER), a Member Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS), The IEEE, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) and Holder of a current Australian Private Pilot Licence (CASA PPL) and a Remote Pilot Licence (RePL from CASA).

Cori Stewart spearheaded the ARM Hub initiative, leveraging Queensland’s global leadership in advanced robotics and design-led manufacturing to create this not-for-profit company with a mission to accelerate the uptake of advanced manufacturing in Australia. Cori is a recognised leader in developing large-scale partnerships between industry, research institutions, governments, and the community, where she has successfully developed new approaches to pressing challenges in industry and society. Cori has previously held senior university and government appointments delivering industry development, digital economy and innovation policies and programs.

Samuel Jesuadian serves as the Chief Operating Officer, overseeing the functions of the Business Operations, Facilities Management and Finances of the ARM Hub. Samuel has worked for Mater Research (Mater Health Services) since 2013 and has consolidated experience in Operations Process Design and Management within Clinical and Bio-Medical Research industries. Prior to this, Samuel held different research support positions within the University of Queensland; the Translational Research Institute; and Griffith University. He is an experienced operational professional who has a focus in business acumen on managing risk, driving strategic direction through systems innovation and a passion for business improvements.

As Business Development Manager, Melissa develops relationships that enable small to medium manufacturing enterprises to access innovation opportunities within and across Queensland, and the nation’s, industry growth sectors. She brokers industry’s access to the ARM Hub network of experts, facilities, collaborating partners and a multitude of funding opportunities. In Melissa’s role, she also supports commercial project development and investment in research and development to securing the market advantages of innovation for industry.
With an early career in environmental science technology, policy and community engagement, Melissa has since held various senior roles in communication, stakeholder engagement, business development marketing and advancement in Queensland’s Higher Education and Government sectors. Most recently, Melissa led International and Engagement strategy and operations for QUT’s Science and Engineering Faculty, enabling her to bring a wealth of experience in leadership, mobility, industry and community partnerships to her role with the ARM Hub.

Ali Nugent is the ARM Hub Executive Coordinator. Ali supports the ARM Hub Executive and Board in governance activities, operations, coordination of strategic planning, reporting, engagement, and formal responses on a range of matters. She has previously developed responsive research policy and governance frameworks for The University of Queensland and provided strategic advice to senior executives. Ali brings over a decade of experience from the higher education sector and qualifications in governance, project management and business administration.

Lewis has over 12 years of design and construction industry experience. Having worked across many sectors within construction from retail, residential, and hospitality, to commercial fit-outs, large-scale construction and new-build projects, Lewis has developed a deep understanding of complex projects and built an extensive industry network.
Most recently, working within a Public Art manufacturing company and creative engineering consultancy for several years, combined with a background in Industrial and Interior design, has given Lewis experience in every stage of a project, from recognising an opportunity, through to initial client briefing, project delivery and handover. This range of experience allows Lewis to transfer his skills to the benefit of ARM Hub’s project partners and researchers.

Emma Lane is a Visual Communicator and Graphic Designer with a background in marketing communications, art and design. Emma holds a Bachelor in Visual Communication Design and a Graduate Certificate in Marketing. Recently, she worked as Graphic Designer for UAP, working across strategic marketing and communication initiatives for the global company as well as visual outputs for the brand. Prior to UAP, she has designed for businesses across Australia, from branding for smaller local businesses to marketing visuals for national hotels.

Shani Fernando is the Finance Officer at ARM Hub where she assists with managing the company’s finances. She started her career at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) as a Project and Finance Officer in 2018 and has worked across different faculties, research institutes and centers. Shani has a demonstrated track record of providing high-level support and advice to inform all aspects of effective financial management including budgeting, forecasting, reconciliation, and reporting. She completed a Bachelor of Business Administration (Hons) at the University of Sri Jayawardenepura, Sri Lanka in 2004, she also holds a professional membership of the Australian Society of Certified Practicing Accountants (CPA) Australia.

Catherine Leather has extensive experience in providing high level executive, project, governance, stakeholder engagement and administrative support to senior executives in research and scientific organisations, academia, and state government. Prior to joining ARM Hub, Catherine worked closely with the Executive and Research Leadership teams at the Institute for Future Environment (IFE), Queensland University of Technology. Catherine managed the IFE Catapult Research Program, which was an innovative and highly successful competitive seed funding research program open to researchers across QUT. Before joining QUT, Catherine worked for at CSIRO for over 14 years providing executive management support to Flagship and Divisional executives and their teams, across a wide range of research areas and disciplines. Catherine held various administration roles, including Departmental Travel Officer, within the Queensland Department of Primary Industries for over 10 years, at both head office and one of the research and pilot plant facilities.

Roy Green is a leading thinker and commentator on innovation policy, and has been at the forefront of efforts to help Australian industry harness the benefits of research to create long-term growth and jobs in the global economy of the twenty-first century. He was most recently Dean of the UTS Business School at the University of Technology Sydney, and is currently Special Advisor and Chair of the UTS Innovation Council. He has worked for a number of universities and governments in Australia and overseas, including projects for the OECD and European Commission, and is also Chair of the Port of Newcastle and board member of the Innovative Manufacturing Cooperative Research Centre.

Professor Mark Harvey is Vice-President (Business Development) at QUT. In this role he leads QUT’s Division of Business Development, which oversees the development and management of strategic partnerships with organisations in the pursuit of QUT corporate objectives and priorities. Professor Harvey is a Director of Sunsuper Ltd and Vice-President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Queensland.

Matthew Tobin is co-founder and Managing Director of UAP, the world’s largest manufacturer of high-value customised design elements for construction projects. Matthew has over 18 years’ experience in customisable manufacturing, collaborating with artists, architects, designers & developers to bring uncommon creativity to the public realm.

Jackie Taranto is a seasoned business executive and entrepreneur with over thirty years’ experience across a range of industries including technology, advanced manufacturing, international trade, medical, finance & investment, research and infrastructure. She specialises in creating business collaboration opportunities and extracting and building value out of timely deployment of technology and talent. She founded and built a number of companies, including Hannover Fairs Australia - the Australian/New Zealand subsidiary of Deutsche Messe, the world’s largest venue owner operator, and has successfully launched global brands CeBIT and CeMAT in Australia. In addition to her board role at Arm Hub, Jackie has served on the boards of German-Australian Chamber of Industry and Commerce, IOT Alliance Australia and the Bright Alliance Advisory Committee – NSW’s first cancer-dedicated hospital.