Tomonori Kato

About

Tomonori Kato is a pioneering researcher in soft robotics and teleoperation, with a focus on developing innovative pneumatic and gel-based actuators for real-world applications. His major contributions lie in the design and control of pneumatic artificial rubber muscles (PARMs) and miniaturized actuators driven by gas-liquid phase change, enabling compact, lightweight robotic systems for rescue, surgery, and rehabilitation. Kato’s work on teleoperation—such as controlling a four-DOF robot arm over the Internet using UDP and a web camera (13 citations)—demonstrates his impact on remote robotic manipulation. He has also advanced soft actuator technology by hybridizing anisotropic gels with nanosheet liquid crystals, achieving thermo-induced deformation for novel material applications (6 citations). Beyond industrial robotics, Kato has notably applied his expertise to musical robotics, developing a Thai flute-playing robot that produces realistic, traditional sounds (4 citations) and a recorder-playing robot capable of human-like vibrato (2 citations). These achievements highlight his interdisciplinary approach, bridging engineering with cultural and artistic domains. With a growing citation record, Kato’s research continues to influence the fields of soft robotics, teleoperation, and human-robot interaction.

Research Focus

Key Achievements

Top Papers

1. 1
   Teleoperation of a Robot Arm System Using Pneumatic Artificial Rubber Muscles: Teleoperation over the Internet Using UDP and a Web Camera

   13 citations · 2010
2. 2
   Development of Miniaturized Rubber Muscle Actuator Driven by Gas-Liquid Phase Change

   6 citations · 2016
3. 3
   Fundamental Study of Soft Actuator Using Anisotropic Gel Hybridized with Nanosheet Liquid Crystal: Analysis of Heat Characteristics and Length Control

   6 citations · 2017
4. 4
   Development of Manipulator Using a Gas–Liquid Phase-Change Actuator

   5 citations · 2019
5. 5
   Refinement of a Thai Flute-Playing Robot in Thai Style

   4 citations · 2018
6. 6
   Recorder-playing robot that uses versatile vibrato to mimic a human player

   2 citations · 2015

Key Collaborators

Contact & Links