Proceedings to be published by Springer LNCS

**Latest news: Selection of best papers to be invited for inclusion in a special issue of the IOP 
Science journal Bioinspiration and Biomimetics

Submission deadline for paper submissions: 20th February 2012 

Submit your paper at http://senldogo0039.springer-sbm.com/ocs/home/LM2012

(12th March for Workshop proposals)

______________________________________________________________

 

ABOUT LIVING MACHINES 2012

The development of future real-world technologies will depend strongly on our understanding and 
harnessing of the principles underlying living systems and the flow of communication signals 
between living and artificial systems. 

Biomimetics is the development of novel technologies through the distillation of principles from 
the study of biological systems. The investigation of biomimetic systems can serve two 
complementary goals. First, a suitably designed and configured biomimetic artefact can be used to 
test theories about the natural system of interest. Second, biomimetic technologies can provide 
useful, elegant and efficient solutions to unsolved challenges in science and engineering. 
Biohybrid systems are formed by combining at least one biological component—an existing living 
system—and at least one artificial, newly-engineered component. By passing information in one or 
both directions, such a system forms a new hybrid bio-artificial entity. 


The development of either biomimetic or biohybrid systems requires a deep understanding of the 
operation of living systems, and the two fields are united under the theme of “living machines”—the
idea that we can construct artefacts, such as robots, that not only mimic life but share the same 
fundamental principles; or build technologies that can be combined with a living body to restore 
or extend its functional capabilities.  

Biomimetic and biohybrid technologies, from nano- to macro-scale, are expected to produce major 
societal and economical impacts in quality of life and health, information and communication 
technologies, robotics, prosthetics, brain-machine interfacing and nanotechnology. Such systems 
should also lead to significant advances in the biological and brain sciences that will help us to 
better understand ourselves and the natural world. The following are some examples: 

•      Biomimetic robots and their component technologies (sensors, actuators, processors) that 
can intelligently interact with their environments.

•      Active biomimetic materials and structures that self-organize and self-repair.

•      Biomimetic computers—neuromimetic emulations of the physiological basis for intelligent 
behaviour.

•      Biohybrid brain-machine interfaces and neural implants.

•      Artificial organs and body-parts including sensory organ-chip hybrids and intelligent 
prostheses.

•     Organism-level biohybrids such as robot-animal or robot-human systems.

 

ACTIVITIES

The main conference, 10th–12th July, will take the form of a three-day single-track oral and poster
presentation programme that will include six plenary lectures from leading international researchers 
in biomimetic and biohybrid systems.  

The proceedings of the conference will be published in the Springer Lecture Notes in Computer 
Science (LNCS). Submissions will be in the form of full papers or extended abstracts. 

Submissions are also invited for an exhibition to feature working biomimetic or biohybrid systems 
and biomimetic/biohybrid art.  

Active researchers in biomimetic and biohybrid systems are also invited to propose topics for 1-day
tutorials or workshops on related themes, to be held on the 9th July.

Plenary speakers are: Joseph Ayers (Northeastern University) on synthetic neuroethology; Dieter 
Braun (Ludwig Maximilians University) on synthetic life, Peter Fromherz (Max Plank Institute) on 
neuroelectronic hybrids; Toshio Fukuda (Nagoya University) on micro-nano biomimetic and biohybrid 
devices; David Lentink (Stanford University)  on fluid dynamics of flight; and Barry Trimmer 
(Tufts University) on soft, invertebrate-inspired robots.

 

ABOUT THE VENUE

The organisers are delighted to have secured La Pedrera (www.lapedreraeducacio.org/) as the venue 
for our conference.  La Pedrera, designed by the modernist, nature-inspired Catalan architect 
Antoni Gaudi, is a world heritage site, and one of the best known buildings in Barcelona.  The 
conference will make use of the modern conference facilities provided by the La Pedrera Auditorium,
whilst the exhibition will take place in the adjacent Gaudi Hall.  La Pedrera is located within 
the fashionable Eixample district and within walking distance of Barcelona’s old city, including 
the Gotic quarter, the cathedral, and the Playa Catalunya. The workshops/tutorial day will be 
hosted at the University Pompeu Fabra, Campus Poblenou.

 

SUBMITTING TO LIVING MACHINES 2012

We invite both full papers (12 pages, LNCS format) and extended abstracts (2 pages, LNCS format). 
All contributions will be refereed. Full papers are invited from researchers at any stage in their 
career but should present significant findings and advances in biomimetic or biohybid research; 
more preliminary work would be better suited to extended abstract submission. Full papers will be 
accepted for either oral presentation (single track) or poster presentation. Extended abstracts 
will be accepted for poster presentation only.  All submissions must be formatted according to 
Springer LNCS guidelines (http://www.springer.com/computer/lncs?SGWID=0-164-6-793341-0).

Submissions of papers are invited in, but not limited to, the following topics and related areas. 

Biomimetics can, in principle, extend to all fields of biological research from physiology and 
molecular biology to ecology, and from zoology to botany. Promising research areas include system 
design and structure, self-organization and co-operativity, new biologically active materials, 
self-assembly and self-repair, learning, memory, control architectures and self-regulation, 
movement and locomotion, sensory systems, perception, and communication. Biomimetic research, 
particularly at the nano-scale, should also lead to important advances in component miniaturisation,
self-configuration, and energy-efficiency.  A key focus of the conference will be on complete 
behaving systems in the form of biomimetic robots that can operate on different substrates on sea,
on land, or in the air. A further central theme will be the physiological basis for intelligent 
behaviour as explored through neuromimetics—the modelling of neural systems. Exciting emerging 
topics within this field include the embodiment of neuromimetic controllers in hardware, termed 
neuromorphics, and within the control architectures of robots, sometimes termed neurorobotics. 

Biohybrid systems usually involve structures from the nano-scale (molecular) through to the 
macro-scale (entire organs or body parts). Important implementation examples are: Brain-machine 
interfaces where neurons and their molecular machineries are connected to microscopic sensors and 
actuators by means of electrical or chemical communication, either in vitro or in the living 
organism. Intelligent prostheses such as artificial limbs, wearable exoskeletons, or sensory 
organ-chip hybrids (such cochlear implants, and artificial retina devices) designed to assist 
the disabled or elderly, or to aid in rehabilitation from illness. Implantable or portable devices 
that have been fabricated for monitoring health care or for therapeutic purposes such as artificial
implants to control insulin release. Biohybrid systems at the organism level such as robot-animal 
or robot-human communities.

Contributions from biologists, neuroscientists, and theoreticians, that are of direct relevance to 
the development of future biomimetic or biohybrid devices are also welcome, as are papers 
considering ethical issues and/or societal impacts arising from the advances made in this field.

 

DEADLINES

February 20th 2012. Paper submission deadline

March 12th  2012. Workshop and tutorial proposals (but please contact us sooner if possible)

April 16th 2012. Notification of acceptance

April 30th 2012. Camera ready copy

July 9-12th 2012. Conference (9th July is workshops/tutorials)

 

SPONSORSHIP

Living Machines 2012 is sponsored by the Convergent Science Network (CSN) for Biomimetic and 
Biohybrid Systems which is an EU FP7 Future Emerging Technologies Co-ordination Activity 
(FP7-ICT-CSN-248986). CSN currently organises two highly successful workshop series: the Barcelona 
Summer School on Brain, Technology and Cognition (http://bcbt.upf.edu/bcbt11/) and the Capoccaccia 
Neuromorphic Cognitive Engineering Workshop (http://capocaccia.ethz.ch/capo/wiki/2011).  The 
conference is delighted to be associated with the Institute of Physics journal Biomimetics & 
Bioinspiration who will have a stand at meeting.

Other organisations wishing to sponsor the conference in any way and gain the corresponding 
benefits by promoting themselves and their products to through conference publications, the 
conference web-site, and conference publicity are encouraged to contact the conference organisers 
to discuss the terms of sponsorship and necessary arrangements.

 

We are looking forwards to seeing you in Barcelona. 

 

Conference Secretariat:

info.csnetwork@upf.edu

Laboratory Of Synthetic Perceptive, Emotive And Cognitive Systems - SPECS

Institute Of Audio-Visual Studies (IUA)

Universitat Pompeu Fabra 

Communication-Poblenou Campus (La Nau Building)

Postal address: Roc Boronat, 138. 08018 Barcelona

Phone: (34) 93 542 22 01

Fax: (34) 93 542 22 02

  

Organising Committee:

Tony Prescott (co-chair)

Paul Verschure (co-chair)

Giacomo Indiveri

Stefano Vassanelli

Ian Gwilt

Carme Buisan

Nathan Lepora

Anna Mura


Programme Committee

Andy Adamatzky, Bristol Robotics Lab, UK

Robert Allan, Southampton University. UK

Joseph Ayers, Northeastern University, USA

Yoseph Bar-Cohen, Jet Propulsion Lab, USA

Jennifer Basil, Brooklyn College, CUNY, USA

Frederic Boyer, Ecole des Mines de Nantes, France

Dieter Braun, Ludwig Maximilians University, Munich, Germany

Darwin Caldwell, Italian Institute of Technology, Italy

Frederico Carpi, University of Pisa, Italy

Maria Chiara Carrozza, Scuola Superiore Sant' Anna, Italy

Hillel Chiel, Case Western Reserve University, USA

Paul Cisek, University of Montreal, Canada

Anders Lyhne Christensen, Instituto Universitario de Lisboa, Portugal

Roberto Cingolani, Italian Institute of Technology, Italy

Fred Claeyssens, University of Sheffield, UK

Noah Cowan, Johns Hopkins University, USA

Holk Cruse, University of Bielefeld, Germany

Mark Cutkosky, Stanford University, CA, USA

Paolo Dario, Scuola Superiore Sant' Anna, Italy

Danilo de Rossi, University of Pisa, Italy

Mathew Diamond, International School of Advanced Studies, Italy

Stephane Doncieux, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, France

Marco Dorigo, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium

Volker Durr, University of Bielefeld, Germany

Charles Fox, University of Sheffield, UK

Michele Giugliano, University of Antwerp, Belgium

Frank Grasso, Brooklyn College, CUNY, USA

Roderich Gross, University of Sheffield, UK

John Hallam, University of Southern Denmark, Denmark

Jose Halloy, Université Diderot Paris VII, France

Mitra Hartmann, Northwestern University, USA

Huosheng Hu, University of Essex, UK

Auke Ijspeert. École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne,Switzerland

Akio Ishiguro, Tohoku University, Japan 

Serge Kernbach, Universität Stuttgart, Germany

Holger Krapp, Imperial College, London, UK

Jeff Krichmar, University of California, Irvine, USA

Maarja Kruusmaa, Tallinn University of Technology, Estonia

David Lane, Heriot Watt University, Scotland

Andres Diaz Lantada, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Spain

Cecilia Laschi, Scuola Superiore Sant' Anna, Italy

David Lentink, Wageningen University, Belgium

Nathan Lepora, University of Sheffield, UK

Giorgio Metta, Università degli Studi di Genova, Italy

Ben Mitchinson, University of Sheffield, UK

Jiro Okada, Nagasaki University, Japan

Tim Pearce, University of Leicester, UK

Martin Pearson, Bristol Robotics Lab, UK

Rolf Pfeifer, Universität Zürich, Switzerland

Andy Phillipides, University of Sussex, UK

Tony Pipe, Bristol Robotics Lab, UK

Roger Quinn, Case Western Reserve University, USA

Ferdinando Rodriguez y Baena, Imperial College London, UK

Jonathan Rossiter, University of Bristol, UK

Giulio Sandini, Italian Institute of Technology, Italy

Thomas Schmickl, Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz, Austria

Andre Seyfarth, University of Jena, Germany

Scott Simon, University of California, Davis, USA

Mototaka Suzuki, Columbia University, USA

Roland Thewes, Technical University of Berlin, Germany

Jon Timmis, University of York, UK

Julian Vincent, University of Bath, UK

Barbara Webb, University of Edinburgh, UK

Hartmut Witte, Technische Universität Ilmenau, Germany