Arcangelo Merla
Papers
15
Total Citations
419
H-Index
10
About
Arcangelo Merla is a prominent researcher at the intersection of affective computing, human-robot interaction, and biomedical engineering, with a body of work that has significantly advanced how machines perceive and respond to human emotional and physiological states. His research is particularly distinguished by its innovative use of thermal infrared imaging as a non-invasive modality for detecting affective and psychophysiological states — a contribution reviewed comprehensively in his widely cited 2020 paper (113 citations) that has become a key reference in the field. Merla's work spans both foundational and applied dimensions. He has pioneered affective computing frameworks for social robots, enabling platforms such as NAO and Pepper to recognize facial expressions and emotional cues, making interactions more natural and intuitive. His research extends meaningfully into vulnerable populations, including deaf infants learning sign language through robot-assisted environments, children with cerebral palsy undergoing robotic-assisted gait training assessed via fNIRS and infrared imaging, and older adults with cognitive impairment evaluated through socially assistive robots. These contributions reflect a sustained commitment to translating technology into clinical and educational benefit. With a growing citation record and publications spanning robotics, neuroscience, and rehabilitation, Merla represents a compelling voice in human-centered, socially intelligent technology research.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1
- 2
- 3Teaching Language to Deaf Infants with a Robot and a Virtual Human55 citations · 2018
- 4
- 5
- 6Multimodal Dialogue Management for Multiparty Interaction with Infants20 citations · 2018
- 7
- 8
- 9Thermal Imaging Based Affective Computing for Educational Robot17 citations · 2019
- 10