Michael Proctor

Michael Proctor has had a diverse range of work experience in the field of robotics and research. Michael began their career as a Doctoral Student at Ecole Polytechnique Federal de Lausanne, where they focused on their research from 1987 to 1993. After completing their studies, they joined Applied Physics Stanford University as a Post-doc, where they worked on non-linear optics and designed and fabricated novel non-linear devices using clean room lithographic processing from 1995 to 1997.

Proctor then moved on to Stanford University, where they became a Research and Development Scientist. During their time there from 1997 to 2012, they built and optimized multiple robotic systems for DNA sequencing, focusing on improving their reliability, efficiency, and throughput.

In 2004, Proctor briefly worked as an R&D Consultant at ViVarray Solutions Inc before joining Stanford University School of Medicine as a Research and Development Scientist in 2003. At the Stanford Genome Technology Center, they designed and built a robotic system for growing cells and studying gene-gene and gene-drug interactions. This involved integrating custom-built and commercial hardware and developing software for control, operation, QC, data collection, and analysis. Proctor held this position until 2012 when they moved to the University of Berkeley to continue their work in the field of genomics research.

At the University of Berkeley, Proctor served as a Robot Development Engineer, overseeing the installation of custom-developed robotic systems for genomics research. In 2015, they transitioned to the University of Florida, still working in the same capacity.

In 2012, Proctor also worked as a Robotics Development Consultant at MJP Consultants and as an R&D Scientist at Stanford University from 2014 to 2015.

Most recently, Proctor worked at Medical Microinstruments, Inc. as the Director of Software Engineering starting in 2016. Michael led the embedded software development team, designing and developing software drivers and system control for a high-precision robotic medical device using embedded real-time with FPGA controller. Michael also led the development of test verification and validation, design requirements, system fault analysis, and source control.

Michael Proctor completed their MSc in Physics from The University of Auckland, where they studied from 1983 to 1986. After that, they pursued a D. Sc. in Solid State Physics at Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne from 1987 to 1992.