Faculty
Yan Gu, Associate Professor
ME 3003A | yangu at purdue dot edu |
Dr. Yan Gu received her B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Zhejiang University (China) in June 2011 and her Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University in August 2017. She was the recipient of the Chu Kochen Scholarship at Zhejiang University, and the Frederick N. Andrews Fellowship and the Estus H. and Vashti L. Magoon Award for Excellence in Teaching at Purdue University. Dr. Gu joined the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Lowell as an Assistant Professor in September 2017. In July 2022, she joined the School of Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University as an Associate Professor.
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Graduate Students
Yuan Gao, Ph.D. candidate, UMass Lowell
yuan_gao at student dot uml dot edu |
Yuan Gao received his B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from China Jiliang University in 2014, and M.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Arizona State University in 2016. Yuan developed a keen interest in robotics at a very young age. He decided to pursue a Ph.D. degree in robotics after getting exposed to the fascinating research field of robotics during his M.S. study. Yuan likes math and programming. He also enjoys skateboarding and playing electric guitar in his free time. Maybe one day his robot can skateboard and play guitar with him! Yuan's Ph.D. thesis research is on state estimation, online motion planning, and nonlinear control of hybrid systems with application to legged robot locomotion.
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Amir Iqbal, Ph.D. candidate,
UMass Lowell amir_iqbal at student dot uml dot edu |
Amir Iqbal received his B.S. degree in Aerospace Engineering from the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST). He was the recipient of Academic Excellence and Best All-Rounder Awards from IIST. In 2012, Amir joined the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) as a Scientist/Engineer. At ISRO, he was responsible for the design, analysis, and realization of Mechanical Ground Support Equipment for satellites. His passion for understanding legged locomotion dynamics and developing controllers for stable and agile maneuver of bipeds led him to begin his Ph.D. study at the TRACE Lab. Amir's current research focuses on modeling, analysis, and control of legged locomotion on nonstationary surfaces.
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Zenan Zhu, Ph.D. student,
Purdue zhu1134 at purdue dot edu |
Zenan Zhu received his B.S degree in Mechanical Engineering from UMass Lowell in 2018. His internship experience at a robotics company motivated him to pursue an M.S. degree at UMass Lowell and explore the research area of robotics. One of Zenan's past projects was the development of a robotics arena for the 5G Verizon Robotics Challenge. Zenan is currently working on state estimation and optimization-based control of ankle exoskeletons for fatigue mitigation.
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Stephen Misenti, M.S. student,
UMass Lowell stephen_misenti at student dot uml dot edu |
Stephen Misenti graduated from UMass Lowell in 2021 with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and with a minor in Robotics. He is now pursuing an M.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering at UMass Lowell to further his education in the field of robotics. He is also a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard. Stephen enjoys spending his free time by playing video games, 3D printing, and hiking New Hampshire’s mountains. His research at the TRACE Lab will lead to his thesis on optimization-based planning and control of loco-manipulation.
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Undergraduate Students
Alexander M. Barr
ME, UMass Lowell |
Caroline Bisio
ME + Robotics, UMass Lowell |
Emmanual Aybar Estrella
ME, UMass Lowell |
Daniel Germán George
ME + Robotics, UMass Lowell |
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Cyrus Ghobani
ME, UMass Lowell 
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Chengyue (James) Li
ME, UMass Lowell |
Luisa Matos
ME, UMass Lowell |
Duy Phan
ME, UMass Lowell |
Aaron Soibelman
ME + CS, UMass Lowell |
Past Members
Alexander M. Barr
Caroline Bisio
Emmanual Aybar Estrella
Daniel Germán George
Cyrus Ghorbani,
Chengyue Li,
Luis Matos,
Duy Phan,
Richard Kumahia, B.S.C.E, 2022. Now M.S. student at Northeastern University.
Kentaro Barhydt, visiting researcher, 2021. Now Ph.D. student at MIT.
Samuel Burns, B.S.M.E., 2021. Now Ph.D. student at Tufts University.
Dennon Audette, B.S.M.E., 2020. Now Mechanical Engineer at Mayflower Communications Company, Inc.
Marry McCarron, B.S.M.E., 2019. Now Mechanical Engineer at Raytheon Technologies Corp.
Nicholas Deane, B.S.M.E., 2018. Now Project Engineer at David Clark Company, Inc.
Caroline Bisio
Emmanual Aybar Estrella
Daniel Germán George
Cyrus Ghorbani,
Chengyue Li,
Luis Matos,
Duy Phan,
Richard Kumahia, B.S.C.E, 2022. Now M.S. student at Northeastern University.
Kentaro Barhydt, visiting researcher, 2021. Now Ph.D. student at MIT.
Samuel Burns, B.S.M.E., 2021. Now Ph.D. student at Tufts University.
Dennon Audette, B.S.M.E., 2020. Now Mechanical Engineer at Mayflower Communications Company, Inc.
Marry McCarron, B.S.M.E., 2019. Now Mechanical Engineer at Raytheon Technologies Corp.
Nicholas Deane, B.S.M.E., 2018. Now Project Engineer at David Clark Company, Inc.
Future Students
Three funded Ph.D. positions in legged robotics are available at the TRACE Lab in the School of Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University for Spring 2023 and Fall 2023. Successful candidates will receive a research assistantship including tuition waiver and stipend. If you are interested in these open positions or have any questions about them, feel free to reach out to Dr. Yan Gu (yangu at purdue dot edu).
===== Application requirements =====
Candidates with a strong background and interest in more than one of the following areas are welcome to apply:
Required qualifications:
===== Application procedure =====
To apply for the positions, please email Dr. Gu a single PDF including your cover letter, a full CV, contact information of 3 references, and transcripts. You will also need to submit your application for the Ph.D. program in the School of Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University following the instructions on the following website:
https://engineering.purdue.edu/ME/Graduate/Prospective/ApplicationRequirementsOnCampus.
===== Application deadlines =====
To receive full consideration for the research assistantships, the application deadlines are:
===== Application requirements =====
Candidates with a strong background and interest in more than one of the following areas are welcome to apply:
- Robotics.
- Legged robots, including bipeds, quadrupeds, and exoskeletons.
- Mechatronics and mechanical design.
- Controls.
- Optimization.
- Dynamic systems.
Required qualifications:
- A B.S. and/or M.S. degree in Mechanical, Electrical, Computer Engineering, or related areas.
- Solid programing skills (e.g., C/C++, Python, and Matlab).
- Good communication, presentation, and writing skills.
===== Application procedure =====
To apply for the positions, please email Dr. Gu a single PDF including your cover letter, a full CV, contact information of 3 references, and transcripts. You will also need to submit your application for the Ph.D. program in the School of Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University following the instructions on the following website:
https://engineering.purdue.edu/ME/Graduate/Prospective/ApplicationRequirementsOnCampus.
===== Application deadlines =====
To receive full consideration for the research assistantships, the application deadlines are:
- September 15, 2022 (for beginning Ph.D. study in Spring 2023)
- December 1, 2022 (for beginning Ph.D. study in Fall 2023)