Tayfun Efe Ertop

Biography

2024-Present
Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering
The University of Tennessee, Knoxville

2023-2024
Research Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering
Vanderbilt University

2017-2023
Graduate Research & Teaching Assistant, Department of Mechanical Engineering
Vanderbilt University

2015-2017
Graduate Research & Teaching Assistant, Department of Mechanical Engineering
Middle East Technical University

2014-2015
R&D Robotics Engineer
BAMA Technology, METU Technopark, Turkey

Education

• PhD, Mechanical Engineering, Vanderbilt University, 2023
• MS, Mechanical Engineering, Middle East Technical University, 2017
• BS, Mechanical Engineering, Middle East Technical University, 2014

Research

• Soft & Continuum Robots
• Surgical Robotics
• Sensing, Actuation, and Control Methods
• Bio-inspired Robotics

Professional Service

• Member of IEEE and ASME.

Awards and Recognitions

• Best Presentation Award, VISE Annual Surgery, Intervention, and Engineering Symposium, Vanderbilt University, 2020
• Best Paper Finalist, ASME Dynamic Systems and Control Conference, 2020
• Engineering Graduate Fellowship, Vanderbilt University, 2017-2018
• Graduate Student Fellowship, The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey, 2014-2017

Publications

• A. Kuntz, M. Emerson, T. E. Ertop, I. Fried, M. Fu, J. Hoelscher, M. Rox, J. Akulian, E. A. Gillaspie, Y. Z. Lee, F. Maldonado, R. J. Webster III, and R. Alterovitz, “Autonomous Medical Needle Steering In Vivo”, Science Robotics. vol. 8, no. 82, 2023.
• T. E. Ertop, M. Emerson, M. Rox, J. Granna, F. Maldonado, E. Gillaspie, M. Lester, A. Kuntz, C. Rucker, M. Fu, J. Hoelscher, I. Fried, R. Alterovitz, and R. J. Webster III, “Steerable Needle Trajectory Following In The Lung: Torsional Deadband Compensation And Full Pose Estimation With 5DOF Feedback For Needles Passing Through Flexible Endoscopes”, ASME Dynamic Systems and Control Conference (DSCC), 2020.
• M. Emerson, J. Ferguson, T. E. Ertop, M. Rox, J. Granna, M. Lester, F. Maldonado, E. Gillaspie, R. J. Webster III, and A. Kuntz, “A Recurrent Neural Network Approach to Orientation Estimation for Needle Steering”, International Symposium on Experimental Robotics (ISER), 2021.
• M. Rox, M. Emerson, T. E. Ertop, I. Fried, M. Fu, J. Hoelscher, A. Kuntz, J. Granna, J. Mitchell, M. Lester, F. Maldonado, E. A. Gillaspie, J. A. Akulian, R. Alterovitz, and R. J. Webster III, “Decoupling Steerability from Diameter: Helical Dovetail Laser Patterning for Steerable Needles”, IEEE Access, vol. 8, pp. 181411-181419, 2020.
• T. E. Ertop, J. F. d’Almeida, E. Amanov, J. Shrand, N. Nimmagadda, S. Setia, N. L. Kavoussi, S. D. Herrell III, and R. J. Webster III, “Towards Suturing From Within the Urethra Using Concentric Tube Robots: First Experiences in Biological Tissues”, International Symposium on Medical Robotics (ISMR), 2022.
• E. Amanov, D. S. Ropella, N. Nimmagadda, T. E. Ertop, J. E. Mitchell, N. L. Kavoussi, R. J. Hendrick, N. Dillon, E. Blum, S. D. Herrell III, and R. J. Webster III, “Transurethral Anastomosis after Transurethral Radical Prostatectomy: A Phantom Study on Intraluminal Suturing With Concentric Tube Robots”, IEEE Transactions on Medical Robotics and Bionics, vol. 2, no. 4, pp. 578-581, 2020.
• M. F. Rox, D. S. Esser, M. E. Smith, T. E. Ertop, M. Emerson, F. Maldonado, E. A. Gillaspie, A. Kuntz, and R. J. Webster III, “Toward Continuum Robot Tentacles for Lung Interventions: Exploring Folding Support Discs”, IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, vol. 8, no. 6, pp. 3494-3501, 2023.
• D. S. Esser, E. McCabe, T. E. Ertop, A. Kuntz, and R. J. Webster III, “Directional Stiffness-Switching Soft Robots via Phase-Changing Metallic Spines”, IEEE International Conference on Soft Robotics (RoboSoft), 2024.
• E. McCabe, D. S. Esser, T. E. Ertop, A. Kuntz, and R. J. Webster III, “Combining Thermoelectrics and Low Melting Point Alloys to Create Reconfigurable Stiff-Compliant Manipulators”, IEEE International Conference on Soft Robotics (RoboSoft), 2024.
• J. Ferguson, T. E. Ertop, S. D. Herrell III, and R. J. Webster III, “Unified Robot and Inertial Sensor Self-Calibration”, Robotica, vol. 41, no. 5, pp. 1590-1616, 2023.