Fwd: RI Ph.D. Thesis Proposal: Anthony Wertz

[Artur Dubrawski]

Team,

Come and see a veteran Autonian in action.

Good luck Anthony!

Cheers
Artur


---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Suzanne Muth <lyonsmuth at cmu.edu>
Date: Mon, Aug 12, 2024, 11:07 AM
Subject: RI Ph.D. Thesis Proposal: Anthony Wertz
To: RI People <ri-people at andrew.cmu.edu>


*Date:* 20 August 2024
*Time:* 3:00 p.m. (ET)
*Location:* NSH 1305
*Zoom Link:* N/A
*Type:* Ph.D. Thesis Proposal
*Who:* Anthony Wertz
*Title:* Sensorized Soft Material Systems with Integrated Electronics and
Computing

*Abstract:*
The integration of soft and multifunctional materials in emerging
technologies is becoming more widespread due to their ability to enhance or
improve functionality in ways not possible using typical rigid
alternatives. This trend is evident in various fields. For example,
wearable technologies are increasingly designed using soft materials to
improve modulus compatibility with biological systems and employing
conformable interfaces for electrodes for enhanced signal integrity and
user comfort. Likewise, surgical tools are leveraging soft material systems
to reduce the risk of tissue damage through their inherent compliance. Soft
material systems are also being incorporated into robots to improve safety
in human-robot interactions, as in co-working and assistive applications.

However, the same lack of rigidity and complex constitutive behavior that
make these material systems useful in emerging applications also present
challenges in fully exploiting their capabilities. Soft substrates are
continuously deformable and, without rigid constraints or simplifying
operational assumptions, state inference can be difficult or impossible. In
systems that exploit dynamic material properties, such as those using
shape-memory alloys for actuation or thermoplastic polymers for stiffness
tuning, system behavior is challenging to model from a controls perspective
due to internal states that are difficult or impossible to measure in real
time.

Exploiting these materials effectively requires improved sensor integration
and device co-design. Here I discuss how sensing can be integrated to
harness the inherent functionality of these non-traditional materials while
preserving their novel properties and minimizing unnecessary design
complexity. I first examine integration into existing systems, highlighting
both the potential benefits and challenges of approaching sensorization in
this way. Then I propose a more holistic design approach that embraces a
synergistic relationship between material systems and their embedded
sensors.

*Thesis Committee Members:*
Carmel Majidi, Chair
Oliver Kroemer
Sarah Bergbreiter
Cynthia Hipwell, Texas A&M University

A copy of the thesis proposal document is available here
<https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wtJyFVy7de-2I3DXU4qPmxxa3XYpx0Hk/view?usp=sharing>
.
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