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Interaction plays a significant role in robotics and it is considered in all levels of hardware and software control design. Several models have been introduced and developed for controlling robotic interaction. This study aims to address and analyze the state-of-the-art on robotic interaction control by which it is revealed that both practical and theoretical issues have to be faced when designing a controller.

In this review, a critical analysis of the control algorithms developed for robotic interaction tasks is presented. A hierarchical classification of distributed control levels from general aspects to specific control algorithms is also illustrated. Hence, two main control paradigms are discussed together with control approaches and architectures. The challenges of each control approach are discussed and the relevant solutions are presented.

This review presents an evolvement trend of interaction control theories and technologies over time. In addition, it highlights the pros and cons of each control approaches with addressing how the flaws of one control approach were compensated by emerging another control methods.

This review provides the robotic controller designers to select the right architecture and accordingly design the appropriate control algorithm for any given interactive task and with respect to the technology implemented in robotic manipulator.

This paper aims to propose an innovative kinematic control algorithm for redundant robotic manipulators. The algorithm takes advantage of a bio-inspired approach.

A simplified two-degree-of-freedom model is presented to handle kinematic redundancy in the x-y plane; an extension to three-dimensional tracking tasks is presented as well. A set of sample trajectories was used to evaluate the performances of the proposed algorithm.

The results from the simulations confirm the continuity and accuracy of generated joint profiles for given end-effector trajectories as well as algorithm robustness, singularity and self-collision avoidance.

This paper shows how to control a redundant robotic arm by applying human upper arm-inspired concept of inter-joint dependency.

The aim of the research is to perform an accurate micromanipulation task, the assembly of a lens system, implementing safe procedures in a flexible microrobot‐based workstation for micromanipulation.

The approach to the micromanipulation research issue consists in designing and building a micromanipulation station based on mobile microrobots, with 5 degrees of freedom and a size of a few cm³, capable of moving and manipulating by the use of tube‐shaped and multilayered piezo‐actuators. Controlled by visual and force/tactile sensor information, the micro‐robot is able to perform manipulation with a motion resolution down to 10 nm in a telemanipulated or semi‐automated mode, thus freeing human operators from the difficult task of handling minuscule objects directly. Equipped with purposely‐developed grippers, the robot can take over high‐precise grasping, transport, manipulation and positioning of mechanical or biological micro‐objects. A computer system using PC‐compatible hardware components ensures the robot operation in real‐time.

The robots and the grippers described in this paper are highly interesting tools. Even if each specific application may require specific modifications, the proposed solution is extremely versatile, due to the ability to manipulate with a very large stroke (being the size of the base the robot works on) with a very high motion resolution. These positive aspects do make the robots very suitable also for working in a scanning electron microscope, for wafer inspection in a laboratory, and so on.

Future work will include modifications to the existing system in order to enhance the flexibility of the workstation: e.g. other robots and other tools with different characteristics will be designed and fabricated. Research efforts will be devoted in particular to further miniaturization of the actuators.

This workstation can be used as a platform for assembling novel prototypes, and as a test bench for testing new assembly procedures or new products, e.g. the lens assembly procedure described in this work, even if not suitable for mass production, was useful to assess the performance of the two‐lenses assembly system itself, compared to standard systems with just one lens.

The system proves that the development of mobile micro‐robots is a promising approach to realise very small and flexible tools useful for different applications. By means of its intuitive teleoperation mode, the system enables the user to work in the micro‐world; due to the force feedback the user is almost immersed into the micro‐world and gets a sense for the handled object.

This chapter investigates the need to focus on the gap between the pure quantification of the body, expressed by robotic implants, and recent research aiming to recover qualitative aspects of touch, such as sensation. The solution proposed is to analyse new implant technologies with a stereoscopic vision that is able to consider sensation both as intensity of neural signals and as something that we feel. The central question is: what is the value of introducing qualitative analysis into typically quantified robotics research, governed by data?

Focusing on the adoption of Total Quality Management (TQM) principles in universities, this research paper explores how the “soft” dimensions of TQM trigger its “hard” dimensions considering them at the individual (micro-) and the university (meso-), and eventually at cluster (system-), levels.

Adopting a qualitative approach, this study presents an in-depth, longitudinal case study of University of Siena, one of the oldest Italian universities, that has been at the core of the research-based cluster on vaccines, today converged in the Tuscan Life Science Cluster. In particular, data were collected between 2018 and February 2022 and consists of archival data (press articles, websites, books), nine interviews to key informants, multiyear experience of the Life Sciences sector by two of the authors and other material put at disposal by university offices, and emails. Data analysis relied on a timeline, a coding procedure that considered three levels of analysis (individual, organization and cluster). Finally, the authors looked at the “how” and “why” the emerged themes have contributed to academic excellence.

This paper unveils how “soft” and “hard” sides of TQM are blended across multiple levels for reaching academic excellence. The grounded model emerged enlightens the importance of an individual “soft” dimension, academic passion (composed by its three subdimensions of individual research, teaching and entrepreneurial passion) and also sheds light on the organizational “soft” and “hard” sides that the university has been able to design for encouraging research, teaching and third mission quality. Academic excellence has been possible thanks to the capitalization of the individual and organizational “soft” sides into real outcomes as represented by the organizational and individual “hard” sides.

The paper suggests the importance of TQM principles applied at universities' level, providing an in-depth description of “soft” and “hard” sides dimensions of TQM and their impact on all the three pillars of academic excellence. The study findings suggest implications for managers and professionals in the higher education domain as well as for policymakers emphasizing the importance of supporting the individual and organizational soft sides of TQM. The authors provide practical implications recommending universities to consider not only the organizational dimensions but also individual ones when pursuing higher education excellence. In particular, individual passion plays a crucial role and universities need to identify ways of nurturing it. The authors also recommend policymakers to think about new ways to sustain universities as crucial actors in boosting a cluster development, as well as to consider higher education institutions, especially in more rural areas, as a privileged player not only capable of nurturing academic excellence but also able of creating an internationally renowned cluster.

TQM principles have been intensively analysed from an industrial perspective focusing on manufacturing and services, while this paper focuses on TQM in universities, presenting a grounded model that blends the individual and organizational “soft” and “hard” sides.

The chapter furnishes empirical evidence about the extent and profiles of autonomy of EU agencies, the modalities whereby they are steered and controlled, and the interactions they have in EU policy networks. It thus provides the bases for a more complete picture of the EU multi-level administration.

The research is a survey-based design. A questionnaire was administered between July 2009 and April 2010 to 30 EU agencies included in the study population. The questionnaire was sent to the executive director of all the agencies included in the study. Questions were closed-ended, either in the form of multiple choices – with one answer or with check-all-that-apply and an option for ‘other’ to be filled – or in scale format. The resulting data set included ratio, interval, ordinal, and nominal scales. The reference model employed for the investigation relies on the analytical model developed within the framework of the research project COST Action IS0651 CRIPO (Comparative Research into Current Trends in Public Sector Organization – see also ‘Acknowledgements’) for the study of public agencies in Europe (Verhoest, Van Thiel, Bouckaert, & Lægreid, 2012).

EU agencies display a rather low level of managerial, especially financial, autonomy; conversely, they enjoy relatively high policy autonomy. As to the way in which multiple ‘parent’ administration steer EU agencies, it emerges a composite picture, in which the crossroads of steering and control by the parent administrations and accountability by the agency lies in the executive director. In terms of interactions within policy networks, EU agencies interact in a significant way with the European Commission, with national-level agencies in the pertinent policy field, and with specific technical bodies where they are part of the configuration of the policy sector, whilst interactions with national ministries as well as with other EU agencies are rare. No single model can capture in full the overall features of EU agencies, although the ‘community level institution’ model seems to capture a number of the profiles of these agencies.

Both the literature on EU multi-level administration and research agendas in public management can benefit from inclusion of – and in-depth empirical knowledge about – EU agencies. The chapter provides important empirical evidence to these purposes.

EU agencies are actors in European public policy-making, albeit to a varied extent depending on the sector. The extent of autonomy and the way in which they are held to account are crucial aspects for an enhanced understanding of their influence on European public policy-making, as is their location in European policy networks.

Research presented in this chapter is the first systematic empirical investigation of EU agencies encompassing networking, steering and control and autonomy of EU agencies, based on primary data.

This paper aims to analyse stakeholder sentiment about the corporate social responsibility (CSR) actions implemented by Italian companies between February 20, 2020 and April 20, 2020, which was the first peak in the outbreak of the COVID-19 health emergency in Italy.

Using sentiment analysis, the impact of COVID-19 on CSR actions is analysed through reactions to the news published on Twitter by a sample of Italian news agencies.

The analysis indicates that the actions most appreciated are those that are more radical, e.g. where the company has converted part of its production to make goods that are useful in dealing with the COVID-19 emergency. The study identifies a new category of actions definable as “crisis-shaped CSR.”

This is one of the first studies concerning the effects of the pandemic on both CSR actions and organizational legitimacy.

This work explains which strategic approach to CSR is the most effective in supporting corporate reputation in times of crisis, this study identified which of the CSR initiatives adopted by companies in Italy were more effective in stimulating positive interactions and sentiment among the general public.

The aim of the study was to evaluate depressive symptomatology within the student population of the University of Palermo (Italy). An anonymous online questionnaire was provided to the students of the University of Palermo. The first section investigated demographic and social data, while in the second section the QIDSSR16 (Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology Self-Report) test was administered. 539 students (68.3% female) gave informed consent and completed the questionnaire. Considering as a dependent variable: Depressive symptomatology moderate-severe-very severe, the statistically significant independent variables associated are I don't live with my family (aOR 1.63, 95% CI 1.01-2.63, P=0.043), I currently smoke (aOR 1.55, 95% CI 1.01-2.39, P=0.048) and Low perceived health status (aOR 4.14, 95% CI 2.73-6.28, P<0.001). Smoking is associated with an increased risk of developing a high-grade depressive symptomatology. Family plays a crucial role in decreasing the risk of moderate, severe or very severe symptoms.

The importance and complexity of proposing radically new meanings are well-established in the literature. However, a limited number of contributions have analyzed how they can be developed. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the development of radically new meanings at the basis of the Slow Food movement to contribute to the topic.

In order to better understand how social movements can propose radically new meanings and how companies can take inspiration and build a competitive advantage by leveraging the proposed meanings, the authors deeply analyzed the genealogy of Slow Food, interpreted as an inspiring case study; the authors adopt a narrative approach.

The analysis of how Slow Food emerged and evolved into an international movement reveals an alternative way to develop innovative meanings in collaboration with groups of radicals. The authors identify three main phases in the evolution of innovative meanings: generation, institutionalization and development.

In terms of managerial implications the authors contribute highlighting the importance of a new type of collaborative innovation: the collaboration with radical circles and social movements in their early stage.

From a societal point of view, if the authors acknowledge the importance of social movements in contesting and actively changing institutions, the authors can see the importance for policy makers to create loci and opportunities for the emergence of radical circles and their experimentations.

The authors propose that new meanings are frequently the result of small groups of individuals gathering in radical circles. The core attribute of such circles is group validation. The group supports the Slow Food leader in refining the meaning and confronting the dominant paradigm.