Martin Saska

About

Martin Saska is a prominent robotics researcher whose work spans autonomous unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), multi-robot systems, simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM), and swarm coordination. Based at Czech Technical University in Prague, Saska has made foundational contributions to the deployment of aerial and ground robots in real-world, GPS-denied, and extreme environments. His research has shaped how autonomous UAV systems perceive, navigate, and cooperate — from pioneering practical multi-robot localization (210 citations) to advancing position and attitude control surveys that have become essential references for aerial robotics practitioners (191 citations). His landmark work on autonomous UAV landing on moving vehicles at speed (158 citations) demonstrated remarkable integration of perception, planning, and control. Saska's contributions to the DARPA Subterranean Challenge pushed the boundaries of SLAM in underground environments including caves and tunnels, with implications reaching as far as Martian lava tube exploration (176 citations). Early work on path planning using particle swarm optimization (138 citations) established his reputation for algorithmic innovation. With multiple papers exceeding 100 citations and collaborative achievements in heterogeneous robot formations and search-and-rescue systems, Saska stands as a defining voice in autonomous multi-robot systems research.

Research Focus

Key Achievements

Top Papers

1. 1
   A Practical Multirobot Localization System

   210 citations · 2014
2. 2
   Position and attitude control of multi-rotor aerial vehicles: A survey

   191 citations · 2019
3. 3
   Present and Future of SLAM in Extreme Environments: The DARPA SubT Challenge

   176 citations · 2023
4. 4
   Autonomous landing on a moving vehicle with an unmanned aerial vehicle

   158 citations · 2019
5. 5
   System for deployment of groups of unmanned micro aerial vehicles in GPS-denied environments using onboard visual relative localization

   154 citations · 2016
6. 6
   A Robust UAV System for Operations in a Constrained Environment

   140 citations · 2020
7. 7
   Robot Path Planning using Particle Swarm Optimization of Ferguson Splines

   138 citations · 2006
8. 8
   DARPA Subterranean Challenge: Multi-robotic Exploration of Underground Environments

   128 citations · 2020
9. 9
   Cooperative autonomous search, grasping, and delivering in a treasure hunt scenario by a team of unmanned aerial vehicles

   110 citations · 2018
10. 10
    Coordination and navigation of heterogeneous MAV–UGV formations localized by a ‘hawk-eye’-like approach under a model predictive control scheme

    91 citations · 2014

Key Collaborators

Contact & Links