SVEN CREMER

ROBOTICIST

Electrical Engineering Ph.D., University of Texas at Arlington

MyPicture

Hello, I am Sven from Germany. I grew up in Sweden, and have been living in the United States for the past 10 years.

My passion is robotics and automation. I have an academic foundation in physics, electrical engineering, computer science, and mathematics, as well as hands-on experience with numerous software and hardware tools.

In September 2017, I received my doctorate degree in electrical engineering with a focus on control systems from the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA). At UTA, I conducted research in the Next Generation Systems (NGS) group headed by Professor Dan O. Popa and worked on projects involving human-machine interfaces, assistive robotics, neuroadaptive control, and robot skin.

- Sep 2017

  • github
  • linkedin
  • youtube
  • print

I am fluent in German, Swedish, and English.                                         Germany     Sweden     United States

Since the age of five, I have been an avid computer user and as a result I am very familiar with the operating systems Mac OS, Windows, and Linux (Ubuntu). I am proficient in several programming languages, with C++ being my backbone. Over the years I have used open source libraries such as Boost, Eigen, and KDL. I also have experience working with Python, Java, Object-C, and Labview. I have used MATLAB and Simulink for almost a decade, including several toolboxes for control, signal processing, neural networks, perception, and robotics. For mathematics and cryptography, Maple has been a good complement. In electrical engineering, I have learned to use the circuit tools PSpice, Quartus II, Eagle, and SiLabs. Additionally, I have learned assembly with the Intel 8051 microcontroller.

For software related work, I use the Eclipse integrated development environment (IDE) and Git version control. I also have some exposure to continuous integration (CI) tools such as Drone.io. For project and team management, I have started to use the web-based tool Trello, which is based on the Kanban scheduling system. To professionally present my work, I am fully conversant with Microsoft Office and LaTeX.

Despite the exposure to a multitude of software tools, I would consider myself a hands-on person who likes to build prototypes and materialize challenging ideas. I am competent with hand and power tools, as well as electrical tools and equipment, including signal generators, oscilloscopes, digital multimeters, and DC/AC voltage supplies.

In 2012, I was introduced to the Robot Operating System (ROS) that has been the center of my life ever since. I have cycled through the versions Fuerte, Groovy, Hydro, and I am now working with Indigo. I have used the Gazebo simulator and many packages, including MoveIt!, openni, and realtime_tools.

PR2 Baxter KUKA youBot TurtleBot DR20

I have intensely worked with the ROS platforms PR2 (Personal Robot 2), Baxter, KUKA youBot, TurtleBot, and Labo3. This includes designing and performing experiments for research papers, but also software maintenance, disassembly for repairs, and hardware upgrades. Finally, I have also worked on the DR20 (Dragon Runner 20), which is running software developed by QinetiQ.

A list of my courses and grades can be found here.

  • Electrical Engineering STEM doctoral fellowship, UT Arlington (Aug 2013 – Present)
  • Outstanding Senior – Department of Mathematics, U. of the Pacific (May 2010)
  • Phi Beta Kappa (2010)
  • Outstanding Graduate in Engineering Physics, U. of the Pacific (April 2010)
  • Tau Beta Pi (2008)
  • School of Engineering and Computer Science Dean’s Award, U. of the Pacific (2008)
  • Dean’s Honor Roll, U. of the Pacific (2006-2010)
2012-2017

University of Texas at Arlington

Arlington, TX

  • Department of Electrical Engineering
  • GPA: 4.00, 20 units (undergraduate level)
  • GPA: 4.00, 23 units coursework + 54 units research (graduate level)
2010-2011

Southern Methodist University

Dallas, TX

  • Graduate studies in Electrical Engineering
  • GPA: 3.90, 9 units
2006-2010

University of the Pacific

Stockton, CA

  • B.S., double major in Engineering Physics and Applied Mathematics
  • Completed four-year Honors Program
  • GPA: 3.95, 155 units
2005-2006

Ripon High

Ripon, CA

  • Completed senior year
  • Graduating GPA: 4.14
2003-2005

Sigrid Rudebecks Gymnasium

Göteborg, Sweden

  • Among the top high schools in Sweden
2016

SkinSim 2.0

Lead Developer

SkinSim is an open-source simulation environment for multimodal robot skin available at https://bitbucket.org/nextgensystems/skinsim. It is a useful tool for designing large tactile sensor arrays and simulating physical Human-Robot Interaction scenarios.

Dec 2014 - May 2015

2015 ICRA Amazon Picking Challenge

Team leader of Plocka Packa

This was an international competition in which participants had to build hardware and develop software that autonomously picked items from a shelf and placed them in an order bin. This required solving problems related to perception, planning, manipulation, error detection, and error correction. The competition was held May 26-28 in Seattle at the 2015 International Conference in Robotics and Automation (ICRA). More info under http://amazonpickingchallenge.org.

Aug 2013 - Oct 2013

Skyball XI

Lead Developer

During two very intense months, I developed a software package that allowed the PR2 to serve as an interim waiter by pouring wine for Sky Ball guests. The fundraising event took place in the American Airlines Hangar at DFW International Airport on Oct 5th and honored US military service members, veterans, and their families. Nearly 3,000 people attended.
May 2013 - Sep 2014

UT Arlington Research Institute

PR2 Superuser

I was responsible for the care and management of UT Arlington’s PR2, which is a $400,000 mobile robot with two 7 DOF arms. My work included software administration, repairs, hardware upgrades, and training of new users. I also developed and performed new demos for visitors and events.

April 2013 - May 2015

UTARI & QinetiQ North America

Research Assistant

This was a collaboration between the UT Arlington’s Research Institute (UTARI) and QinetiQ North America (QNA). The project ran under the title “Advanced Human-Machine Interfaces and Assistive Robot Platforms”. My task was to research and develop new technology to enhance the usability of Human-Machine Interfaces for the next generation of assistive/service robots. My tasks also involved writing quarterly reports, creating presentations and videos, and conducting demos. The work was done under the supervision of Professor Dan Popa.

Feb 2013 - Aug 2013

NGS & Sellmark Corporation

Research Assistant

As a member of the NGS group at UT Arlington, I helped Sellmark to automate their riflescope impact tester. I designed the motor mount and chain drive system, power management, and the LabVIEW integration of servo drive and accelerometer.