Daniele Leonardis

His research topics include the development and testing of novel miniaturized actuators for tactile rendering, encompassing the creation of new actuation and motion transmission principles aimed at miniaturizing wearable devices and enhancing the quality and richness of tactile feedback. An important application of these wearable interfaces, and another key aspect of his research, involves introduction of haptic devices in clinical neurorehabilitation settings. The developed scenarios include rehabilitative exercises presented to patients in the form of serious games, which are clinically tested on neurological patients, including children with Cerebral Palsy.

In the field of robotic teleoperation, his research aims to integrate tactile feedback into broader robotic systems, including active upper-limb exoskeletons with force feedback, and mechanical upper-limb trackers designed for natural and reliable control of remote robots in complex manipulation tasks. In these scenarios, he explores methods and actuators derived from fine tactile feedback research to introduce essential tactile information, not conveyed by conventional force feedback systems.

In the area of wearable interfaces for hand and fingers, an important line of his research focuses on the development of rigid and soft exoskeletal devices for motor assistance, particularly for applications involving spinal and neurological patients. His research explores new principles for applying and distributing actuation forces within the parallel or soft structure of the device, ensuring both user comfort and the effective application of the intense forces required for hand mobilization. He experiments these actuated exoskeletons in the clinical setting, a crucial step in assessing the real effectiveness of these devices.

Regarding applied research for the industry and service areas, he develops mobile robots for remote inspection of critical infrastructures. The primary application area is the railway sector, with applied research projects focused on robotic systems for line and undercarriage inspection of railway vehicles. Research results have carried to the founding of a spin-off company (of which he is founder and member), specialized in advanced robotic solutions for remote and supervised inspection in the railway field.

His research lines have developed through activities performed in national and European research projects, he both participated in and supervised as scientific responsible. He was the coordinator and scientific lead of the TELOS project, completed in 2024, which focused on the development and multicenter clinical testing of miniaturized haptic interfaces in immersive virtual reality for the rehabilitation of children with Cerebral Palsy. He is currently the scientific responsible for SSSA in the European SUN project, which explores augmented reality and tactile feedback, being also the Promoter of a clinical study for upper limb rehabilitation within the project.

He actively participates and contributes as Associate Editor in the main international scientific conferences in haptics (IEEE Haptics Symposium, World Haptics, Eurohaptics), with a strong interest in disseminating research results through hands-on demonstrations, that directly engage the involved audience. Through these demonstrations, he regularly contributes both to scientific conferences as well as STEM events open to the general public.