PhD in Robotic Engineering

The research group on Life Cycle Engineering of the Department of Mechanical Engineering of the University of Leuven (KU Leuven) has built up significant experience with de- and remanufacturing, breaking down and sorting of products into their components or composing materials in support of reuse, repair, refurbishing, remanufacturing and/or recycling (ReX processes), for End-of-Life Vehicles (ELVs) and Waste of Electric and Electronic Equipment (WEEE). The group aims to expand research activities and develop innovative products and process designs to facilitate de- and remanufacturing in human-robot cooperative settings, working in close cooperation with original equipment manufacturers and ReX companies. The project focuses on designing an enhanced framework integrating high-level task sequencing with low-level sensor-fusion control to facilitate in-process adaptation based on human and/or robot feedback, improving robustness of contact-free motions and contact-rich interactions, and leveraging physics-based simulation tools such as Drake to model contact dynamics, validate and refine disassembly skills, and assess physical feasibility of strategies in simulation before execution. Empirical validation and demonstration are required, including hands-on support to extend hardware in the re- and demanufacturing labs in Heverlee, validate communication with robots and tooling, and develop and disseminate demonstrations to industry.