Professor Robert Deaves FREng FLSW

Senior Principal Engineer, Dyson; Honorary Professor, University of Birmingham

Professor Rob Deaves has made outstanding contributions to robotics research, development and academia-industry collaboration. He pioneered industrial research into SLAM (the navigation algorithm that has become the bedrock of robotics), providing the first industry-based UK demonstration of decentralised SLAM at BAE Systems Sowerby Research Centre.

He was the robotic systems architect driving force for the 360Heurist, the second Dyson automated vacuum cleaner on sale globally and the most sophisticated mass-market consumer robot designed in the UK. Through his vast industrial experience, he provides unprecedented support for academia-industry ventures, by chairing institutional sponsored projects, advising on research and providing teaching support for universities across the UK. This has been recognised through awards of RAEng Visiting Professor at Imperial College London and Honorary Professor at the School of Engineering, Birmingham University.