Nicola Tomatis
BlueBotics (Switzerland), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne
Papers
21
Total Citations
1,123
H-Index
13
About
Nicola Tomatis is a leading figure in mobile robotics, renowned for his foundational contributions to autonomous navigation and human-robot collaboration. His research centers on simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM), sensor fusion, and the practical deployment of robotic systems in complex, real-world environments. Tomatis’s work is distinguished by its rigorous, comparative approach; his seminal 2007 paper, “A comparison of line extraction algorithms using 2D range data for indoor mobile robotics,” has garnered over 240 citations, becoming a standard reference for researchers. He pioneered the hybrid integration of topological and metric SLAM, a natural fusion that provides both robustness and precision, as evidenced by his highly cited 2003 paper (167 citations). His impact extends beyond theory to large-scale application: the “Robox at Expo.02” paper (228 citations) details one of the earliest and most ambitious installations of personal robots, demonstrating viable human-robot interaction in a public setting. Tomatis also contributed to system design for urban search and rescue, emphasizing user-centric methodologies for effective human-robot teaming. Through his leadership in the BRICS project, he has helped formalize the robot development process, moving the field from artful engineering toward structured, repeatable best practices.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1
- 2Robox at Expo.02: A large-scale installation of personal robots228 citations · 2003
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- 4Multisensor on-the-fly localization:129 citations · 2001
- 5Simultaneous localization and odometry self calibration for mobile robot117 citations · 2006
- 6BRICS - Best practice in robotics46 citations · 2010
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- 9Experience in system design for human-robot teaming in urban search & rescue21 citations · 2025
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