Robert Riener, Ph.D.

Robert Riener studied Mechanical Engineering at TU München, Germany, and University of Maryland, USA. He received a Dr.-Ing. degree in Engineering from the TU München in 1997. After postdoctoral work at Politecnico di Milano and TU München, he became assistant professor at ETH Zurich and University Hospital Balgrist in 2003. In 2010 he has been promoted to full professor for Sensory-Motor Systems, ETH Zurich. Since 2012, Riener is member of the Department of Health Sciences and Technology, which he was chairing 2016 – 2018. Riener has published more than 400 peer-reviewed journal and conference articles, 20 books and book chapters and filed 23 patents. He has received 19 personal distinctions and awards. Riener’s research focuses on the investigation of the sensory-motor interactions between humans and machines. This includes the development of user-cooperative robotic devices and virtual reality technologies applied to neurorehabilitation. Riener is the initiator and organizer of the Cybathlon, which was honored with the European Excellence Award and the Yahoo Sports Technology Award.