Cecilia Laschi

After graduating in Computer Science from the University of Pisa in 1993, she continued her education with a PhD in Robotics from the University of Genoa in 1998. From the following year, she became a research fellow and then a researcher in Biorobotics at the Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna in Pisa. From 2001 to 2002, she was also a visiting researcher at the Humanoid Robotics Institute of Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan. Since 2006, she has been an associate professor and since 2014 a full professor of Biorobotics at the Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna in Pisa. She is also a professor at the National University of Singapore, in the Department of Mechanical Engineering.

Cecilia Laschi's research interest is BioRobotics. Drawing on experience in basic robotics, she has investigated bio-inspired solutions for personal and service robotics. By copying the movement of a cephalopod, in the European project OCTOPUS , Cecilia Laschi and her team laid the foundation for the development of future biomimicry: the design and construction of bio-inspired robots constructed from soft materials. The first robotic arm prototype was built by imitating the muscular structure of an octopus's arm with silicone materials, creating innovative actuators that allow for muscle contraction, as well as an artificial skin equipped with suction cups. The technologies developed are being further developed in applications ranging from marine exploration to the biomedical sector, from surgery to elderly care. This research has led to the development of the new research area of Soft Robotics at the international level. In 2007, Cecilia Laschi contributed to the creation of the joint robotics laboratory "Robot-An" in Tokyo between the Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna and Waseda University , where Italian and Japanese researchers jointly conduct cutting-edge research. Laschi is also among the inventors of DustBot , the garbage-cleaning robots.