PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Maurice Fallon

Maurice Fallon is a robotics researcher whose work connects robot perception, mapping and navigation. He studied Electronic Engineering at University College Dublin and carried out PhD research in acoustic source tracking at Cambridge before joining MIT's Marine Robotics Group and leading perception for its DARPA Robotics Challenge team. He coauthored the Newer College Dataset and a technical overview of CERBERUS, whose team won the DARPA Subterranean Challenge in 2021, then coauthored a chapter on DigiForest's robotics and data analytics for sustainable forestry. Since 2025, he is Professor of Robotics at Oxford and leads the Dynamic Robot Systems Group, which develops navigation and motion-planning algorithms for quadrupeds.

Now at
Oxford Robotics Institute and Wolfson College, University of Oxford

Timeline

  1. By 2012

    UCD engineering and Cambridge PhD

    He studies Electronic Engineering at University College Dublin and carries out PhD research in acoustic source tracking in Cambridge's Engineering Department. After his PhD, he moves to MIT as a postdoctoral researcher.

  2. 2008–2015

    MIT marine robotics and DARPA Challenge

    From 2008 to 2012, he works as a postdoctoral researcher and research scientist in MIT's Marine Robotics Group. From 2012 to 2015, he leads perception for MIT's DARPA Robotics Challenge team, which develops technologies for semi-autonomous humanoid exploration and manipulation in disaster situations.

  3. October 2017

    Oxford research fellowship

    In October 2017, after lecturing at the University of Edinburgh, he moves to Oxford and takes up a Royal Society University Research Fellowship for Dense Visual Perception for Robot Physical Interaction and Tool Use.

  4. 2020

    The Newer College Dataset

    In 2020, he coauthors The Newer College Dataset, which combines handheld LiDAR, inertial and vision data with accurate ground truth to evaluate localization, mapping and reconstruction systems.

  5. 2021

    Team CERBERUS wins in 2021

    In 2021, Team CERBERUS wins the DARPA Subterranean Challenge Final Event. He serves as a principal investigator or co-investigator on the team.

  6. July 2022

    A CERBERUS technical overview

    In July 2022, he coauthors the technical overview of Team CERBERUS; it describes multi-robot perception for localization and mapping, unified exploration path planning and local motion planning.

  7. September 2022–April 2026

    Robotics for DigiForest

    From September 2022 to February 2026, DigiForest brings robotics and data analytics to sustainable forest management, with Oxford planning 3D mapping and algorithms for ANYmal forest exploration. In April 2026, he coauthors a chapter presenting precision forestry through digital technologies and autonomous robotics.

  8. Since 2025

    Professor of Robotics at Oxford

    Oxford promotes him to full Professor of Robotics in 2025; he leads the Dynamic Robot Systems Group at the Oxford Robotics Institute. The group develops algorithms for quadruped navigation and motion planning that improve movement accuracy and smoothness.

Career

  1. Since 2017University of OxfordRoyal Society University Research Fellow, Professor of Robotics
  2. NowOxford Robotics InstitutePrincipal Investigator, Dynamic Robot Systems Group
  3. NowWolfson College, University of OxfordResearch Fellow
  4. 2008–2015Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyPostdoctoral Researcher and Research Scientist, Perception Lead for the DARPA Robotics Challenge team
  5. University of EdinburghLecturer

Education

  1. University College Dublin
  2. University of CambridgePhD

From the biography.

Checked career sources: ori.ox.ac.uk, eng.ox.ac.uk.

Colleagues

People with dated positions at the same organization in the same years.

Sources and credits

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  1. Oxford Robotics Institute | People - Maurice Fallon ori.ox.ac.uk. Checked 27 October 2026.
  2. Royal Society announces University Research Fellowships for 2017 | Royal Society royalsociety.org. Checked 27 October 2026.
  3. [2003.05691] The Newer College Dataset: Handheld LiDAR, Inertial and Vision with Ground Truth arxiv.org. Checked 27 October 2026.
  4. Team CERBERUS Wins the DARPA Subterranean Challenge: Technical Overview and Lessons Learned arxiv.org. Checked 27 October 2026.
  5. Oxford Robotics Institute | Projects - Digiforest ori.ox.ac.uk. Checked 27 October 2026.
  6. Transforming forest management with robotics - DigiForest eng.ox.ac.uk. Checked 27 October 2026.
  7. DigiForest: Digital Analytics and Robotics for Sustainable Forestry arxiv.org. Checked 27 October 2026.
  8. Maurice Fallon - People - Engineering Science Department eng.ox.ac.uk. Checked 27 October 2026.