Matthew Spenko
- Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Education
Ph.D. Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2005
M.S. Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2001
B.S. Mechanical Engineering, Northwestern University, 1999
Research Interests
- Electrostatic gecko-like adhesives for climbing, perching, and manipulation
- Navigation integrity for self-driving cars and other mobile robots
- Granular-based soft robots
- Robots for exploring, measuring, and sampling tree biota
Professional Affiliations & Memberships
Senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
Awards
- Dean’s Award for Excellence in Research, Armour College of Engineering, 2022
- MMAE Excellence in Research Award, Illinois Institute of Technology, 2018
- MMAE Excellence in Teaching Award, Illinois Institute of Technology, 2014 and 2017
- One of 21 Researchers to Know, Illinois Science and Technology Coalition, 2019
- Named a Top Researcher of 2015, ChicagoInno
- IIT/Bauer Family Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching Award, IIT, 2014
- Best Paper, Planetary Rovers Session, Int. Society of Terrain-Vehicle Systems, 2011
- Air Force Summer Faculty Fellowship, May-July 2009
- Best Paper Award, IEEE Transactions on Robotics, 2008
- Intelligence Community Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, August 2005-July 2007
- Best Student Paper, IEEE Int. Conf. on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), 2007
- Best Paper Finalist, IEEE Int. Conf. on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), 2007
- Best Paper, Unmanned Vehicles Session, Army Science Conference, 2006
- Best Conference Paper runner up, Army Science Conference, 2006
Publications
Expertise
Control, dynamics, mechanical design, and soft robotics
