Nobuyuki Kita

About

Nobuyuki Kita is a pioneering robotics and computer vision researcher whose work spans mobile robot navigation, multi-robot cooperation, and robotic manipulation of deformable objects. Best known for his contributions to Simultaneous Localisation and Map-Building (SLAM), Kita extended this foundational technology beyond the conventional flat-ground assumption to address robots navigating undulating, real-world terrain — a breakthrough that garnered 117 citations and significantly broadened SLAM's practical applicability. His early work on active stereo vision with foveated wide-angle lenses (1996) demonstrated a sophisticated approach to machine perception that predated widespread interest in bio-inspired vision systems. Kita also shaped the field of multi-robot collaboration through his "cooperation by observation" framework, introducing concepts such as attentional structure and role interchange that enabled higher-level coordination between autonomous agents. Perhaps most distinctively, he has dedicated substantial effort to the notoriously difficult problem of robotic clothing handling — developing strategies for recognizing and manipulating highly deformable garments using dual-arm systems, strategic observation, and combined vision-touch sensing. This body of work, spanning from fabric unfolding (1997) to shape-recognition during active handling (2011), positions Kita as a leading voice in robot manipulation of flexible, real-world materials.

Research Focus

Key Achievements

Top Papers

1. 1
   3D simultaneous localisation and map-building using active vision for a robot moving on undulating terrain

   117 citations · 2005
2. 2
   Cooperation by observation: the framework and basic task patterns

   59 citations · 2002
3. 3
   Active stereo vision system with foveated wide angle lenses

   56 citations · 1996
4. 4
   Clothes handling based on recognition by strategic observation

   41 citations · 2011
5. 5
   Vision-based behaviors for multi-robot cooperation

   36 citations · 2002
6. 6
   A method for handling a specific part of clothing by dual arms

   35 citations · 2009
7. 7
   Sequential localisation and map-building for real-time computer vision and robotics

   30 citations · 2001
8. 8
   Biped locomotion control for uneven terrain with narrow support region

   28 citations · 2014
9. 9
   Clothes handling using visual recognition in cooperation with actions

   21 citations · 2010
10. 10
    Unfolding a Folded Fabric Using Information of Outline with Vision and Touch Sensor.

    20 citations · 1997

Key Collaborators

Contact & Links