My research focuses on the modeling and control of robotic systems, AI-driven decision-making in hardware, and the underlying principles of human movement and activity. Across these areas, the unifying goal is to develop technologies that support human life — whether by restoring mobility or optimizing health. I lead the Robotics and Assisted Locomotion (RAL) Lab, and my work is supported by over $240,000 in intramural funding across five grants. We are working in the following areas:

• Variability and Expressiveness in Bipedal Robot Walking — developing novel mechanisms for introducing stylistic variability in two-legged robot locomotion, including a wearable pelvic actuator and a rolling ball-tray mechanism that produced the first-ever framework for stylistic movement generation in bipedal robots.
• Prototyping of Human-Assistive Devices — designing and building cable-driven exoskeletons and wearable actuators for stroke rehabilitation and mobility assistance, with a focus on minimizing user burden while maximizing assistive effect.
• Modeling and Control of Novel Robot Systems — developing efficient methods for deriving dynamic models of unconventional and soft robotic systems, including a sparse-matrix parameterization of the Euler-Lagrange equations and contributions to modeling hybrid soft robots for legged and tumbling locomotion.
• Identification and Inference in Biomedical Systems — applying machine learning to complex physiological problems, including gait type identification from inertial and geospatial sensors, and reinforcement learning for vasopressor and fluid regulation in ICU sepsis care.

Current Lab Members

• Yi Jin
• Ismail Hasan

Lab Alumni

• Aagam Chhedha (BS)
• Agnel Anselm Fernandez (MS)
• Aisha Mujahid (BS) (now in Blue Origin)
• Ananth Chalumuru (MS)
• Chris Nadolny (now in Amazon)
• Damian Belciak (BS)
• Hussein Nalwala (MS)
• James Knea (BS) (now in Bosch)
• Jesus Duran (PhD)
• Khang Huynh (BS)
• Mohammad Nizam (BS)
• Mya Von Behren (BS)
• Omar Majzoub (BS)
• Sabah Mawji (BS)
• Sameer Shaikh (MS)
• Sanjaya Mallikarachchi (MS) (now pursuing PhD in Texas A&M University)
• Shiv Gandhi (BS)
• Stephen Kim (MS)
• Sujay Pookkattuparambil (MS)
• Thomas McNeal (BS) (now in Apple)
• Yousef Philopos (BS)
• Zeid Ghalyoun (BS)
• Ziyan Liu (MS)

Recent News

• Paper Accepted in IEEE Access Jun 15, 2025
• Sujay Graduates Jun 15, 2025
• Agnel Graduates Jun 15, 2025
• URC Grant Mindscapes Awarded! Jun 15, 2025
• URC Grant Gait Authentication Awarded! Jun 15, 2025
• AI in Healthcare Grant Awarded! Dec 15, 2023
• Robotics and Assisted Locomotion Lab demonstrated robots at the inaugural ceremony of Cyberlabs at School of Computing Oct 15, 2023
• Paper on Pseudo-rigid Modeling of Hybrid Soft Robots Accepted in ROBIO 2023 Oct 15, 2023
• Paper on Cost-effective Lower-limb Exoskeleton Accepted in IEEE ROBIO 2023 Oct 15, 2023
• CPSE Summer Camp 2023 Jun 17, 2023