Rwik Rana

Hello,

I am Rwik Rana.

A Robotics Engineer 

I am a Ph.D. student at the UT Austin, working with Prof. Joydeep Biswas in the Autonomous Mobile Robotics Laboratory (AMRL).

My research focuses on unifying controls and perception. I design algorithms that combine model-based structure with model-free learning and use representation learning to capture task-relevant state for control. The goal is dependable autonomy in unstructured settings—particularly off-road and field robotics—where dynamics, terrain, and sensing can be highly variable. I am also interested in whole-body control for humanoids and high-DoF mobile platforms.

Rwik Rana - Profile Image 2Rwik Rana - Profile Image 1

Research

  • Rwik Rana, Jesse Quattrociocchi, Dongmyeong Lee, Christian Ellis, Amanda Adkins, Adam Uccello, Garrett Warnell, Joydeep Biswas

    Robotics: Science and Systems 2025 Workshop on Resilient Off-road Autonomous Robotics

    Paper Link →

  • Dongmyeong Lee, Jesse Quattrociocchi, Christian Ellis, Rwik Rana, Amanda Adkins, Adam Uccello, Garrett Warnell, Joydeep Biswas

    Robotics: Science and Systems 2025 Workshop on Resilient Off-road Autonomous Robotics

    Paper Link →

  • Jacob Sacks, Rwik Rana, Kevin Huang, Alex Spitzer, Guanya Shi, and Byron Boots

    International Conference for Robotics and Automation (ICRA) 2024, CoRL Workshop 2023

    Paper Link →

  • Kevin Huang*, Rwik Rana*, Alex Spitzer, Guanya Shi, Byron Boots

    Conference on Robot Learning (CoRL) 2023

    Paper Link →

  • Suraj Borate, Rwik Rana, Praveen Venkatesh, Madhu Vadali

    Journal of Mechanisms and Robotics

    Paper Link →

  • Barat S, Rwik Rana, Sushrut Surve, Madhu Vadali, Harish J. Palanthandalam Madapusi

    ASME Journal of Dynamic Systems, Measurement, and Control

    Paper Link →

  • Rwik Rana*, Praveen Venkatesh*, Varun Jain*

    21st International Conference on Image Analysis and Processing (ICIAP) 2021

    Paper Link →

  • Neel Patel*, Rwik Rana*, Deepesh Kumar, Nitish V. Thakor

    Frontiers in Robotics and AI

    Paper Link →

News

  • September 2026

    Displayed our robots at Austin Community Day - Photo 🎈

  • June 2025

    OVerSeeC wins runners up at the ROAR workshop @ Robotics: Science and Systems (RSS) 2025! 🏆

  • June 2025

    Delivered a spotlight talk on OVerSeeC at ROAR workshop @ Robotics: Science and Systems (RSS) 2025! 🗣️

  • Aug 2024

    Started working at Autonomous Mobile Robotics Lab @ UT, advised by Prof. Joydeep Biswas

  • Aug 2024

    Started PhD in Computer Science at University of Texas at Austin 🤘🏾

  • Jul 2024

    Graduated from University of Washington 🎓

  • Sep 2022

    Started working at Robot Learning Lab @ UW advised by Prof. Byron Boots and Prof. Guanya Shi

  • Sep 2022

    Started M.S in Mechanical Engineering at University of Washington, Seattle 🗻

  • Jun 2022

    Recieved Dean's List in 6 Semesters for securing more than 8.5 CGPA per semester at IIT Gandhinagar 📜

  • June 2022

    Awarded Institute's Silver Medal for Academic Performance during my time at IIT Gandhinagar 🏅

  • June 2022

    Awarded Directors Silver Medal for Outstanding Overall Performance during my time at IIT Gandhinagar 🏅

  • June 2022

    Graduated from IIT Gandhinagar with B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering Major and Dual Minors in Computer Science and Robotics 🎓

  • August 2019

    Completed Explorer's Fellowship. Covered 16 States over 40 days on a budget of just Rs. 37800 ($500) 🗺️ - Video

  • May 2019

    Started working at SysIDEA Lab @ IIT Gandhinagar advised by Prof. Harish Palanthadalam Madapusi

  • July 2018

    Started B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering at Indian Insitute of Technology, Gandhinagar

  • Dec 2000

    Hello World();

Get In Touch

I'm always open to discussing new projects, creative ideas, or opportunities. Feel free to reach out.