WATANABE Masahiro

Updated:
Affiliation

Robotics Research Unit for Disaster Response in Narrow Space （Robotics）

Position
Researcher
Final Education
Tokyo Institute of Technology, Graduate School of Engineering, Department of Control Engineering.
Degree(s)
Ph.D. (Engineering)
Research Keywords
Rescue Robots, Robot Mechanisms, Soft Mechanisms, Soft Robotics, Actuators
Research Area
Informatics / Mechanics and mechatronics /, Informatics / Robotics and intelligent systems /
External Link
KAKEN researchmap

Academic Affiliations

  • The Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers
  • The Robotics Society of Japan
  • The Society of Instrument and Control Engineers
  • Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers 

No information.

Patents / Industrial Property Rights

  • Kenjiro Tadakuma, Satoshi Tadokoro, Kazunori Ohno, Yoshito Okada, Masahiro Watanabe, Hiroki Fujikura, and Toshi Takamori, “Aircraft Takeoff and Landing System, Takeoff and Landing Device for Aircraft, and Aircraft,” Japanese Patent Application No. 2019-147748, Japanese Patent Publication No. 2021-028202, Japanese Patent No. 6789558, filed August 9, 2019, registered November 6, 2020; International Application No. PCT/JP2020/029415, filed July 31, 2020, International Publication No. WO2021/029233 A1.
  • Masahiro Watanabe, Hiroki Fujikura, Kenjiro Tadakuma, Yoshito Okada, Kazunori Ohno, and Satoshi Tadokoro, “Passive Guidance Mechanism and Aircraft Landing System,” Japanese Patent Application No. 2020-037383, Japanese Patent Publication No. 2021-138274, Japanese Patent No. 7466890, filed March 5, 2020; International Application No. PCT/JP2021/003523, filed February 1, 2021, International Publication No. WO2021/176914 A1.
  • Masahiro Watanabe, Issei Onda, Tomoya Takahashi, and Kenjiro Tadakuma, “Variable-Stiffness Deformable Body and Variable-Stiffness Mechanism,” Japanese Patent Application No. 2021-020338, Japanese Patent Publication No. 2022-123192, Japanese Patent No. 7546912, filed February 12, 2021, registered August 30, 2024. 

Peer-Reviewed Papers

  • “Stable Insertion of Push-Driven Slender Articulated Robots Through Sequential Unilateral Bending Using Preloaded Passive Joints,” Hiro Nakamura, Masahiro Watanabe, Kenjiro Tadakuma, and Satoshi Tadokoro, IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, Early Access, pp. 1–8, 2026.
  • “Extreme High Step Climbing: Nonlinear Analysis of a Highly-Deformable-Tracked Robot,” Yu Ozawa, Masahiro Watanabe, Kenjiro Tadakuma, and Satoshi Tadokoro, IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics, Vol. 28, No. 2, pp. 1002–1012, 2023.
  • “Hardware Design and Tests of Two-Wheeled Robot Platform for Searching Survivors in Debris Cones,” Masahiro Watanabe, Yu Ozawa, Kenichi Takahashi, Tetsuya Kimura, Kenjiro Tadakuma, Giancarlo Marafioti, and Satoshi Tadokoro, 2022 IEEE International Symposium on Safety, Security, and Rescue Robotics (SSRR), pp. 277–284, 2022. 

Lectures / Oral Presentations, etc.

  • JSME Young Engineers Award (Research), The Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers, 2026.
  • 18th Kisoi Motohiro Award for Technical Achievement, International Rescue System Institute, 2023.
  • 34th Research Encouragement Award, The Robotics Society of Japan, 2019.
  • IEEE Robotics and Automation Society Japan Joint Chapter Young Award, IEEE Robotics and Automation Society Japan Joint Chapter, 2017. 

Awards

  • 日本機械学会奨励賞（研究），日本機械学会，2026年．
  • 第18回競基弘賞 技術業績賞，国際レスキューシステム研究機構，2023年．
  • 第34回 日本ロボット学会研究奨励賞，日本ロボット学会，2019年．
  • IEEE Robotics and Automation Society Japan Joint Chapter Young Award，IEEE Robotics and Automation Society Japan Joint Chapter，2017年． 

Visiting Professor at Other Universities, etc.

  • Tohoku University, Visiting Associate Professor 

No information.

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