Colin Prepscius

Papers

Total Citations

H-Index

About

Colin Prepscius is a robotics researcher advancing human-robot interaction through novel acoustic sensing. His work focuses on making robots safer and more perceptive by using sound—not vision—to detect and localize nearby objects, collisions, and contacts. In his highly cited 2020 paper, "Acoustic Collision Detection and Localization for Robot Manipulators" (22 citations), Prepscius demonstrated that microphones on robot arms can rapidly detect and pinpoint collisions, a critical capability for safe operation around humans. He extended this concept with "AmbiSense" (2023, 7 citations), which uses a single piezoelectric transducer to create a blindspot-free proximity detection and bearing estimation system, eliminating dangerous sensor gaps. Most notably, his "SonicFinger" (2023, 7 citations) integrates pre-touch and contact sensing directly into a robot gripper, enabling reactive pregrasping—a breakthrough that allows robots to sense objects before and during contact. By replacing or augmenting traditional tactile and vision sensors with low-cost acoustic fields, Prepscius is pioneering a new paradigm for robust, real-time robot awareness. His work promises to make collaborative robots safer, more responsive, and more accessible for real-world applications.