Past Winner
2022 NSERC Arthur B. McDonald Fellowships

Angela Schoellig is at the helm of an internationally leading research group developing learning and adaptation capabilities for mobile robots. Currently, robot learning algorithms are proficient at learning single tasks in predictable environments, and are typically operated on fixed-mounted robot arms. However, self-teaching artificial intelligence (AI) systems like those being honed by Schoellig and her team will be capable of moving through a space, adapting to changing circumstances and learning complex new tasks that require interactions with the environment – a critical leap for next-generation robotic systems. The next generation is ready for it, too: Schoellig already has strong collaborations with academic and industry partners in order to transfer this technology to fields such as transportation, construction, mining, inspection, and environmental monitoring.
 
Schoellig’s lab is well known throughout the world as a place that rigorously tests algorithms using real robots, often in challenging outdoor conditions including open-pit mines in Africa,  the airspace of downtown Montréal, a mockup city for self-driving research in Michigan and the Mars Emulation Terrain at the Canadian Space Agency. Schoellig herself is passionate about science communication and engaging with the next generation of engineers, both as a mentor to her graduate students and as a keynote speaker at Girls in STEM events.

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