Pinhas Ben-Tzvi
Professor
- Thrust Area Specialty: Robotics, Autonomous, and Dynamical Systems
Pinhas Ben-Tzvi

465 Goodwin Hall – 0238
635 Prices Fork Road
Blacksburg, VA 24061
635 Prices Fork Road
Blacksburg, VA 24061
Research Interests
- Autonomous mobile robots with symbiosis of mobility and manipulation and modular and reconfigurable mobile robotics for search and rescue and hazardous environment sensing and monitoring
- Design of intelligent biomimetic robotic tails for robust dynamic stabilization and agile maneuvering of mobile robots on rough terrain
- Autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) launch and recovery from naval vessels, and wireless telemetry systems for remote sensing and monitoring in naval applications
- Development and testing of co-operative scalable field robots for casualty extraction and evacuation in hazardous environments (e.g., disaster response; the aftermath of a chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear (CBRN) event)
- Haptics devices and upper-extremity exoskeletons for robot control and rehabilitation therapy
- Novel sensors and actuators for biomedical applications
Advanced medical devices and robotic systems for precision surgery
See Dr. Ben-Tzvi's publications and research on Google Scholar.
- 2020–Present, Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Virginia Tech
- 2015–2020, Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Virginia Tech
- 2014–2015, Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering, George Washington University
- 2008–2014, Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering, George Washington University
- 2008–Present, Founder and Director, Robotics and Mechatronics Lab (RML)
- 2006–2008, Lecturer, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Toronto
- 2006–2008, Consultant, Mobile Robots Division, Engineering Services Inc., Toronto, Canada
- 2002–2008, Graduate Research Assistant, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Toronto
- 2000–2002, R & D Mechanical Engineer, General Electric Medical Systems
- 1998–2000, Research Assistant, Technion – Israel Institute of Technology
- 1993–1996, First Sergeant, Israeli Air Force Academy
- 2013, IJCAS Academic Activity Award
- 2013, GW SEAS Outstanding Young Researcher Award
- 2013, GW SEAS Outstanding Young Teacher Award
- 2012, IEEE Senior Member
- 2011, COMSOL Best Paper Award
- 2009, Pi Tau Sigma Faculty Honorary Membership
- 2009, Feature Journal Publication, Sensors & Transducers Journal
- 2008, Robotdalen Scientific Award, Honorable Mention, Eskilstuna, Sweden
- 2008, Governor General’s Gold Medal Award of Canada – Finalist
- 2007, Best Student Paper Award, IEEE ROSE
- 2002–2008, University of Toronto Open Fellowship
- 2000, Summa Cum Laude, B. Sc. in Mechanical Engineering
- 1998–2000, President’s Honors List Award, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology
- 1996–1998, Dean’s Honors List Award, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology
- 1998, Award of Outstanding Academic Achievements, Ministry of Education, Israel
- Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering, University of Toronto, 2008
- M.S., Mechanical Engineering, University of Toronto, 2004
- B.S., Mechanical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, 2000