Tayfun Efe Ertop

Assistant Professor

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

Research

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

Education

PhD, Mechanical Engineering, Vanderbilt University, 2023

MS, Mechanical Engineering, Middle East Technical University, 2017

BS, Mechanical Engineering, Middle East Technical University, 2014

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.