Applied Robot Manipulator
A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Robotics and Automation".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 September 2026
Special Issue Editor
Interests: nonlinear control; electromechanical servo control; intelligent control; adaptive control; robust control; electro-hydraulic servo control; motor servo control; neural networks; robot arm; observer design; fault diagnosis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Robot manipulators, evolving from isolated industrial cages to interactive partners, now permeate diverse sectors. Beyond traditional automotive assembly, they are revolutionizing logistics through agile departmentalizing, advancing precision in surgical procedures, enabling safe decommissioning in hazardous environments and assisting with daily tasks in healthcare. This expansion into unstructured settings demands a paradigm shift from rigid, pre-programmed automation toward adaptive, intelligent and collaborative systems capable of handling uncertainty and variability. The field currently thrives at the intersection of several technological frontiers. Advancements in machine learning, particularly reinforcement learning, are empowering manipulators with autonomous skill acquisition and refinement. Enhanced perception, fused from vision and tactile sensing, provides critical environmental awareness for complex tasks. This Special Issue aims to provide a comprehensive snapshot of the state of applied robot manipulation, highlighting both cutting-edge research and the practical engineering insights necessary for field deployment. We encourage submissions that include rigorous experimental validation, discuss failure analysis and real-world constraints and offer perspectives on scalability and sustainability. We invite original research and comprehensive reviews addressing, but not limited to, the following:
- Artificial Intelligence-Driven Manipulation: Learning-based control, policy generalization and sim-to-real transfer for dynamic tasks.
- Advanced Perception and Tactile Intelligence: Multi-sensor fusion for state estimation and feedback in occluded or deformable object manipulation.
- Compliant and Dexterous Mechanisms: Design and control of soft robots, variable impedance actuators and versatile end-effectors.
- Human–Robot Symbiosis: Safe physical interaction, shared autonomy and intuitive programming.
- Cyber–Physical Integration: System-level design, interoperability standards and digital twin frameworks for lifecycle management.
- Novel Application Case Studies: In-depth reports on deployments in agriculture, construction, in-home service, laboratory automation or small-batch manufacturing.
Dr. Guichao Yang
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- robot manipulator
- robotics
- human–robot interaction
- artificial intelligence
- robot arm
- robot control
- mechanics
- sensor technology, machine intelligence and pattern recognition
- machine vision
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