Human Robot Systems Lab

The Human Robot Systems (HRS) Laboratory is part of the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Our mission is to advance how humans and robots learn to guide the physical interactive behavior of one another. To achieve this, our research aims to:

(1) develop new methods of describing human motor behavior that are compatible for robot control, (2) understand and improve how humans learn models of robot behavior, and (2) develop robot hardware and controllers to enhance human-robot physical interaction.

This highly interdisciplinary research lies at the intersection of robotics, dynamics, controls, human neuroscience, and biomechanics.

HRSL/UMILL Active Compliance Footwear Technology

Most Recent Publications

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Price, M., Robbins, C., Szemethy, S., Abdikadirova, B., Olson, G., Hoogkamer, W., & Huber, M. E. (2025). Adjustable compliance footwear technology to investigate gait adaptation. IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, 10(12), 13352-13358.

Download Adjustable compliance footwear technology to investigate gait adaptation Download Visit https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/11230520 External Site

Zhang, K. K., Locurto, D., Belden, M., Price, M., Kearney, C. J., & Huber, M. E. (2025). Around the ThermoClock: A Precision Automated Temperature Control System for Ex Vivo Circadian Studies. MethodsX, 103717.

Download Around the Thermoclock: A precision automated temperature control system for ex vivo circadian studies Download Visit https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2215016125005618 External Site

Price, M. A., Schell, E., Jaramillo, J. M., Chiasson, J., Metsker, L., Huber, M. E., & Hoogkamer, W. (2025, Preprint). Weight-bearing symmetry changes after asymmetric surface stiffness walking. bioRxiv, 2025-05.

Visit https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.05.16.654517v1 External Site

Price, M., Locurto, D., Abdikadirova, B., Huber, M. E., & Hoogkamer, W. (2024). Design and characterization of the AdjuSST: an adjustable surface stiffness treadmill. IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics.

Download Design and characterization of the AdjuSST: an adjustable surface stiffness treadmill Download Visit https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/10816726 External Site

Ghonasgi, K., Higgins, T., Huber, M.E., & O'Malley, M. (2024). Crucial hurdles to achieving human-robot harmony. Science Robotics, 9, eadp2507.

Download Crucial hurdles to achieving human-robot harmony Download Visit https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/scirobotics.adp2507 External Site

Interested in Undergraduate Research?

Want to get involved in cutting-edge human-centered robotics research? If you're an undergraduate student looking for research opportunities in HRSL, fill out the form below to express your interest!

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April 15, 2026

The University of Massachusetts Amherst will host the New England Manipulation Symposium (NEMS) 2026 on June 16–17, 2026, bringing together researchers from across the Northeast working in robot manipulation. The symposium focuses on topics including mechanisms, control, learning, perception, planning, and benchmarking for manipulation systems.

February 2, 2026

Banu Abdikadirova, a PhD candidate in mechanical and industrial engineering in the Riccio College of Engineering and member of the Human Robot Systems Laboratory, has been named a Groundbreaking Graduate Student at UMass Amherst! This award honors master’s and doctoral students whose outstanding research, scholarship and creative activity are making a real-world impact.

October 1, 2025

Dr. Meghan Huber and Dr. Donghyun Kim, along with colleagues Dr. Wouter Hoogkamer in Kinesiology and Dr. Nathan Wycoff in Mathematics and Statistics, received $490,000 from the U.S. National Science Foundation to define the primary mathematical components of human running.