After a brief digression into management and economics (for which I still have an ever-present fondness), I pursued a BSc. in Computer Engineering at UAL, with a focus on security and networks. There, I developed a low-cost firewall using a Raspberry Pi, supervised by Dr. Mário Marques da Silva, President of the Sciences and Technology department.
Later on, I obtained a MSc. in Information Systems and Computer Engineering at IST, specializing in both Intelligent Robotics and Artificial Intelligence. During this time, I joined the research lab INESC-ID to accomplish my thesis under the supervision of Dr. Luís Veiga, our MSc. Degree Coordinator. I was tasked on behalf of Bridge Robotics, an innovative robotics startup, with researching a novel cloud robotics middleware capable of intelligent behavior and real-time resource optimization. This led me to discover the field of cloud robotics and study at the intersection of Robotics and AI.
Looking to advance the transformation of society I contributed over three insightful years to the landscape of warehouse automation at Ocado Group. Where, after helping develop a collaborative humanoid robot designed to pro-actively assist technicians with the help of AI (combining deep learning and computer vision), I investigated novel aproaches for robotic pick&place of groceries using single-arm and bimanual robots.
Seeking to further specialise in the operationalisation of algorithms I joined giffgaff, voted best mobile operator in the United Kingdom 5 years in a row. As the lead for machine learning engineering, I now help ensure our AI-powered solutions keep benefiting and serving our millions of members. Nevertheless, unable to resist the itch of research, in particular the pull towards bringing sentience to artificial systems, I embarked on a part-time doctorate at the University of York. Under close supervision from Dr. Simon O'Keefe I investigate under-studied biological processes in spiking neural networks.
SecondHands : A Humanoid Robot Assistant For Industrial Maintenance Tasks. (2018-2020)
Hydrolix : Hydraulics Asset Management Platform. (2018) FAST-Bact : A Novel Flow Cytometry Antimicrobial Susceptibility Fast-Bact Test. (2017)Biologically-plausible Spiking Neural Networks: inspirations from neuroscience.
Double specialization in Intelligent Robotics and Artificial Intelligence.
Emphasis on Security and Networks.
Triantafyllou P.*, Afonso Rodrigues R.*, Chaikunsaeng S.*, Almeida D., Deacon G., Konstantinova J., Cotugno G. (2021). Robotics & Automation Magazine, Special Issue on Emerging Paradigms for Robotic Manipulation. IEEE 2021.
Afonso Rodrigues R. (2017). Master of Science in Information Systems and Computer Engineering. Instituto Superior Técnico.
Afonso Rodrigues R., Veiga L. (2017). 4th International Conference on Cloud and Robotics. ICCR 2017 [accepted].
Afonso Rodrigues R. (2016). White paper. UDC.
Paradeda R.B., Hashemian M., Afonso Rodrigues R., Paiva A. (2016). Social Robotics, 8th International Conference. ICSR 2016.