• [Jun, 2025] An abstract of the ManiFeel paper has been accepted to the COMPARE Workshop at RSS 2025. The work will be presented on June 25th, 2025, at USC in Los Angeles, USA.
• [Jun, 2025] An abstract of the ManiFeel paper has been accepted for the oral presentation at New England Manipulation Symposium (NEMS 2025), MIT Stata Center, Cambridge, MA.
• [Jun, 2025] Presented our latest ManiFeel paper at the 2025 Midwest Robotics Workshop at TTIC.
• [Oct, 2024] I am excited to begin a postdoctoral position at Purdue University, where I will continue my research on multimodal robotic perception and learning.
• [Aug, 2024] I successfully defended my PhD thesis, “Large-area Multimodal Soft Sensing Skin for Human-Robot Interaction”, at JAIST, Japan.
• [May, 2024] I am honored to be selected as part of the RSS Pioneers cohort and will attend the RSS Pioneers 2024 on July 14, 2024, at TU Delft, Delft, Netherlands.
• [Mar, 2024] I am honored to have been awarded the JSPS Research Fellowship for Young Scientists (DC2), which I am starting in April 2024.

ManiFeel: Benchmarking and Understanding Visuotactile Manipulation Policy Learning

Quan Khanh Luu*, Pokuang Zhou*, Zhengtong Xu*, Zhiyuan Zhang, Qiang Qiu, Yu She

under review, 2026

[arXiv] [Website] [Video]

ManiFeel presents a reproducible and scalable simulation benchmark for studying supervised visuotactile policy learning.

Vision-based Proximity and Tactile Sensing for Robot Arms: Design, Perception, and Control

Quan Khanh Luu, Dinh Quang Nguyen, Nhan Huu Nguyen, Nam Phuong Dam, Van Anh Ho

IEEE Transaction on Robotics (T-RO), 2025

[Paper] [Code] [Website] [Video] [BibTex]

Based on our previous work on ProTac, this study enhances its multi-modal sensing performance and control integration for safer, more versatile robot operation in contact-rich environments.

Vi2TaP: A Cross-Polarization Based Mechanism for Perception Transition in Tactile-Proximity Sensing with Applications to Soft Grippers

Nhan Huu Nguyen, Nhat Minh Dinh Le, Quan Khanh Luu, Tuan Tai Nguyen, Van Anh Ho

IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters (RA-L), 2025

[Paper] [Video] [BibTex]

This study introduces Vi2TaP, a cross-polarization-based multimodal soft gripper that seamlessly switches between tactile and proximity sensing.

TacLink-Integrated Robot Arm toward Safe Human-Robot Interaction

Quan Khanh Luu, Alessandro Albini, Perla Maiolino, Van Anh Ho

IROS 2024

[Paper] [Code] [Video] [BibTex]

This study explores the use of TacLink, a soft vision-based tactile link, as a safety control mechanism that can potentially replace conventional rigid robot links and impact observers.

ConTac: Continuum-Emulated Soft Skinned Arm with Vision-based Shape Sensing and Contact-aware Manipulation

Tuan Tai Nguyen, Quan Khanh Luu, Dinh Quang Nguyen, Van Anh Ho

RSS 2024

[Paper] [Code] [Website] [Video] [BibTex]

This study introduces ConTac, a vision-based tactile sensing system for continuum-emulated robot arms with soft skin, enabling posture and contact detection.

Simulation, Learning, and Application of Vision-Based Tactile Sensing at Large Scale

Quan Khanh Luu, Nhan Huu Nguyen, Van Anh Ho

IEEE Transaction on Robotics (T-RO), 2023

[Paper] [Code] [Video] [BibTex]

This study introduces SimTacLS, a physics-informed simulation and learning pipeline designed for large-area soft vision-based tactile sensors.

Soft Robotic Link with Controllable Transparency for Vision-based Tactile and Proximity Sensing

Quan Khanh Luu, Dinh Quang Nguyen, Nhan Huu Nguyen, Van Anh Ho

IEEE RoboSoft 2023

[Paper] [Code] [Website] [Video] [BibTex]

This study presents ProTac, a novel soft robotic link with integrated tactile and proximity sensing.

Tombo Propeller: Bioinspired Deformable Structure Toward Collision-Accommodated Control for Drone

Son Tien Bui, Quan Khanh Luu, Dinh Quang Nguyen, Nhat Minh Dinh Le, Giuseppe Loianno, Van Anh Ho

IEEE Transaction on Robotics (T-RO), 2023

[Paper] [Code] [Website] [Video] [BibTex]

This study introduces Tombo, a soft deformable propeller, and demonstrates a control strategy enabling drones with Tombo to recover from midair collisions and resume flight.

A 3-Dimensional Printing System Using an Industrial Robotic Arm

Quan Khanh Luu, Hung Manh La, Van Anh Ho

IEEE/SICE SII 2021

[Paper] [Video] [BibTex]

This study introduces robot-assisted 3D printing on complex surfaces, paving the way for seamless human-robot collaboration in interactive manufacturing.

Wet Adhesion of Micro-patterned Interfaces for Stable Grasping of Deformable Objects

Pho Van Nguyen, Quan Khanh Luu, Yuzuru Takamura, Van Anh Ho

IROS 2020

[Paper] [Video] [BibTex]

Inspired by tree frogs, this study showcases a micro-patterned soft gripper pad that enables stable, damage-free manipulation of wet deformable objects in robotic food handling.