Papers
28
Total Citations
909
H-Index
14
About
Adam J. Spiers is a robotics researcher whose work spans tactile sensing, prosthetic and robotic hand design, within-hand manipulation, and haptic interfaces. His research consistently bridges fundamental engineering challenges with practical human-centered applications, making him a notable voice across multiple subfields of robotics. Spiers is perhaps best known for his pioneering work on tactile object classification, demonstrating that simple robot hands equipped with basic sensors can meaningfully identify objects from a single grasp — without complex exploratory procedures — a finding that has reshaped assumptions in robotic perception (164 citations). His comprehensive review of prosthetic and robotic wrist design (144 citations) highlighted a critical gap in the field, drawing attention to the wrist as an undervalued component in manipulation systems. His development of variable-friction finger surfaces (90 citations) offered a creative biomimetic approach to enabling sophisticated within-hand manipulation using minimal actuation. Beyond manipulation, Spiers has contributed to surgical haptics, navigation aids like the shape-changing "Haptic Sandwich," and humanoid robot control. With multiple papers exceeding 50 citations and interdisciplinary reach across prosthetics, surgical robotics, and human motor analysis, his work reflects a sustained commitment to making robotic systems more capable, intuitive, and human-compatible.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
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- 32010 IEEE-RAS International Conference on Humanoid Robots119 citations · 2010
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- 5M2 Gripper: Extending the Dexterity of a Simple, Underactuated Gripper60 citations · 2015
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