Orchestrating Multi-Robot Collaboration: From Aerial Drones to Heavy Machinery

Plenary talk at the 17th Multidisciplinary International Student Workshop (MISW 2026), held at the Institute of Science Tokyo on 3–4 August 2026.

The talk traced a line through my work on multi-robot coordination — from coverage control for drone teams building 3D maps, through to coordinated planning for autonomous excavation with fleets of heavy machinery — and what carries over between the two: how you decide who goes where, and how you keep the whole fleet safe while they do it.