Dr Tobias FischerThe interest in robotics began with a high school project in Germany where he built a robot designed to avoid obstacles, marking an important early inspiration in his career.
It was a real “wow” moment for the passionate of seventeen years. From a plexiglass robot in Germany to peak robotics in Australia, Tobias’ career path reflects its commitment to advance robotics for complex and real applications.
“I found it fascinating how so much had to come together for an apparently simple task, like avoiding obstacles,” said Dr. Tobias Fischer.
But his little robot did not work. Not once. He crashed into objects or has not moved at all, offering early lessons on troubleshooting and persistence.
The day of the last demonstration of the school, the moment of the truth had arrived. Despite his problems, Tobias is looking forward to showing his robot.
He advanced, placed his robot on the table, switched control and his surprise – it worked! His little robot crossed the table while avoiding all the objects on his way. The teacher nodded.
“I received the highest note for my project,” said Dr. Fischer. “I always think back to this manifestation when my colleagues are plagued by the” demonstration effect “: the exact opposite where everything works well until the moment of truth.”
“Max Born, a physicist winner of the Nobel Prize, once compared science to sail in a jungle through tests and errors – a concept that resonated with me at the start of my career.”
This is something that Dr. Fischer tries to register his students as a teacher at QUT School of electrical engineering and robotics – Kiss tests and errors, learn errors and persevere.
Robots with a human perception
Dr. Fischer’s career focuses on the objective of overall research to equip robots with the perceptual capacity necessary to interact safely and intelligently with humans.
“By pursuing this objective, my research lasted the areas of robotics, computer vision and artificial intelligence,” said Dr. Fischer.
“My research goes beyond technology – it aims to have a positive impact on society. The equipment of human perception robots could transform areas such as research and rescue, help in the event of disaster and spatial exploration, with large implications for daily life. »»
“My colleague at Quet Center for RoboticsProfessor Emeritus Emeritus Peter Corke, supervises the diversity of our field with a complete list of essential subjects from mechanics to computer vision.
“His expertise in these fields is rare and inspiring. This diversity of subjects on which people work makes robotics so fascinating for me. »»
At home in Germany, after completing his secondary studies, Dr. Fischer has chosen to study computer engineering at university, because he hoped that this would best cover the different disciplines involved in intelligent robotics.
“I did not particularly appreciate the part in electrical engineering, but I loved software engineering, algorithms, programming and neural networks,” said Dr. Fischer.
“It was also the moment when I realized that despite the study towards a baccalaureate, I would not be able to acquire all the knowledge I wanted.”
A game changer
After a lucky meeting, he was put in contact with the distinguished professor John Tsotsos of the University of York, Canada. “In a week, we agreed that I could visit Professor Tsotsos for nine months to write my baccalaureate thesis,” said Dr. Fischer.
Looking in depth a subject under structured advice without being explicitly told what was a game changer. The thesis presented it to many concepts that he is still looking for today, such as the use of knowledge on The human visual system in robotics.
After his stay in Canada, Dr. Fischer continued on his way to robotics and robotic navigation, registering for a master’s degree in artificial intelligence (IA) at the University of Edinburgh which had a long history in AI.
“I was deeply interested in vision-related courses, covering several disciplines such as neuroscience, psychology and robotics,” he said.
“Retrospectively, my thesis has been the first time that I have made a contribution (although minor) to human knowledge. My Jim Bednar advisor was inspiring and very practical, which differs considerably from what I had met before.
During his doctoral studies at the prestigious Imperial College in London, Dr. Fischer launched an approach to transformative engineering which combines the concepts of computer science and engineering with biology and social sciences.
“More specifically, I made progress in taking a perceptual perspective, where a robot learns to deduce how the visual scene is seen from the visual point of view of another agent, human or robot.”
It is also during his doctoral studies that he realized how much the algorithms of computer vision – which often work perfectly on constrained data sets – are generalized in the parameters of the real world when they deploy on a robot .
“My research on the eyes of the eyes and the estimation of the flashes was very impactful, making progress both the theory and practical applications, for example controlling a wheelchair purely based on the contribution of gaze.”
His thesis was rewarded Queen Mary Uk Best Thesis in Robotics Award 2018 and the Eryl Cadwaladr Davies Prize For the best thesis in the Electricity and Electronic Engineering Department of the 2018 Imperial College.
A move to Brisbane
After finishing his doctorate and a year of post-doc at Imperial College, Dr. Fischer asked for new challenges and had the chance to connect with Professor Michael MilfordNow director of the Qut Center for Robotics. This led to his move to Brisbane just before Covid strikes.
“Michael’s research has lined up closely with mine. In addition, the Australian Robotic Vision Center of the time based in Quet gave Australian research in robotic vision a huge boost, “said Dr. Fischer.
The ACRV and the Center of Robotics Quet that followed it raised worldwide to Australia as a leader in robotics. Being directed from Quet, I knew there would be many more advanced robotics researchers.
“In our Center of Robotics Quet, we are at the forefront of global research in robotics, offering a unique window on the projects of underwater robots with drones and space robotics – a diversity that distinguishes us.”
– Patrick Whyte