PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Timothy D. Barfoot

Also known as Tim Barfoot

Timothy Barfoot studies navigation that lets mobile robots repeat routes in mines and for planetary rovers. He earned a BASc in engineering science from the University of Toronto in 1997 and an aerospace PhD in 2002, then spent four years at MDA Space Missions before joining the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies in May 2007. In 2016 his group described visual teach and repeat, in which a person drives a route once and the robot follows it from a camera, and he published State Estimation for Robotics in 2017, with a second edition in 2024. He directed autonomous systems at Apple from 2017 to 2019, and he is a professor at the University of Toronto and, since July 2026, director of its Institute for Aerospace Studies.

Works
341

Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 17 October 2026. Citations and h-index are hidden because this OpenAlex record may be incomplete or mix in other authors.

Timeline

  1. 1997–2002

    Aerospace degrees in Toronto

    He earns a BASc in engineering science from the University of Toronto in 1997 and an aerospace PhD in 2002.

  2. May 2007

    Rover navigation at MDA

    He spends four years at MDA Space Missions developing autonomous navigation for planetary rovers and underground mining, then begins at UTIAS in May 2007.

  3. 2016

    Visual teach and repeat

    In 2016, his team describes visual teach and repeat: a person drives a safe route while the robot logs visual information from a camera, and the robot then repeats the route.

  4. 2017–2024

    A state estimation textbook

    He publishes State Estimation for Robotics in 2017, and a second edition appears in 2024.

  5. 2017–2019

    Autonomous systems at Apple

    He serves as director of autonomous systems at Apple from 2017 to 2019.

  6. 2020

    An IEEE fellowship

    In 2020, he is elected a Fellow of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society for contributions to mobile robot navigation.

  7. 2024–2025

    A lunar cargo rover

    In December 2024, he and Alec Krawciw trial autonomy on the Canadian Space Agency's Lunar Exploration Light Rover. In September 2025, with a team led by MDA Space, they develop navigation for Canada's proposed Lunar Utility Vehicle between cargo drop-off points.

  8. Since July 2026

    Director of UTIAS

    He is promoted to professor in 2016. In 2025, he becomes director of the Robotics Institute, and in July 2026 he becomes director of the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies.

Sources and credits

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  1. Timothy D. Barfoot - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org. Checked 16 October 2026.
  2. Tim Barfoot – Australian Centre for Robotic Vision web.archive.org. Checked 16 October 2026.
  3. Visual Route Following for Mobile Robots (Tim Barfoot, University of Toronto) | Events | Imperial College London imperial.ac.uk. Checked 16 October 2026.
  4. U of T Engineering research lets mobile robots drive themselves - U of T Engineering News news.engineering.utoronto.ca. Checked 16 October 2026.
  5. ASRL // Autonomous Space Robotics Laboratory asrl.utias.utoronto.ca. Checked 16 October 2026.
  6. Appointment of Director, Institute for Aerospace Studies - Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering engineering.utoronto.ca. Checked 16 October 2026.
  7. Professor Tim Barfoot elected an IEEE Fellow - U of T Engineering News news.engineering.utoronto.ca. Checked 16 October 2026.
  8. Tim Barfoot elected IEEE Fellow - University of Toronto Robotics Institute robotics.utoronto.ca. Checked 16 October 2026.
  9. University of Toronto researchers developing advanced autonomy algorithms for cargo transportation on the moon - U of T Engineering News news.engineering.utoronto.ca. Checked 16 October 2026.