Diego PatiñoView profile
Assistant Professor
Diego Patiño is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA), a position he began in September 2024. He earned his Ph.D. in Computer Engineering from the National University of Colombia in 2020, following M.S. and B.S. degrees from the same institution. Prior to joining UTA, he served as a Postdoctoral Fellow at Drexel University and a Postdoctoral Researcher at the GRASP Laboratory, University of Pennsylvania. B.S. in Computer Engineering, National University of Colombia, 2010 M.S. in Computer Engineering, National University of Colombia, 2012 Ph.D. in Computer Engineering, National University of Colombia, 2020 Dr. Patiño's research centers on geometric computer vision and machine learning, with applications in robotics and 3D vision. His primary interests include 3D reconstruction, graph neural networks, symmetry detection, physics-informed machine learning, and reinforcement learning. He develops algorithms that integrate geometric priors and physical constraints into deep learning models to improve robustness and generalization in real-world robotic systems. His recent publications demonstrate a strong trend in leveraging implicit neural representations for 3D shape reconstruction, applying graph neural networks to swarm robotics, and enhancing computer vision tasks with self-supervised and physics-informed learning. Work spans high-impact venues such as IEEE RA-L, ICRA, ICPR, and MICCAI, showing a consistent focus on geometric reasoning, robotic perception, and medical imaging applications. His scientific contributions have been recognized with awards from the UTA Division of Student Affairs for exceptional dedication and positive impact (2024 and 2025). He is actively involved in securing research funding, with multiple grants under review from NSF, Air Force SBIR, and industry partners like Sony. Exceptional dedication and positive impact recognition, UTA Division of Student Affairs (December 9, 2024) Exceptional dedication and positive impact recognition, UTA Division of Student Affairs (April 30, 2025) Dr. Patiño advises and serves on committees for multiple graduate students in computer science and engineering, including doctoral and master’s candidates. He is also leading or co-leading several research grants under review, covering topics such as aerial swarm navigation, neuromorphic sensing, and industrial computer vision. He teaches graduate courses in computer vision and is involved in service roles including PhD admissions and faculty appointments committees. He is affiliated with research initiatives at UTA, including the UTARI Research Institute, where he has presented on geometric modeling and physics-informed learning. His lab focuses on developing next-generation computer vision algorithms for robotics, industrial inspection, and safety-critical systems.
