Yue Cao, a doctoral student and research assistant in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, has been named a 2025 winner of the International Institute of Welding’s Henry Granjon Award in the “Human Related Subjects” category.
The Henry Granjon Award is an annual international competition among authors of papers devoted to research in welding technology or a related subject. The purpose of the competition is to stimulate interest in welding and allied processes among young researchers.
Cao is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in electrical engineering at the University of Kentucky. He holds a bachelor’s degree in material forming and control engineering and a master’s degree in material processing engineering, both from Tianjin University, where his research centered on process control of gas metal arc welding.
Cao’s current research focuses on developing intelligent and advanced robotic systems for complex welding processes. These systems facilitate human-robot collaboration, leveraging human intelligence for process monitoring and control development. He has published papers in prominent journals such as the Journal of Manufacturing Processes, IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters and IEEE Transactions on Control Systems.
At UK, Cao has been working under James R. Boyd Professor and IEEE Fellow YuMing Zhang on a human-robot collaboration designed to capture human expertise and enable more adaptive robotization in complex manufacturing.
“It is at the forefront of intelligent manufacturing, bridging the gap between artificial intelligence and real-world industrial applications,” said Cao. “While AI has made significant strides in areas such as large language models and video generation, its direct impact on high-precision manufacturing remains limited.”
The goal of Cao’s work with Zhang is to utilize robotics and smart technologies to make manufacturing more efficient.
“By integrating robotic physical capabilities with AI-driven cognitive learning, our goal is to apply learned human intelligence to tackle real-world challenges in advanced welding processes,” Cao said. “This project represents an innovative fusion of robotics, AI, and virtual reality, paving the way for next-generation intelligent manufacturing."
The Henry Granjon Awards will be presented during the opening ceremony of the International Institute of Welding Annual Assembly and International Conference at the Opera Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa, Italy, on June 22.
