Graduate Students
Clayton Bardall
Clayton graduated from the MSET program and was also a football player at WCU. His project is to use instrumented mouth guards to measure head impacts. Working with our collaborators at Pennsylvania State University he studied the effect of brain strain caused by...
Carson Pardue
Carson is a graduate student earning a Master of Science in Engineering Technology. He is interested in Industry 4.0 and product life cycle management (PLM). Through is research we hope to use digital technology to improve the efficiently of data and information transferred between engineering, manufacturing, quality control, customers, and suppliers.
Pablo Valenzuela
Pablo earned a MS in Technology degree from WCU in 2021. He developed the fourth generation neural prosthesis that included the addition of a neural network and machine learning to enhance the artificial intelligence (AI) of the device. Prior to this he earned a BS in...
Premkumar Subbukutti
Graduate Student Prem is developed the third generation of the neural prosthesis. We are working with the department of physical therapy to developing an experimental medical device to improve gait in people with muscle weakness associated with spinal cord injury,...
Jeremy Smith
Graduate Student Jeremy is developing methods to optimize the design of 3D metal printed parts. Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS) is a new technology that can be utilized to create structures that cannot be produced by traditional machining processes. Unlike...
Reza Farsad Asadi
M.S. in Technology 2018 Reza developed the first two generations of the neural prosthesis. The device includes a microcontroller that captures data from four Inertial measurement units (IMUs) and four foot pressure sensors. The device also include a functional...
Erik Myers
Graduate Student Erik is developing an new rotary valve system for internal combustion engines that improves engine power. Dr. Tanaka provided local support for Erik after his thesis adviser, Dr. Tony Rizk, left WCU to take a position at California Institute of...
Terail Clonts
Graduate Student Terail is designing “materials” in which the elastic modulus can be adjusted. This is being achieved by 3D printing mesostructures within the material. These meso structures are smaller that the overall size of the part so overall part shapes can be...
Theo Waltz
M.S. in Technology 2016 Theo is designing a new type of powered ankle orthosis to assist people that have difficulty walking. The device will have a novel power transmission system that will enable high power to be delivered over a short time improving push-off during...
Chaoke Dong
M.S. in Technology 2015 Chaoke is using the Basin of Stability Chair to measure the stability of the human spine. This research will provide experimental data to complement previously developed theoretical models in order to gain a better understanding of spinal...
Undergraduates
Sierra Norris
Sierra is a second year student pursuing a degree in Engineering Technology. During her first year, she developed a portion of an irrigation system that will be used to water indoor plants including an automated flow control system utilizing an electronic valve and a...
Helen Hester
In 2022-2023 Helen, a first year student in Engineering Technology, conducted research with our group. She developed a portion of an irrigation system that will be used to water indoor plants including the development of a reservoir with a pump and filtration system. ...
Allison Royer
Allison Royer graduated in the spring of 2023 earning a double major in Engineering with a Mechanical Concentration and Emergency and Disaster Management. She was an NSF Undergraduate Researcher studying the biomedical properties of the anterior cruciate ligament and...
Ryan D’Amore
Ryan is a Senior pursuing a Bachelor's Degree in Engineering with a mechanical concentration. Last year he combined his interest in biodegradable polymers with his interest in Crocs (shoes). He designed, built and tested Crocs made from biodegradable plastics. Ryan...
Jake Toney
Jake graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering, Mechanical Concentration in Spring 2022. He is used mathematical modeling to characterize the performance of a glass blowing furnace at the Jackson County Green Energy Park (JCEP). Using these model he...
Lindsey McGregor
Lindsey worked with our group to study how combustible fuel can be produced from organic waste. She created computational models to characterize the performance of a small scale biodigester (anaerobic digestor) located at the Jackson County Green Energy Park (JCEP). ...
Ian Green
Ian worked with our group to better understand and improve the flight time of drones. He created a mathematical model to understand the impact of adding solar cells to a commercially available drone. These cells produce energy, but they also add weight. Modeling is...
Soha Yusuf
Junior Engineering Soha is a visiting student from Pakistan who is working to developing a mathematical model to characterize the vascular nature of brain tumors and model the effect of chemotherapy. We are interested in modeling the transfer of nutrients from blood...
Adam Griffin
Junior Engineering, Mechanical Concentration Adam is conducting a thermal analysis of glass blowing kilns to quantify the kiln's heat loss and learn if design changes can be made to improve performance.
Alexa Lavin
Sophomore Electrical Engineering Alex is designing a detection device to monitor breathing for people in hospitals. Her work includes both mechanical and electrical design. Last year she assisted with the development of the neuroprosthesis.
