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Interaction with the Physical World

Advances in low- and no-power sensing, communication and interaction technologies offer new possibilities for blending digital innovation with our physical environment. 

From gesture recognition that allows people to interact with objects in new ways, to low-power sensors that collect and transmit data about temperature, air quality, urban accessibility and more, our researchers are tapping into the potential of computation to transform how we experience the world around us.


Research Groups & Labs

Robot Learning lab cover photo of robotic warthog/all terrain vehicle driving in the snow

Robot Learning Lab

The Robot Learning Lab works on foundational research in machine learning, AI and robotics to develop intelligent robotic systems that can perceive, plan and act in complex environments and improve performance with experience.

Street scene overlaid with color-coded object recognition labels for depicted car, bicycle, vegetation, utility pole, and manhole cover

Makeability Lab

The Makeability Lab specializes in Human-Computer Interaction and applied machine learning for high-impact problems in accessibility, computational urban science, and augmented reality.


Allen School Faculty

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Centers & Initiatives

The Transportation Data Equity Initiative (TDEI) aims to enhance the quality and accessibility of travel services by building open source data collection and vetting tools, transportation data digital infrastructure, and governance frameworks that enable public-private data sharing and interoperability. The TDEI is a project sponsored by The Complete Trip, an ITS4US Deployment Program.

DFab is a network of researchers, educators, industry partners, and community members advancing the field of digital fabrication at UW and in the greater Seattle region.

Highlights


Fast Company

Allen School professor Jon Froehlich talks about how Project Sidewalk empowers communities by crowdsourcing data on pedestrian infrastructure, from curb ramps to broken pavement, to improve accessibility.

UW News

A team led by Allen School professor Vikram Iyer and Ph.D. student Zhihan Zhang published a paper in Nature Electronics describing a system that can assemble life cycle assessments, or LCAs, for electronic devices in about a minute with the help of AI agents.

Allen School News

Professor Magda Balazinska was honored for her influential contributions in data management and data science, while Professor Shwetak Patel was recognized for his groundbreaking work applying computing to health and sustainability.