About Me

I am an Associate Professor of Robotics in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. My research focuses on fundamental problems involving the planning, learning, and control of robot motion tasks. I am the Principal Investigator of The Robotics and Machine Intelligence Laboratory.

Academic and Research History

  • Associate Professor, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, 2023–Present.
  • Programme Leader, MSc in Intelligent Robotics Engineering (IRE), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, 2025–Present.
  • Fellow, Institute for Higher Education Research and Development (IHERD), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, 2023–2026.
  • Investigator, Research Institute for Smart Ageing (RISA), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, 2021–Present.
  • Principal Investigator, The Robotics and Machine Intelligence Laboratory, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, 2018–Present.
  • Assistant Professor, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, 2017–2023.
  • Visiting Researcher, Institute for Cognitive Systems, Technical University of Munich, Germany, 2019.
  • Visiting Professor, COSMER Laboratory, University of Toulon, France, 2019.
  • Research Assistant Professor, T Stone Robotics Institute, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2015–2017.
  • Postdoctoral Fellow, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2014–2015.

Academic and Professional Qualifications

  • Senior Member, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), elevated in 2019.
  • Doctor of Philosophy Degree, The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), 2014
  • Master's Degree, Centre for Research and Advanced Studies (CINVESTAV), 2008
  • Bachelor of Engineering Degree, National Technological Institute of Mexico, 2003

Journal Editorship

Research and Supervision

I welcome applications from prospective PhD students from engineering disciplines, computer science, applied mathematics, or related fields. All candidates must apply through our competitive scholarship frameworks, where to be funded, they must possess:

  • Very high bachelor's GPA > 3.7/4 obtained from a top-ranked university in your home country,
  • Excellent track record in robotics research (e.g., as demonstrated by publications in top conferences/journals),
  • Research-based master's degree (students without postgraduate studies won't be considered).

Interested candidates must send the following 3 documents: (1) Detailed CV; (2) PDFs of your publications; (3) Portfolio (a slides-like presentation demonstrating relevant experience).

PhD Students (Graduation Year, Experience)

  • Zeyu Zhou
  • Ning Han
  • Yuan Tian
  • Yuexuan Xu
  • Jinsong Wu
  • Fangyuan Wang
  • Shipeng Lyu
  • Hui Zhi
  • Gu Gong
  • Bin Zhang
  • Luiza Labazanova (2025 with attachment at Imperial, UK)
  • Shengzeng Huo (2025 with attachment at SJTU, China)
  • Hoi-Yin Lee (2024 with attachment at Bristol Robotics Lab, UK)
  • Wanyu Ma (2023 with attachment at TUM, Germany)
  • Peng Zhou (2022 with attachment at KTH, Sweden)
  • Muhammad Muddassir (2022 with attachment at Southampton Univ, UK)
  • Omar Zahra (2021 with attachment at DTU, Denmark)
  • Maria Victorova (2021 with attachment at TUM, Germany)

Selected Publications from our Students

Student authors are underlined.

  • Fangyuan Wang, Anqing Duan, Peng Zhou, Shengzeng Huo, Guodong Guo, Chenguang Yang, and David Navarro-Alarcon. Explicit-Implicit Subgoal Planning for Long-Horizon Tasks With Sparse Rewards. IEEE Transactions on Automation Science and Engineering, 2025. DOI
  • Gu Gong, Fuji Hu, Fangyuan Wang, Muhammed Muddassir, Peng Zhou, Lu Li, Qiang Wang, Zhen He, and David Navarro-Alarcon. TEVIO: Thermal-Aided Event-Based Visual–Inertial Odometry for Robust State Estimation in Challenging Environments. IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement, 2025. DOI
  • Célia Saghour, David Navarro-Alarcon, Philippe Fraisse, and Andrea Cherubini. Dual-Arm Shaping of Soft Objects in 3D Based on Visual Servoing and Online FEM Simulations. The International Journal of Robotics Research, 2024. DOI
  • Hui Zhi, Bin Zhang, Jiaming Qi, Jose Guadalupe Romero, Xiaodong Shao, Chenguang Yang, and David Navarro-Alarcon. Non-Prehensile Object Transport by Nonholonomic Robots Connected by Linear Deformable Elements. IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, 2024. DOI
  • Bin Zhang, Hui Zhi, Jose Guadalupe Romero, Luiza Labazanova, Anqing Duan, Xiang Li, and David Navarro-Alarcon. Fourier-Based Multi-Agent Formation Control to Track Evolving Closed Boundaries. IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems I: Regular Papers, 2023. DOI
  • Hoi-Yin Lee, Peng Zhou, Bin Zhang, Liuming Qiu, Bowen Fan, Anqing Duan, Jingtao Tang, Tin Lun Lam, and David Navarro-Alarcon. A Distributed Dynamic Framework to Allocate Collaborative Tasks Based on Capability Matching in Heterogeneous Multi-Robot Systems. IEEE Transactions on Cognitive and Developmental Systems, 2023. DOI
  • Luiza Labazanova, Shuang Peng, Liuming Qiu, Hoi-Yin Lee, Thrishantha Nanayakkara and David Navarro-Alarcon. Self-Reconfigurable Soft-Rigid Mobile Agent with Variable Stiffness and Adaptive Morphology. IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, 2023. DOI
  • Wanyu Ma, Bin Zhang, Lijun Han, Shengzeng Huo, Hesheng Wang, and David Navarro-Alarcon. Action Planning for Packing Long Linear Elastic Objects Into Compact Boxes With Bimanual Robotic Manipulation. IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics, 2022. DOI
  • Luyin Hu, David Navarro-Alarcon, Andrea Cherubini, Mengying Li and Lu Li. On Radiation-Based Thermal Servoing: New Models, Controls and Experiments. IEEE Transactions on Robotics, 2022. DOI
  • Muhammed Muddassir, Domingo Gomez Dominguez, Luyin Hu, Shujian Chen and David Navarro-Alarcon. Robotics Meets Cosmetic Dermatology: Development of a Novel Vision-Guided System for Skin Photo-Rejuvenation. IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics, 2022. DOI
  • Maria Victorova, Michael Lee, David Navarro-Alarcon and Yongping Zheng. Follow the Curve: Robotic Ultrasound Navigation with Learning-Based Localization of Spinous Processes for Scoliosis Assessment. IEEE Access, 2022. DOI
  • Jiaming Qi, Guangfu Ma, Jihong Zhu, Peng Zhou, Yueyong Lyu, Haibo Zhang and David Navarro-Alarcon. Contour Moments Based Manipulation of Composite Rigid-Deformable Objects with Finite Time Model Estimation and Shape/Position Control. IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics, 2021. DOI
  • Shengzeng Huo, Bin Zhang, Muhammed Muddassir, David TW Chik and David Navarro-Alarcon. A Sensor-Based Robotic Line Scan System with Adaptive ROI for Inspection of Defects over Convex Free-form Specular Surfaces. IEEE Sensors Journal, 2021. DOI
  • Jihong Zhu, David Navarro-Alarcon, Robin Passama and Andrea Cherubini. Vision-based Manipulation of Deformable and Rigid Objects Using Subspace Projections of 2D Contours. Robotics and Autonomous Systems, 2021. DOI
  • Peng Zhou, Rui Peng, Maggie Xu, Victor Wu and David Navarro-Alarcon. Path Planning with Automatic Seam Extraction over Point Cloud Models for Robotic Arc Welding. IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, 2021. DOI
  • Omar Zahra, David Navarro-Alarcon and Silvia Tolu. A Neurorobotic Embodiment for Exploring the Dynamical Interactions of a Spiking Cerebellar Model and a Robot Arm During Vision-based Manipulation Tasks. International Journal of Neural Systems, 2021. DOI
  • David Navarro-Alarcon 😏, Yun-Hui Liu, Jose Guadalupe Romero and Peng Li. Model-free Visually Servoed Deformation Control of Elastic Objects by Robot Manipulators. IEEE Transactions on Robotics, 2013. DOI

Contact Information

Email: dnavar [æ] polyu [ð] edu [ð] hk

Office Address: FG638, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong

Phone: (+852) 2766 7816