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About

Boyi Duan is a pioneering robotics researcher specializing in tactile-motor manipulation and sim-to-real transfer learning. His work bridges the critical gap between simulated environments and real-world robotic applications, with a particular focus on optical tactile sensing and cable manipulation tasks. Duan's most impactful contribution is the development of FOTS (Fast Optical Tactile Simulator), a groundbreaking framework that enables efficient synthesis of tactile images and accurate replication of marker motion under varying contact loads. This work, already garnering 14 citations since 2024, addresses fundamental challenges in tactile sensor simulation that previously hindered real-world deployment. His research portfolio demonstrates a systematic approach to solving domain adaptation problems, including visual-tactile learning for complex industrial tasks like cable-in-duct installation and environment-constrained visuomotor policies. Duan's innovative methods for reducing sim-to-real domain gaps in visual sensors have particular significance, as they prevent texture leakage while maintaining task-specific learning fidelity. His work represents a significant advancement in making simulation-based robotic training more practical and reliable for real-world applications, with potential impacts spanning manufacturing, assembly, and autonomous manipulation.