Guillem Alenyà Ribas

Guillem Alenyà Ribas is a Researcher and Director at the Institut de Robòtica i Informàtica Industrial (IRI), a joint center of the Spanish Scientific Research Council (CSIC) and the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC). He holds a PhD in Robotics from UPC (2007) with research focusing on mobile robot navigation. His current roles include leading multiple international projects in assistive robotics, deformable object manipulation, and human-robot interaction (HRI). Key affiliations include coordination of the ARISE (EU-DIGITAL-EMERGING), ROMANDIC (EU-WIDERA), and TRAIL (MSCA-DN) projects.

Research interests span robotic manipulation of deformable objects, assistive robotics for elderly care, and HRI personalization/explainability. Notable achievements include the 2023 Georges Giralt PhD Award, 2024 Special Doctoral Award UPC, and 2022 AIHUB.CSIC Prize. He advises six PhD students focusing on topics like robotic frailty assessment and cloth manipulation benchmarks.

Major projects include developing robotic systems for cotton harvesting (DEMETER 5.0), frailty monitoring (FRAILWATCH), and socially aware robotics (SWEET). His lab, the Perception and Manipulation Group, pioneers work in ontology-based robotic explanations and benchmarking tools for cloth manipulation. Over 150 peer-reviewed publications reflect contributions to computer vision, AI planning, and robotics hardware/software integration.

Awards and grants include leadership in EU Horizon projects (€10M+ funding), and contributions to both academic (ERC Advanced Grant) and industrial collaborations (e.g., with PAL Robotics). His work bridges fundamental research with practical applications in healthcare, agriculture, and service robotics.