Tag: research

Dr. Yongchao Yang Awarded 2022 Achenbach Medal

Dr. Yonchao Yang, assistant professor of Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics, Michigan Tech

Yongchao Yang, an assistant professor of Mechanical Engineering – Engineering Mechanics at Michigan Technological University, is the recipient of the 2022 Achenbach Medal. This international award recognizes a young investigator, within 10 years of earning their PhD, who has made an outstanding contribution to the field of structural health monitoring. This includes the monitoring of bridges, aircraft, pipelines, buildings and other infrastructure and engineering systems. Each year a single individual worldwide is selected for the honor.

The Achenbach medal is named in honor of Jan Achenbach, professor emeritus and Walter P. Murphy Professor and Distinguished McCormick School Professor at Northwestern University. The medal was presented to Dr. Yang in the International Workshop on Structural Health Monitoring (IWSHM) on July 6 at the European Workshop on Structural Health Monitoring (EWSHM 2022) in Palermo, Italy. The workshop is held each year, rotating between Stanford University and a location in Europe.

Yang came to Michigan Tech from Argonne National Lab in August 2019, where he worked as a staff scientist. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Engineering at Harbin Institute of Technology in 2010, and a PhD in Structural Engineering at Rice University in 2014. He was a Director’s Postdoctoral Fellow at Los Alamos National Laboratory from 2015 to 2018.

“The process of implementing a damage identification strategy for aerospace, civil and mechanical engineering infrastructure is referred to as structural health monitoring, or SHM,” says Yang, quoting the definition proposed by one of the pioneering SHM researchers, Dr. Charles Farrar at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Yang worked with Farrar during his postdoctoral research.

Dr. Yang works with a laser Doppler vibrometer system, coupled with an AI-based algorithm for full-field scanning and detection of metal structures, in this case, aluminum plates. In the back far right, PhD student Faraz Azad works at the computer on the measurement software and AI detection algorithm.

Yang’s research centers around structural dynamics in the broad areas of cyber-physical systems. “I hope to better understand the dynamic behaviors of structures and systems, in order to enable intelligent engineering systems–including software applications for structural health monitoring, and less invasive and non-destructive evaluations. That includes inferring and detecting any abnormal change in the dynamic features indicative of damage in the system.”

Yang leads the Dynamics & Intelligent Systems Group at Michigan Tech, consisting of postdocs, doctoral, master’s and undergraduate students. The group’s specific research includes sensing, modeling, analysis, and control of dynamic structures and systems.

“Our work in the lab spans the broad areas of system identification and control. We leverage approaches from experimental and computational mechanics, computer vision and machine learning—deep learning—with optical and acoustical tools,” Yang explains. “We seek to develop novel computational sensing tools and ‘physics-guided’ machine learning methodology. Our goal is to enable high-fidelity modeling and characterization of complex structural, material, and system behaviors.”

Sponsors of Yang’s research include the US Department of Energy, US Federal Highway Administration, Argonne National Lab, Los Alamos National Lab, Hyundai Corp., the MTRAC Innovation Hub for Advanced Computing at Wayne State University, and DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.

DoD Guidance on Medical Research

IMG_8369Dr. R. Keith Martin, Senior Science Advisor, Tunnell Government Services visited campus on Thursday, September 10 to discuss research programs and funding opportunities in the life and medical sciences within the Department of Defense.

Dr. Martin presented two sessions: “Understanding Military Medical Research Programs,” and “The Medical Technology Enterprise Consortium.” Both seminars were in the MUB Ballroom A-1.

Dr. R. Keith Martin has had a successful career as a researcher and senior leader in the area of medical and health science research and development. He has served in many leadership roles within the US Army and Department of Defense including Military Deputy to the Principal Assistant for Research and Technology at the Army’s R&D Headquarters, where he exercised executive oversight of the planning, management and execution of >$1.4B of annual R&D funding for medical programs.

Dr. Martin retired from military service as a full Colonel and now works for Tunnell Government Services as a senior science advisor to help connect researchers from academia and industry with the medical research programs supported by the Army and the Department of Defense.

In addition, Dr. Martin engaged in discussions on research programs and opportunities funded by the Department of Defense.

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Nina Mahmoudian Receives a Young Investigator Program Award from Office of Naval Research

image123120-horizOnly 36 faculty across the US were invited to join the Young Investigator Program (YIP) from the Office of Naval Research this year; additionally, only a small percent of faculty receive the CAREER Award from the National Science Foundation (NSF). Nina Mahmoudian, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering-engineering mechanics at Michigan Technological University, is one of a select few to receive both in the same year.

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Minerick Named Associate Dean for Research and Innovation

image122968-horiz2Adrienne Minerick has been named the first associate dean for research and innovation in Michigan Tech’s College of Engineering. Dean of the College of Engineering Wayne Pennington said Minerick will coordinate faculty and staff engagement with each other and with agencies that fund research projects, ranging from single-investigator one-year projects to complex multi-disciplinary projects involving several institutions and spanning years.

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MTRI Research Featured at Michigan Tech

IMG_0430The staff of the Michigan Tech Research Institute (MTRI) in Ann Arbor was on campus on Friday, Sept. 19, to conduct a poster session in the Dow Atrium (sixth-floor campus entrance). MTRI scientists and engineers were also available to discuss projects, collaborations with Michigan Tech departments and staff, and areas of research interest. The session is intended to outline the institute’s current activities and to explore opportunities to develop new working relationships. Examples of research included: Signature Study for Vehicle-Animal Collision Avoidance, 3D Wireless Bridge Inspection, Wave-Ice sensor network, EPA Costal Wetland Mapping, Monitoring Harmful Algae Blooms (HABs) in the Great Lakes, Characterization of Unpaved Road Condition Through the Use of Remote Sensing: Road Condition Data Collection and Analysis, Application of Geospatially Enabled Geographic Response Plans for Oil Spill Response in the Western Basin of Lake Erie and more. See more examples at MTRI Posters

See Pictures of the MTRI Poster Session

View video clips of examples of some of the MTRI projects

MTRI, a research center of Michigan Technological University, is a recognized leader in the research, development and practical application of sensor and information technology to solve critical problems in national security, protecting and evaluating critical infrastructure, bioinformatics, earth sciences and environmental processes.