December 12, 2024
Lawrence Grossberg Distinguished Professor Ron Alterovitz was named to the IEEE Fellow Class of 2025. Alterovitz was recognized for contributions to medical steerable needles and motion planning for medical robots.
Elevation to IEEE Fellow is reserved for the most accomplished researchers in scientific disciplines. The grade of Fellow “recognizes unusual distinction in the profession and is reserved for a person with an outstanding record of accomplishments in any of the IEEE fields of interest. The accomplishments that are being honored have contributed importantly to the advancement or application of engineering, science and technology, bringing the realization of significant value to society at large.“
The Fellow grade is the highest level of membership, and candidates must be nominated by peers in their field. Membership is conferred by the IEEE board of directors in recognition of a high level of demonstrated extraordinary accomplishment.
Alterovitz has led the Computational Robotics research group since he joined the Department of Computer Science in 2009. His research focuses on enhancing the autonomy of robots by developing learning and motion planning algorithms. In particular, much of his work has enabled robots to autonomously perform new, less invasive medical procedures and assistive tasks in homes and workplaces.
Alterovitz has co-authored a book on motion planning in medicine and is co-inventor on three U.S. patents related to medical robotics. In 2019, he received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, which is the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government on outstanding scientists and engineers beginning their independent careers.
More information about the IEEE Fellow Program can be found on the IEEE website. The full list of 2025 IEEE Fellows is available as a PDF document.