Opportunities

Job title: Machine learning for human-robot collaboration

Context and objectives :

This position focuses on developing machine learning techniques to enhance human awareness in human-robot interaction by integrating situation assessment and action planning. The successful candidate will contribute to cutting-edge research at the intersection of robotics, artificial intelligence, and human interaction, with an emphasis on designing and evaluating robotic systems that facilitate seamless collaboration with humans.

The position is for 18 months contract, but there is a possibility to be extended depending on the performance and circumstances. The position is open at both the engineer and post-doctoral levels for candidates with a strong background in machine learning, human-machine interaction, or robotics.

Responsibilities:

– Develop advanced situation assessment techniques using machine learning to accurately represent user preferences, behaviors, and characteristics based multimodal data to efficiently plan actions.

– Collaborate with interdisciplinary teams including computer scientists, humanities, and designers to ensure the usability and effectiveness of developed techniques.

– Publish research findings in top-tier conferences and journals in the field of Human-Machine Interaction and Machine Learning (mainly at the post-doc level)

Requirements :

The successful candidate should have:

– Experience in human-machine interaction

– Good knowledge of Machine Learning Techniques

– Good knowledge of experimental design and statistics

– Excellent publication record

– Strong skills in Python

– Willing to work in multi-disciplinary and international teams

– Good communication skills

Additional information:

– Contract start date: as soon as possible

– Contract duration: 18 months

– Quota of work : 100%

– Level of education required: Master’s degree / Engineering school – Doctorate

– Salary: depending on experience

– Host laboratory: ISIR (Institut des Systèmes Intelligents et de Robotique), Campus Pierre et Marie Curie, 4 place Jussieu, 75005 Paris.

Application :

Interested candidates should submit the following by email in a single PDF file to: mohamed.chetouani[@]sorbonne-universite.fr with the subject: Application ML for Human-Robot Collaboration

– Curriculum vitae with 2 references (recommendation letters are also welcome)

– One-page summary of research background and interests

– At least three papers (either published, accepted for publication, or pre-prints) demonstrating expertise in one or more of the areas mentioned above

– Doctoral dissertation abstract and the expected date of graduation for a post-doc position levale (for those who are currently pursuing a Ph.D)

Application’s deadline: April 21, 2025.

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Post-doc: “Optimal and Synchronized Control, Application to Mobile Manipulator Robots”

Context:

As part of the TREES project, in collaboration with the company Enchanted Tools (https://enchanted.tools/), we are working on the low-level control of Mirokaï manipulator robots. The primary goal is to develop an optimal and synchronized control system for the 22 actuators based on the Whole Body Control principle. Additional research will focus on new control methods for the ballbot system. The targeted applications include physical interaction tasks with the environment, particularly object manipulation and grasping.

Missions:

The recruited candidate will have the following main responsibilities:

– Develop dynamic models of the robot that combine the dynamics of the ballbot system with its manipulator limbs (two arms and two hands).

– Integrate the effects of multi-contact interactions between the robot, its environment, and the manipulated objects.

– Design real-time control algorithms capable of simultaneously managing the robot’s balance and coordinating the arm and hand movements to ensure smooth interaction with the environment.

– Implement and test the new control laws on the robot in collaboration with the laboratory engineers.

– Develop evaluation metrics to measure the effectiveness and stability of the control algorithms. – Contribute to writing scientific papers and presenting results at international conferences.

Required profile:

Candidates must hold a PhD in control systems or robotics.

Required skills:

– Modeling and control of robotic systems.

– Excellent programming skills in C++. Proficiency in Python and Git is also required.

– Ability to work independently and take initiative.

– Team spirit and strong communication skills.

– Scientific curiosity and passion for innovation.

– Good proficiency in English, both written and spoken.

Additional information:

– Contract start date: as soon as possible

– Contract duration: 24 months

– Desired experience: 4 to 10 years

– Level of education required : Doctorate (Bac +8)

– Salary : Salary according to experience

– Host laboratory: ISIR (Institut des Systèmes Intelligents et de Robotique), Campus Pierre et Marie Curie, 4 place Jussieu, 75005 Paris.

Contact persons :

– Guillaume Morel / Susana Guerry Sanchez

– Email : guillaume.morel@sorbonne-universite.fr/ guerrysanchez@isir.upmc.fr

– Send your application by e-mail, with [job title] in the subject line, a CV and a covering letter.

– Application deadline: 30/04/2025

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As part of the 2025 recruitment campaign for teacher-researchers at Sorbonne Université, which runs from March 4 to April 4, 2025, positions are available with a possible assignment to ISIR. Registrations are made via the Odyssée ministerial portal (which is gradually replacing Galaxie).

CNU Section(s): 61 – Computer Engineering, Automation, and Signal Processing

Research

ISIR is interested in the development of robots and intelligent systems capable of operating autonomously in uncontrolled environments and interacting with humans as naturally as possible. Autonomy here refers to the ability to cope with varied and unanticipated situations. The candidate’s project will focus on environmental perception and/or interaction, whether with the environment and the objects it contains or with the humans who use or are in contact with the robot. The methods considered will rely in particular on learning algorithms, regardless of the learning method (gradient-based, statistical, heuristic, or bio-inspired, on an isolated agent or in a social or collective context). Human-machine interaction (HMI) is an important but not mandatory dimension which, when included in the planned work, may take various forms (verbal, gestural, haptic, etc.) and rely on the design of dedicated devices, interfaces and interaction techniques. The use of robotic devices in the context of human learning is a theme that is also relevant to this position. The experimental dimension is essential for this position: the planned work must aim for an application on real robots. The candidate will have to develop methods on one or more of these themes and will join one of the laboratory teams, all of which are potentially concerned by this position.

Teaching

Current programs: Polytech Sorbonne

Learning objectives and supervisory needs:

The recruited candidate will primarily work in the robotics specialty at Polytech Sorbonne, an engineering school integrated with Sorbonne University. They will be responsible for several teaching modules over the three years of the engineering program. These courses will cover a broad spectrum of computer science applied to robotics (systems computing, object-oriented programming, AI for robotics) and associated tools (git, ROS, etc.). The recruited candidate will also be involved in experimental robotics modules and projects. It is therefore desirable that they have in-depth knowledge of robotics and a strong interest in experimenting on real robotic systems. The recruited candidate is also expected to assume administrative responsibilities within Polytech Sorbonne in the short term.

Contacts:

– Research: Stéphane Doncieux, Director (stephane.doncieux@sorbonne-universite.fr)

– Teaching: François Pecheux, Director (sciences-polytech-direction@sorbonne-universite.fr)

Download this job offer

As part of the 2025 recruitment campaign for teacher-researchers at Sorbonne Université, which runs from March 4 to April 4, 2025, positions are available with a possible assignment to ISIR. Registrations are made via the Odyssée ministerial portal (which is gradually replacing Galaxie).

CNU Section(s): 60 – Mechanics, mechanical engineering, civil engineering and 61 – Computer engineering, automation and signal processing

Research

ISIR is interested in the development of robots and intelligent systems capable of operating (moving and interacting) as autonomously as possible in unknown and uncontrolled environments. Several families of robots can be targeted: mobile robots operating indoors or outdoors, manipulator robots on a conventional or micrometric scale (microrobotics), devices to assist surgical gestures (medical robotics) with all the specificities that this entails, and devices to assist people with motor or perceptual deficiencies.

Any research project involving the modeling and control of the above-mentioned robots is relevant to this position. However, priority will be given to scientific projects in at least one of the following research areas: flexible robotics, manipulation of deformable objects, hybrid approaches combining methods based on analytical models with learning techniques based on experimental data. It is also essential that the project does not limit itself to purely theoretical aspects; the experimental dimension is important. As such, the work envisaged must include experimental work on real robots.

This position is open to all ISIR teams.

Education

Training courses concerned : Licence EEA, Licence Mécanique and Master SdI mention Automatique-Robotique

Teaching objectives and supervision requirements :

In the EEA Bachelor’s program, the person recruited will be involved in L2 and L3 courses on actuators, automation and robotics, as well as in programming (C, Python). Matlab skills will also be appreciated.

As part of the Bachelor’s degree in Mechanics, the person recruited will be able to work in the following units: Computer-aided design, rigid solid mechanics, project-based engineering teaching in L2, and solid dynamics, vibration and robotics in L3.

The “Automatique Robotique” (AR) specialization in the Engineering Science Masters (SDI) department will be significantly restructured from the start of the 2025 academic year. The department aims to strengthen the training of students at the interface between general robotics and its control, mechatronics and its implementation, modeling and simulation of complex physical systems, CAD/CAM, with particular emphasis on experimental aspects of robotics, mechatronics and their applications, in the broadest sense. In this respect, skills linked to the IT component required for programming intelligent robotic systems would be a plus. It is also expected that the person recruited will show a marked interest in investing in the medium term in a co-leadership of a typical course in the AR mention.

Contacts

Research:

– Stéphane DONCIEUX, Director (stephane.doncieux@sorbonne-universite.fr)

Teaching:

– Bachelor of EEA: Farouk VALLETTE (farouk.vallette@sorbonne-universite.fr)

– Bachelor of Mechanics: Jean-Camille CHASSAING (jean-camille.chassaing@sorbonne-universite.fr)

– Master SdI Automatic/Robotics: Sylvain ARGENTIERI (sylvain.argentieri@sorbonne- universite.fr)

Download this job offer

As part of the 2025 recruitment campaign for teacher-researchers at Sorbonne Université, which runs from March 4 to April 4, 2025, positions are available with a possible assignment to ISIR. Registrations are made via the Odyssée ministerial portal (which is gradually replacing Galaxie).

CNU Section(s) : 27 – Computer Science

Research

The successful candidate may be assigned to one of the following laboratories: ISIR, LIB, LIMICs, or CQSB.

ISIR is interested in the development of robots and intelligent systems capable of operating autonomously in uncontrolled environments, and interacting as naturally as possible with humans. Autonomy here refers to the ability to cope with a variety of situations that are not necessarily anticipated. The corresponding work focuses in particular on dedicated cognitive architectures or learning methods, whatever the type of learning: with or without gradient, statistical, heuristic or bio-inspired, on an isolated agent or in a social or collective context. Interaction (HMI) can also take a variety of forms (verbal, gestural, etc.), and is based on the design of devices, interfaces and dedicated interaction techniques. The study of these interactions can be carried out in particular from the angle of human learning. The candidate will have to develop methods on one or more of these themes, and will join one of the laboratory’s teams, all of which are potentially concerned by this position.

Education

Training courses concerned : Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in computer science, Sorbonne University

Teaching objectives and supervision requirements:

The person recruited will work in a balanced way on the different levels of training, from L1 to M2. He/she will make a significant contribution to the teaching of the Bachelor’s degree in computer science, whose needs cover the whole discipline (algorithms, programming, discrete mathematics, data structures, systems, architecture, networks, compilation, databases, statistics, etc.). At Master’s level, the person recruited will reinforce the teaching of the various courses in AI and its applications.

Contacts

Research :

– (ISIR) Stéphane DONCIEUX (stephane.doncieux@sorbonne-universite.fr)

Teaching :

– Bachelor of Computer Science: Jean-Lou DESBARBIEUX, Director (jean-lou.desbarbieux@lip6.fr)

– Master of Computer Science: Olivier FOURMAUX, Director (olivier.fourmaux@sorbonne-universite.fr)

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Post-doc “Flexible robotics and digital twins for cardiac surgery”

Context:

This postdoctoral position is part of the RHU-ICELAND project, involving several academic, hospital, and industrial partners. The objective of the project is to develop a new transfemoral mitral valve annuloplasty solution that integrates intracardiac ultrasound imaging and robotics. This approach allows intervention on a beating heart without extracorporeal circulation, offering a mitral valve repair solution for high-risk patients who are ineligible for open-heart surgery and, in the long term, for most patients requiring mitral valve repair.

Direct annuloplasty involves affixing a ring or band directly onto the mitral annulus using anchors under echocardiographic and fluoroscopic guidance. The advantage of this technique is that it constrains the shape of the mitral annulus, closely replicating surgical mitral annuloplasty. The RHU-ICELAND project focuses on two key phases: developing a numerical model of the anatomy and the robotic system used to apply staples to the mitral valve, followed by designing and evaluating the robotic system, which is validated through numerical modelling.

Scientific Objectives:

Initially, the recruited postdoc will focus on the numerical modelling of anatomical structures (veins, heart, mitral valve, etc.). Preliminary work has already been carried out to design a numerical model of the heart and mitral valve with opening and closing cycles. The aim is to enhance this model for greater realism. The model will be used for clinician training, preoperative intervention planning, and validating the geometric, kinematic, and dynamic models of the robotic system (active catheter) during navigation from the entry point (femoral vein) to the target site (facing the mitral valve). The other medium- and long-term goal is to develop a realistic and, above all, patient-specific numerical model, meaning constructing the numerical model based on the patient’s preoperative images.

The recruited candidate will work closely with academic and clinical teams involved in the project, particularly when integrating the research into the final demonstrator. The postdoc will benefit from a stimulating research environment and access to clinical data provided by the project’s clinical and industrial partners. They will also participate in project management (meetings, decision-making, report writing, etc.).

Host Institution:

The recruited candidate will join the Institute of Intelligent Systems and Robotics (ISIR) at Sorbonne University and CNRS (Paris). ISIR is organized into several multidisciplinary teams, including RPI-Bio. Research areas include microrobotics, drones, surgical robotics, bionic prosthetics, social robots, and various intelligent and interactive systems (physical, virtual, or mixed-reality), as well as artificial intelligence. Applications address major societal challenges: health, the industry of the future, transportation, and personal services.

The RPI-Bio team (robotics, perception, and interaction for biomedical applications), to which the postdoc will be attached, conducts research in healthcare robotics on topics such as interactive systems for expert guidance (surgery), perception (visual and haptic), human-machine interfaces, telemedicine, and microrobotics. Recently labelled by Inserm, RPI-Bio has extensive experience in developing advanced robotic solutions for interventional medicine (orthopaedics, neurosurgery, ENT surgery, endovascular interventions, etc.).

Profile Sought:

– Expertise in robotics, mechatronics, simulation, and/or numerical modelling

– Advanced programming skills (C++, MATLAB, Python)

– Proficiency in a numerical simulation library for soft robots (e.g., SOFA) is a plus

– Enthusiasm for interdisciplinary research and a collaborative spirit

General information :

– Supervisors: Lingxiao Xun; Brahim Tamadazte

– Contract start date: as soon as possible

– Contract duration: 12 months, renewable for a further 12 months

– Salary: depending on experience

– Host laboratory: ISIR (Institut des Systèmes Intelligents et de Robotique), Campus Pierre et Marie Curie, 4 place Jussieu, 75005 Paris

Contact person:

Send a single PDF file containing: a CV, a cover letter, and any scientific articles you deem relevant to the application to lingxiao.xun@sorbonne-universite.fr and brahim.tamadazte@cnrs.fr. Please include ‘post-doc rhu’ in the subject line of the email.

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Job title: Post-doc on haptic and multisensory human-computer interactions

Context:

This post-doc is part of the NeuroHCI ANR project. The overall goal of NeuroHCI is to improve human decision making in the physical and digital worlds in interac,ve contexts. There are various scenarios in which a human makes a decision with an interac,ve system. The decision might be about a complex real-world choice assisted by a computer (e.g. medical treatment), the choice of a method to achieve a digital task (e.g. editng a photo with the preferred tool), or the way we decide the best way to perform a haptic interaction.

Missions:

The envisioned scientific approach will rely on optimizing the haptic feedback delivered to the user with relation to vision and hearing by leveraging computational models of multisensory integration. Thus, the scientific activities of the project will revolve around questions including but not limited to:

– How to ensure that the inconsistencies between what the user sees and what the user feels does not break the illusion and how to mitigate their effects on user experience?

– How visuo-haptic inconsistencies influence users’ strategies (e.g. which objects they will decide to interact with) and high-level decision making?

Required profile:

The ideal candidate must have a PhD degree and a strong background in human-computer interaction and/or cognitive science.

Required skills:

– Experience in haptics is a strong plus ;

– Strong skills in Python, Matlab or equivalent ;

– Good knowledge of experimental design, psychophysics and statistics ;

– Excellent publication record ;

– Willingness to work in a multi-disciplinary team ;

– Good communication skills.

General Information:

• Contract start date: at the latest 06/01/2024
• Contract duration: 24 months
• Working time: 100%
• Desired experience: beginner at 4 years old
• Level of studies required: PhD
• Host laboratory: ISIR (Institut des Systèmes Intelligents et de Robotique), Campus Pierre et Marie Curie, 4 place Jussieu, 75005 Paris.

How to apply:

– David Gueorguiev ; david.gueorguiev(at)sorbonne-universite.fr

– Send your application by email, with [name of offer] in the subject line, a CV and a cover letter.

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Post-doc : Learning in robotics, with application to grasping

Context:

During the FET Proactive DREAM project (http://dream.isir.upmc.fr/) has been defined an approach for adaptive robotics based on open-ended learning. The main goal is to allow a robot to learn without requiring a careful preparation by an expert. This approach raises many challenges, notably learning with sparse reward, representation learning (for states and actions), model learning and exploitation, transfer learning, meta-learning and generalization. These topics are considered in simulation, but also on real robotics setup, notably in the context of grasping.

Missions:

This position aims at contributing to these topics in the context of several European projects, in particular SoftManBot, Corsmal, INDEX and Learn2Grasp. Calling upon previous works in the research team, the proposed approaches need to be easy to adapt to different robotic platforms and will thus be applied to different robots (Panda arm from Franka-Emika, Baxter, PR2 or TIAGO, for instance).

Required profile:

Candidates for the position must have a PhD degree in machine learning or related field in which robotics applications (either simulated or real) have been considered.

Required skills:

An excellent background is expected in machine learning as well as an experience in robotics. Excellent programming skills in Python are expected.

General Information: 

• Position Type: Post-doctoral researcher
• Contract duration: 24 months
• Level of education required: PhD
• Remuneration : Remuneration according to experience
• Location: ISIR (Institut des Systèmes Intelligents et de Robotique), Campus Pierre et Marie Curie, 4 place Jussieu, 75005 Paris.

Contact person: 

• Stephane Doncieux
• stephane.doncieux(at)sorbonne-universite.fr
• Send your application by email, with a CV and a cover letter.

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Doctoral, Postdoctoral or research engineer positions for the HCI Sorbonne group (Human Computer Interaction)

Context:

We have multiple postdoctoral and engineering positions in the HCI group (https://hci.isir.upmc.fr) at Sorbonne Université, Paris, France.

Missions:

We are searching for curious minds who want to conduct cutting-edge research at the intersection of HCI with VR, Haptics, Robotics or AI. Possible topics/areas of research are:

• Novel Interaction techniques in VR,
• VR and haptics for gaming or training,
• Computational models for learning, decision making and human performance,
• AI-based recommendation systems.

Some of our previous work in these areas:

• CoVR (UIST21): https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3379337.3415891
• AI-based Recommendation systems (CSCW 21): https://dl.acm.org/doi/abs/10.1145/3476068?sid=SCITRUS
• Adapting UIs with Reinforcement Learning (CHI 21): https://dl.acm.org/doi/abs/10.1145/3411764.3445497
• Mixed Control of Robotic systems (CHI 20): https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3313831.3376795

Required profile:

For the postdoctoral position, a Phd degree in Computer science, HCI or other field related to our research areas is required.

Required skills:

• strong programming and analytical skills,
• strong background in at least one of the following areas (HCI, VR, Haptics, Robotics, AI).

More information : 

• Type of position: Postdoctoral or Research Engineer position
• Start date: as soon as possible
• Duration: 1 to 2 years
• Level of study required: Master 2 (for engineer), PhD (for post-doc)
• Location: ISIR (Institut des Systèmes Intelligents et de Robotique), Campus Pierre et Marie Curie, 4 place Jussieu, 75005 Paris.

Contacts: 

• Gilles Bailly et Sinan Haliyo
• Email : gilles.bailly(at)sorbonne-universite.fr ; sinan.haliyo(at)sorbonne-universite.fr
• Application: Send your application by email, with a CV and a cover letter.
• Application deadline: None

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Internship subject: Modeling the contribution of thalamo-cortical circuits to individual differences in behavioral flexibility

The ability to generate flexible behavioural responses is crucial for survival in complex and dynamic environments. Within a population, behavioural output is typically quite variable, leading to individual choices with differential adaptive values. Understanding the neural bases of these specific behavioural traits is currently a growing issue as it may be a key element to better understand the trajectories that may lead to pathological states.

While past research has largely considered the role of highly evolved brain regions such as the prefrontal cortex, the importance of subcortical regions has been increasingly recognized over the past few years. This is especially true for the mediodorsal thalamus (MD) which has extensive and multiple reciprocal connections with prefrontal areas and especially the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), a well-known key hub for flexible behaviours, making it an important hub for executive functions. Functional dysconnectivity within thalamocortical circuits is associated with many conditions and neuropsychiatric disorders such as Schizophrenia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, ADHD or addiction. But the mechanisms by which these circuits may contribute to behavioral flexibility are still largely unknown.

In this project, we hypothesize that MD-OFC circuits may constitute a key element for understanding the neural underpinnings of variable behavioral output ranging from adaptive to maladaptive decision-making. Our preliminary dataset and model suggest that the MD->OFC functional connection is critical to support efficient flexible behaviour. We thus hypothesize that inter-individual variability in the learning strategy employed depends on the  individual functional endophenotype of this pathway.

In this work, we will first model experimental data collected by our collaborators at the CNRS INCIA in Bordeaux where rats learn to choose between different levers that have different reward probabilities, different uncertainty levels, and subject to abrupt task changes. At a second stage, we will derive theoretical predictions from this modeling work in order to prepare for the new experiments that our collaborators will perform during a new ANR-funded project starting in October 2024. This ANR project also includes PhD funding at ISIR which could start in October 2025 in extension of the present internship.

The current task includes unsignalled abrupt changes to which the animal has to adapt, requiring a constant exploration-exploitation trade-off. The present version of the task is an extension of a task where we have previously shown that dopamine blockade impairs the exploration-exploitation trade-off in rats. Here we will compare an OFC-lesioned group and an MD-lesioned group with a control group, all alternatively facing difficult versus easy task conditions, where the contrast between levers’ reward probability is manipulated to make the best option more or less easy to find.

We predict that OFC lesions will impair rat performance only in the difficult condition, where subcortical structures involved in reward-based learning may be insufficient to learn the task. We will develop alternative computational models which may explain these behavior impairments through the manipulation of different model parameters. We will then simulate these models to verify that they can reproduce rat behavior, and fit them to the experimental data to find the best model. We will then evaluate whether significant model parameters change explain the data. We will finally perform model simulations in novel extensions of the task in order to derive theoretical predictions which could drive future experiments.

Job description:

– Supervisor: Mehdi Khamassi

– Starting date: 01/10/2024

– Duration: 1d/week during S1, full-time during S2 until 30/06/2025

– Level of studies required: M1/engineering

– Host laboratory: ISIR (Institut des Systèmes Intelligents et de Robotique), Campus Pierre et Marie Curie, 4 place Jussieu, 75005 Paris.

Contact person:

– Mehdi Khamassi

– Email : mehdi.khamassi@sorbonne-universite.fr

– Send your application by email, with [internship subject] in the subject line, a CV and a covering letter.

– Application deadline: 30/09/2024

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