Kamal Youcef-Toumi joined the MIT Mechanical Engineering Department faculty in January 1986 as an Assistant Professor. Prior to his faculty appointment, Professor Youcef-Toumi served as a Research Associate and Lecturer with this Department. He earned his advanced degrees (M.S. 1981 and Sc.D. 1985) in Mechanical Engineering from MIT. His undergraduate degree (B.S. in Mechanical Engineering awarded in 1979) is from the University of Cincinnati.
Professor Youcef-Toumi's research has focused primarily on design, control theory and its applications to dynamic systems. His research has focused on controller design for systems with unknown dynamics, and in particular, the development of control techniques with fast adaptation, modeling and simulation of dynamic systems. The applications have included manufacturing, robotics, automation, metrology and nano/biotechnology. He teaches courses in the fields of dynamic systems and controls; robotics; and precision machine design and controls.
Professor Youcef-Toumi was selected as a National Science Foundation Presidential Young Investigator "in recognition of research and teaching accomplishments and academic potential.". This was awarded by President Ronald Reagan. He also held a Carl Richard Soderberg Career Development Chair given by MIT's School of Engineering.
He has served on several professional committees of The National Science Foundation. Other services include Chairman of the Information Technology program within The Arab Science and Technology Foundation, and Member of the review committee for European Union funded Network of Excellence for Innovative Production Machines and Systems. He is also the Co-Director of the Center for Clean Water and Clean Energy at MIT, the Head of the Controls, Instrumentation and Robotics Area in the Mechanical Engineering Department at MIT, and Member of the Council for International Programs.
Professor Youcef-Toumi has served as a consultant for a several companies including AT&T Bell Laboratories, EDO Corporation, Varian Radiation Division, Gillette Corp., Delta Search Laboratories, Jentek Sensors and Mitsubishi Electric.
He was elected to Sigma Xi, is a member of the IEEE and the ASME. He served as Chairman of the ASME Dynamics Systems & Control Division Robotics Panel. He was an Associate Editor of the ASME Journal of Dynamic Systems Measurement and Controls. He is the International Program Committee Chairman for the 2010 IFAC Symposium on Mechatronic Systems, and an Associate editor of the ASME's Dynamic Systems and Control Division (DSCD) Conference Editorial Board. In addition, he has served as Editor several symposia proceedings.
Professor Youcef-Toumi is the author of over 150 publications, including a textbook on the theory and practice of direct-drive robots. He holds 9 patents. He is currently completing an additional textbook on Modeling and Control Systems. Professor Youcef-Toumi has been an invited lecturer at over 120 seminars at companies and universities throughout the world.