Ravinder Dahiya

Ravinder Dahiya
Born
India
Alma materKurukshetra University (BE)
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (M.Tech, 2001)
Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia / University of Genoa (PhD)
Known forElectronic skin, flexible electronics, robotic tactile sensing
AwardsIEEE Fellow (2020)
Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (2022)
IEEE Sensors Council Technical Achievement Award (2016)
Scientific career
FieldsFlexible electronics, electronic skin, tactile sensing, robotics
InstitutionsNortheastern University
University of Glasgow
Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia
Websitersdahiya.com

Ravinder Dahiya is an Indian-born electrical engineer and roboticist who is a Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Northeastern University.[1] He is known for his multidisciplinary research on electronic skin, flexible and printed electronics, tactile sensing, and their applications in robotics, prosthetics, and wearable systems.[2] He is a Fellow of the IEEE, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, and served as President of the IEEE Sensors Council (2022–2023).[3][2]

Education

Dahiya received his Bachelor of Engineering in electrical engineering from Kurukshetra University, his M.Tech in electrical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi in 2001, and his doctorate in humanoid technologies from the Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia and the University of Genoa.[2][4]

Career

Following his doctorate, Dahiya was a Marie Curie Fellow at the Fondazione Bruno Kessler in Trento, Italy.[5] Following this he was researcher at University of Cambridge and from there he joined the University of Glasgow as a faculty member in the James Watt School of Engineering, where he became Professor of Electronics and Nanoengineering and an Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Research Fellow. At Glasgow, he directed the Electronics Systems Design Centre (ESDC) and led the Bendable Electronics and Sensing Technologies (BEST) research group.[2]

Dahiya subsequently joined Northeastern University as Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, where he continues to lead the BEST group.[1]

Research

Electronic skin

Dahiya's research centres on electronic skin (e-skin) — flexible sensor arrays that mimic the sense of touch. In 2017, his group at Glasgow demonstrated a graphene-based solar-powered electronic skin for prosthetic hands, a development covered by Reuters.[6] His group also developed a solar-powered e-skin that uses an array of miniaturised solar cells for both energy generation and touch sensing, eliminating the need for dedicated touch sensors.[7][8]

In 2022, his group published work demonstrating a printed neuromorphic e-skin with synaptic transistors that enabled a robotic hand to sense stimuli and process tactile data locally, analogous to the human peripheral nervous system. The work was covered by Scientific American, the University of Glasgow, and The Tribune.[9][10][11]

Flexible and printed electronics

Dahiya's group works on fabricating electronic devices on unconventional substrates such as plastics and paper using printing and transfer techniques. His research has addressed high-performance printed transistors on biodegradable substrates for transient electronics, contact-transfer printing methods, and energy harvesting devices on textiles and plant surfaces.[1] He has also investigated the environmental implications of transient electronics, finding that some biodegradable devices break down into harmful microplastics rather than fully dissolving.[1]

Robotics and AI

Dahiya co-authored "A roadmap for AI in robotics".[1] His broader work spans soft robotics, haptics, and intelligent interactive systems, with applications in prosthetics, wearable health monitoring, and autonomous underwater vehicles.[2]

Professional service

Dahiya served as President of the IEEE Sensors Council (2022–2023).[2] He is the editor-in-Chief of npj Flexible Electronics (Nature Portfolio). He was the founding editor-in-chief of the IEEE Journal on Flexible Electronics from 2022 to 2023.[2] He has served as a Distinguished Lecturer of the IEEE Sensors Council and on the editorial boards of IEEE Sensors Journal and IEEE Transactions on Robotics.[2] He is a member of the IEEE Board of Directors, serving as Director of Division X, which comprises nine societies and councils of IEEE.[2]

Selected publications

  • Dahiya, Ravinder S.; Valle, Maurizio (2013). Robotic Tactile Sensing: Technologies and System. Springer. ISBN 978-94-007-0578-4.
  • Dahiya, Ravinder S.; Metta, Giorgio; Valle, Maurizio; Sandini, Giulio (2010). "Tactile Sensing—From Humans to Humanoids". IEEE Transactions on Robotics. 26 (1): 1–20. doi:10.1109/TRO.2009.2033627.
  • Dahiya, Ravinder S. (2019). "Large Area Soft eSkin: The Challenges Beyond Sensor Designs". Proceedings of the IEEE. 107 (10): 2016–2033. doi:10.1109/JPROC.2019.2941366.
  • Dahiya, Ravinder S.; Mittendorfer, Philipp; Valle, Maurizio; Cheng, Gordon; Lumelsky, Vladimir J. (2013). "Directions Toward Effective Utilization of Tactile Skin: A Review". IEEE Sensors Journal. 13 (11): 4121–4138. doi:10.1109/JSEN.2013.2279056.

Honours and awards

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f "Ravinder Dahiya". Northeastern University College of Engineering. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Get to Know the IEEE Board of Directors". IEEE Spectrum. 2025-11-19. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  3. ^ a b "Professor Ravinder Dahiya". Royal Society of Edinburgh. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  4. ^ "Indian-origin engineer gives robots near-human 'skin'". New India Abroad. 2023-12-04. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  5. ^ Dahiya, Ravinder S.; Valle, Maurizio (2013). Robotic Tactile Sensing: Technologies and System. Springer. ISBN 978-94-007-0578-4.
  6. ^ "Skin powered by the sun: energy-saving prosthetic limbs get better feeling". Reuters. 2017-03-23. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  7. ^ Dhar, Payal. "Solar-based Electronic Skin Generates Its Own Power". IEEE Spectrum. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  8. ^ "Energy-generating synthetic skin for affordable prosthetic limbs and touch-sensitive robots". Tech Xplore. 2020-11-30. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  9. ^ "Electronic Skin Lets Humans Feel What Robots Do—and Vice Versa". Scientific American. June 30, 2022. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  10. ^ "E-skin that can feel pain could create new generation of touch-sensitive robots". University of Glasgow. 2022-06-01. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  11. ^ "Indian-origin engineer's UK team creates e-skin that can feel 'pain'". The Tribune. 2022-06-02. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  12. ^ "Awards". IEEE Sensors Council. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
  13. ^ "Stellar Indian American Engineers Among the Latest Group of IEEE Fellows". India-West. 2019-12-16. Retrieved 2026-02-18.
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