About Brittany Duncan, Ph.D.

I am the Ross McCollum Associate Professor in the School of Computing at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. I am a co-Director of the NIMBUS Lab, where we study unmanned systems (with a focus on aerial robotics). I was awarded an NSF Early Faculty Career Award (CAREER) to continue studying foundational interactions between novice users and small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. I completed my Ph.D. at Texas A&M University, studying field robotics and human-robot interaction through the Center for Robot-Assisted Search and Rescue.

My research is focused at the intersection of Artificial Intelligence, Human-Robot Interaction, and Unmanned Systems. My long-term research goal is to advance the state-of-the-art in human-drone interaction so that small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (sUAVs) can comfortably and safely interact in proximity to a variety of people and communicate with them in a natural and efficient way across varying contexts (see Smithsonian Magazine, June 2014). I approach interactions with small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles through an exploration of behavior-based robotics and cognitive science principles. Additionally, I have been involved in extensive fieldwork through environmental applications of drones with NIMBUS (including ongoing collaborations in Alaska and Costa Rica), as well as urban search and rescue at the Center for Robot-Assisted Search and Rescue including 6 exercises and a deployment in 2014 to the SR-530 mudslides in Oso, Washington.

Brittany Duncan has disclosed a significant financial interest in Drone Amplified, Inc. In accordance with its Conflict of Interest policy, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Conflict of Interest in Research Committee has determined that this must be disclosed.