Thomas Sears
PhD Candidate
he/him, MASc, PEng
Ingenuity Labs Research Institute
Electrical & Computer Engineering
Smith Engineering
Mitchell Hall, Room 245
Thomas Sears is a PhD candidate and Vanier Scholar in the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering under the supervision of Prof. Joshua Marshall. His PhD research focuses on mobile robot sampling and spatiotemporal mapping with an uncrewed surface vessel (USV).
Thomas Sears was born in Toronto (Ontario, Canada) and raised in Kent (England), Jersey (Channel Islands), and Barbados (Caribbean). He is a PhD candidate in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Queen’s University, in Kingston, Canada under the supervision of Prof. Joshua Marshall. He is passionate about the exploration of space and connecting people with all things science and technology. Thomas joined the Offroad Robotics research group in September 2019. His research focuses on spatiotemporal environmental modelling during robotic exploration. With the ability to make predictions about the external environment, autonomous vehicles will be able to anticipate, reject, and exploit exogenous disturbances. Thomas is a Vanier Scholar and member of the Ingenuity Labs Research Institute.
Thomas's research interests feature sustainability and remote operations for autonomous systems from Earth to Space. His terrestrial focus is on environmental robotics--robots that are capable of autonomy in natural environments and designed for the purpose of new scientific understanding and ecosystem protection. His interest in space includes planetary exploration, real-time coordination of autonomous ground and space systems, and creation of new systems to foster orbital sustainability. In all projects, Thomas aims to work with industry, non-profit, and governmental partners to target and apply research for the benefit of the community.
Thomas previously studied Aerospace Engineering at the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies (M.A.Sc.) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and Carleton University (B.Eng.) in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. As a member of the Space Flight Laboratory, his research on materials and mechanisms for spacecraft de-orbiting technology was critical to the demonstrated success of the CanX-7 nanosatellite mission. Prior to joining the Offroad Robotics group, Thomas was an attitude determination and control systems Engineer at Sinclair Interplanetary (now Rocket Lab) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In this role, he developed, built, and tested spacecraft hardware, and built and delivered over 100 devices that have gone from low Earth orbit to the Moon.
In addition to his research, Thomas works as a consultant in the Canadian space sector, mentors students looking to get involved in the aerospace sector, and supports the Queen’s Space Engineering Team CubeSat project. Thomas is a licensed Professional Engineer in the province of Ontario.
Refereed Conference Papers
E. Taylor, T. M. C. Sears, and J. A. Marshall. Experiments in decentralized multivehicle localization using ultra-wideband transceivers. To appear in Proceedings of the 2024 IEEE Canadian Conference on Electrical & Computer Engineering (CCECE), Kingston, Canada, August 2024.
T. M. C. Sears, M. R. Cooper, and J. A. Marshall. Mapping waves with an uncrewed surface vessel via Gaussian process regression. In Proceedings of the 2023 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), London, UK, May-June 2023. [Open Access: QSpace. Presentation video: YouTube.]
T. M. C. Sears and J. A. Marshall. Mapping of spatiotemporal scalar fields by mobile robots using Gaussian process regression. In Proceedings of the 2022 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS), Kyoto, Japan, October 2022. [Open Access: QSpace. Presentation video: YouTube.]
Refereed Workshop Papers
T. M. C. Sears, M. R. Cooper, S. Button, and J. A. Marshall. OtterROS: Picking and programming an uncrewed surface vessel for experimental field robotics research with ROS 2. In Proceedings of the Workshop on Field Robotics at the 2024 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), Yokohama, Japan, April 4, 2024. [arXiv:2404.05627. OtterROS code: GitHub]
Abstract Refereed Conference Papers
C. C. Grant, T. M. C. Sears, J. Gibson, N. Kerr, and D. Sinclair. Quantity and Quality: Scaling Small Business for Large Constellations. Proceedings of the AIAA/USU Conference on Small Satellites, Logan, Utah, August 2019.
D. Sinclair, J. Enright, T. Dzamba, and T. M. C. Sears. Custom Optics vs Modified COTS for Small Spacecraft: The Build vs. Rebuild Decision. Proceedings of the AIAA/USU Conference on Small Satellites, Logan, Utah, August 2015.
T. M. C. Sears, J. Newman, B. Cotten, J. Fine, J. Chung, H. Spencer, K. A. Carroll, and R. E. Zee. Proposed Design of a Microspace Mission for Near-Earth Asteroid Mining Survey and Tracking. Proceedings of the 65th International Astronautical Congress (IAC), Toronto, Canada, September 2014.
B. Cotten, T. M. C. Sears, J. Hiemstra, J. Chung, G. Bonin, and R. E. Zee. The CanX-7 Mission: Demonstrating Deorbit Technology for Micro and Nanosatellites. Proceedings of the 65th International Astronautical Congress (IAC), Toronto, Canada, September 2014.
T. M. C. Sears and R. E. Zee. Sail Material, Inspection Imager, and Deployment Analysis for an End-Of-Life Disposal Drag Sail. Proceedings of the AIAA/USU Conference on Small Satellites, Logan, Utah, August 2014.
T. M. C. Sears, B. Cotten, and R. E. Zee. Performance Analysis of Thin Film Materials in a Drag Sail Deorbiting Device. Proceedings of the Small Satellite Systems and Services Symposium (4S), Majorca, Spain, May 2014.
B. Cotten, T. M. C. Sears, and R. E. Zee. The CanX-7 Nanosatellite Deorbit Mission: Demonstrating Sustainable Use of Low-Earth Orbit. Proceedings of the Small Satellite Systems and Services Symposium (4S), Majorca, Spain, May 2014.
G. Bonin, J. Hiemstra, T. M. C. Sears, and R. E. Zee. The CanX-7 Drag Sail Demonstration Mission: Enabling Environmental Stewardship for Nano- and Microsatellites. Proceedings of the AIAA/USU Conference on Small Satellites, Logan, Utah, August 2013.
Technical Reports
T. M. C. Sears, F. Sorensen, and D. Backman. Uncertainty Determination and Evaluation of a 2-D Digital Image Correlation System. National Research Council (NRC) Canada, Institute for Aerospace Research (IAR), Structures and Materials Performance Laboratory (SMPL), Ottawa, 2012.
Supporting Contributions
T. Chan, D. Backman, R. Bos, T. M. C. Sears, I. Brooks, and U. Erb. Temperature Changes during Deformation of Polycrystalline and Nanocrystalline Nickel. Advanced Materials Research, 409, 480–485. 2012.
D. Backman, T. M. C. Sears, and E. A. Patterson. Development of a new fiber metal laminate variant optimized for cold expansion and riveting of holes. Proceedings of the 26th Symposium of the International Committee on Aeronautical Fatigue, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, 2011.
D. Backman, G. Li, and T. M. C. Sears. Determining the Strain Distribution in Bonded and Bolted/Bonded Composite Butt Joints Using the Digital Image Correlation Technique and Finite Element Methods. In Optical Measurements, Modeling, and Metrology, Volume 5, New York, New York, 2011.
Academic Theses
T. M. C. Sears. Sail, Deployment, and Imaging Technology for a Nanosatellite Deorbit System Demonstration on CanX-7. M.A.Sc. Thesis, Space Flight Laboratory, Institute for Aerospace Studies, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, November 2014 (advisor: Robert E. Zee)
T. M. C. Sears. Satellite Attitude Determination with a Multiplicative Extended Kalman Filter. B.Eng. Thesis, Deparment of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Carleton University, Ottawa, ON, May 2012 (advisor: Anton de Ruiter)
Thomas is a member of the Offroad Robotics research group and Ingenuity Labs Research Institute. His research interests span robotics, sustainability, and space exploration.
Technical Expertise and Interests
- Environmental and remediation robotics
- Spatiotemporal mapping
- Adaptive navigation and control
- State estimation
- Planetary robotics and spacecraft systems
- Land and water robotics
Current Teaching Activities
MREN 318 Sensors and Electric Actuators (F 2025)
Design Team Advising
Current advisor for Queen's Space Engineering Team (QSET) Satellite design project (2019-present).
Previous Teaching Activities
Teaching Assistant
MREN 203 Mechatronics and Robotics Design II (W 2023, W 2024)
ELEC 299 Mechatronics Project (W 2022)
APSC 143 Introduction to Computer Programming for Engineers (F 2019)
Course Development
MREN 203 Mechatronics and Robotics Design II (F 2022)
ELEC 299 Mechatronics Project (F 2021, W 2022)
CIVL 222 Numerical Methods for Civil Engineers (S 2021, F 2021)
c/o Ingenuity Labs, Mitchell Hall
69 Union Street
Queen’s University
Kingston, ON K7L 3N6 Canada
E-mail: thomas.sears@queensu.ca