“The Power of Partnership” Ridge & Valley Chapter Conference
October 15 – October 16
Our 3rd Annual Unmanned Systems Symposium in Blacksburg, VA
“The Power of Partnership”
At the Inn at Virginia Tech
Summary: Unmanned system technologies are rapidly maturing into indispensable tools for civil service, commerce, science, and security. These tools are increasingly connected to one another, and to the human workers they support, creating partnerships that offer fantastic new opportunities — and new technical challenges. Other sorts of partnerships have emerged to address these challenges and opportunities – from industry/government/academic consortia to externally funded entrepreneurial ventures. Come meet with us this Fall in the beautiful New River Valley as we discuss the latest advances in unmanned systems.
Tuesday Keynote Speaker: Ryan Eustice, PhD, Senior Vice President of Automated Driving, Toyota Research Institute (TRI)
In addition to his role as VP of Automated Driving at TRI, Dr. Eustice serves on Michigan Governor Rick Snyder’s “Council on Future Mobility,” a state government regulatory policy advisory board, and he directs the Perceptual Robotics Laboratory (PeRL) at the University of Michigan. Dr. Eustice received a Ph.D. from the MIT/WHOI Joint Program in Ocean Engineering in 2005 and was a Postdoctoral Research Scholar at Johns Hopkins University. Best known for his work in advancing large-scale simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM), including the visual mapping of the RMS Titanic, Dr. Eustice is a past recipient of the prestigious NSF CAREER and ONR Young Investigator awards.
Wednesday Keynote Speaker: Bala Ganesh, PhD, Vice President, Advanced Technology Group, UPS
Bala Ganesh leads the Advanced Technology Group at UPS, overseeing efforts to apply cutting edge technologies to create UPS’ Smart Logistics Network. Ganesh previously directed marketing strategy for UPS’s retail and consumer goods segment. He joined UPS in 2012 as product manager supporting UPS My Choice and social media/mobile integration within the company’s Customer Technology Management group. Prior to joining UPS, Ganesh was responsible for strategy development and mergers and acquisitions with the healthcare procurement company, MedAssets. From 2006 to 2010, he led consulting project teams for McKinsey & Co. Ganesh has also worked as a researcher at the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he earned a PhD in Aerospace Engineering and an MBA. Early in his career, Bala was a pilot in the Indian Air Force.
http://auvsiridgeandvalley.org/event/ridge-valley-auvsi-chapter-conference-2/