Kourosh Parsa

About

Kourosh Parsa is a robotics researcher whose work spans space robotics, reconfigurable robotic systems, and autonomous manipulation. He is perhaps best known for his contributions to the autonomous capture of tumbling satellites, a technically demanding problem that requires a robotic manipulator to intercept and secure a non-cooperative, freely rotating object in orbit. His landmark papers on this subject, together accumulating nearly 140 citations, established a robust framework combining laboratory experimentation with remote-operation capabilities, making them foundational references in on-orbit servicing research. Parsa has also made significant contributions to reconfigurable robotics, pioneering an innovative design paradigm that achieves adaptability through passive, lockable joints — including cylindrical and telescopic configurations — rather than the conventional modular joint approach. This work, cited over 110 times collectively, opened new possibilities for flexible space manipulators. Complementing these efforts, he developed adaptive vision systems employing Kalman filtering to estimate the inertial parameters of unknown target objects, advancing the perception capabilities of autonomous robots. His additional work on force-moment sensor calibration in zero-gravity environments and piezoelectric tactile sensing further demonstrates the breadth of his contributions to intelligent robotic systems designed for challenging, real-world applications.

Research Focus

Key Achievements

Top Papers

1. 1
   Autonomous capture of a tumbling satellite

   104 citations · 2007
2. 2
   A Reconfigurable Robot With Lockable Cylindrical Joints

   74 citations · 2009
3. 3
   An adaptive vision system for guidance of a robotic manipulator to capture a tumbling satellite with unknown dynamics

   36 citations · 2008
4. 4
   Autonomous capture of a tumbling satellite

   35 citations · 2006
5. 5
   Design of a Reconfigurable Space Robot with Lockable Telescopic Joints

   23 citations · 2006
6. 6
   Configuration Control and Recalibration of a New Reconfigurable Robot

   11 citations · 2007
7. 7
   A Robot with Adjustable D-H Parameters

   8 citations · 2007
8. 8
   Adaptive observer for the calibration of the force-moment sensor of a space robot

   4 citations · 2006
9. 9
   TOWARD THE DESIGN AND SIMULATION OF A NEW GENERATION OF RECONFIGURABLE SPACE MANIPULATORS USING TELESCOPING PASSIVE JOINTS

   4 citations · 2007
10. 10
    Finite Element Analysis of a Membrane-Type Piezoelectric Tactile Sensor with Four Sensing Elements

    3 citations · 2006

Key Collaborators

Contact & Links