Mechanical Engineering

News and Events Archives 2008

News and Events Archives
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005

AMTAS receives Phase II funding: Center enters fifth year

The FAA recently has awarded Phase II funding to the Center of Excellence for Advanced Materials in Transport Aircraft Structures (AMTAS), which extends its operation until 2012. Led by ME chair Mark Tuttle since its inception in 2004, AMTAS has received more than $5M in research funding. These monies currently support or have supported 13 projects, 7 of which are conducted by PIs at the UW. The UW’s share of funding totals $3.6M in cash. AMTAS is one of two centers that comprise the FAA Joint Advanced Materials and Structures Center of Excellence (JAMS). The second center is led by Wichita State University. AMTAS academic participants include faculty from across the UW College of Engineering as well as faculty from Washington State University, Oregon State University, Florida International University, University of Utah, and Edmonds Community College. More information can be found at http://depts.washington.edu/amtas.

Olson awarded Dean's Medal

Kristina Olson, student speaker at ME’s graduation ceremony, was one of two seniors to win the 2008 College of Engineering Dean’s Medal. The award honored her academic excellence, research and industry experience, and campus and community involvement. Olson received her BSME degree summa cum laude and was a member of Phi Eta Sigma National Honor Society.

ME masters student places second in SEM paper competition

Francesca Paltera won second prize in the 2008 Society for Experimental Mechanics Student Paper Competition. Francesca’s paper and presentation were entitled, “A Composite Airfoil Section Used to Study Aeroelastic Effects.” The competition was held during the SEM International Congress & Exposition, June 1-5, 2008 in Orlando, Florida. Francesa's thesis advisor is Prof. Mark Tuttle.

Peter Dahl elected to Acoustical Society of America Council

Associate Professor Peter Dahl has been elected to the six-member Executive Council of the Acoustical Society of America.

Emeritus Professor Colin Daly's work on subatomic particle detectors featured

Emeritus Professor Colin Daly has worked with Physics Prof. Henry Lubatti on subatomic particle detectors for many years. In particular, they have worked on the Large Hadron Collider close to completion near Geneva, Switzerland. The May 22, 2008 University Week article, "UW Scientists join hunt for 'God' particle to complete 'theory of everything,'"also mentions the contributions of ME Lab Engineer Bill Kuykendall and a few of the many ME students who have worked on this project, including Josh Wang, Dylan Scoville-Simonds, and Troy Townsend. Click HERE to see the article.

The Spring 2008 MEssenger is available online

Contents: Energy in Washington State and the Pacific Northwest; ME in the News; Experience is Key Product in Instructional Shops; Environmentally Sensitive Energy Conversion; Alumni Corner: Henry Schatz Urges Alumni to End Campaign UW with a Bang; Transitions: Alberto Aliseda Wins NSF CAREER Award, ME Welcomes Two New Research Faculty, Colin Sandwith Retires; Honors & Awards; Chair’s Corner.

Download the Spring 2008 MEssenger HERE.

ME professors featured in airline magazine

Professors. Minoru Taya and Wei-Chih Wang are quoted extensively in an article entitled "Smart Materials", which appears in the May issue of Horizon Air, the complimentary magazine available to all Horizon Air passengers. Their research programs are highlighted in this article that includes advances in smart materials from around the country.

Jiangyu Li's research makes news

Assistant Jiangyu Li's recent work on multiferroic composite nanofibers has been featured in the Institute of Physics (IOP) Nanotechweb.org on April 28, 2008.

Led by Vipin Kumar, Washington State ferries to deploy UWME-designed waste and recycle containers

In early March 2006, Washington State Ferries (WSF) Port Captain Capt. Kelly Mitchell contacted Associate Professor Vipin Kumar with a proposal for a project for the ME Capstone design class. The WSF system was in need of a new design for waste collection on the ferries. The current containers were causing worker injuries due to the requirement to lift the bags, which could weigh up to 50 pounds straight up, thus putting heavy stress on the shoulders. In addition, to improve safety on the ferries, WSF wanted a waste container that one could not easily deposit a large object (e.g., the size of a back-pack), which could be done in the current design.

In the spring 2006 ME 495 class, Prof. Kumar assigned Dawn Tara Parks, Jeremy Chio, and Hokuto Ueda to take on the challenge. Washington State Correctional Industries would be fabricating the design, so it had to be compatible with their capabilities.

The students were well up to the task. They took several trips on the ferries to gather field data, interviewed Capt. Mitchell and his staff to define the design problem, and met with Correctional Industries personnel to get a feel for the existing manufacturing capabilities. They successfully convinced WSF staff not to put a lock on the containers for security, as it would significantly increase the operational complexity.

A project report including manufacturing drawings was submitted in the first week of June 2006. A unique feature in the design was a hidden hinge for security, so that the top of the container could not be opened simply to deposit a large object. A front opening door eliminated the need to lift the bag, thus eliminating the cause of shoulder injuries.

Two years later, Prof. Kumar got an e-mail from Capt. Mitchell that the students’ WSF waste/recycle design had been manufactured, and was ready for deployment on the Washington State Ferries and at other Washington agencies.

Congratulations to Dawn Tara Parks, Jeremy Chio, and Hokuto Ueda for an excellent job!

Joyce Cooper shares her expertise on NBC Nightly News

Associate Professor Joyce Cooper was featured on NBC Nightly News in a story about bamboo flooring that aired on January 30, 2008. See the video here.

Eric Seibel's scanning fiber endoscope research recognized

Research Associate Professor Eric Seibel's breakthrough research on flexible capsule endoscopes has been received much publicity in a variety of sources, both locally and nationally.

Seibel gave an invited talk at the Optical Society of America’s September 2007 “Frontiers in Optics” annual meeting in San Jose, CA. His scanning fiber endoscope and Cell-CT images were featured in the January 2008 Optics & Photonics News Magazine review of the conference. View the report online at

Several press articles and/or news stories can be found at the links below:

Jiangyu Li honored with 1st Young Investigator Award in Theory

Assistant Professor Jiangyu Li has been named the first recipient of the "Young Investigator Award in Theory" by the International Conference on Computational and Experimental Engineering and Science (ICCES). The award will be presented during the ICCES Conference in March 2008.

Mechanical Engineering Leadership Seminar Series

2008 Leadership Seminar Series
A Mechanical Engineering Leadership Seminar series is scheduled for every Tuesday afternoon throughout Winter Quarter 2008. All seminars are held from 3:30–4:20 p.m. in Room 238 of the ME building, followed by pizza and soft drinks. Seminar speakers are shown below.

The primary goal of the Leadership Seminar Series is to demonstrate the depth and breadth of career opportunities available to mechanical engineering graduates. Note that collectively our seminar speakers represent a broad range of interests, industries, and professions. Also note that most speakers are graduates of the UW-ME Department and hence, a secondary goal of the series is to more fully involve our alumni in the life of the department and curriculum and to provide opportunities for current ME students and alumni to connect.

Each speaker is free to use the seminar as he or she chooses. For example, some speakers recount the evolution of their professional career since completing their degree, speculate on what they see as the future of a specific area or profession, or describe details of a particular technical topic. An informal dialogue between speaker and attendees occurs in all cases.

Date Speaker(s) Grad Year Title, Company/ Organization Industry Affiliation
1/15/08 Vesna Savic MSME 1995; PhD ME 2000 Senior Project Engineer, General Motors Corporation Transportation/Auto
1/22/08 Benjamin Jones

MSME ’87,
Ph.D ME 1992

 Micro Encoder, Inc. Measurement Systems
1/29/08 Loern Halverson

BSME 1993; MSME 1999

 Engineering Manager, MagnaDrive Corporation Manufacturing/Transportation/Marine Engineering
2/5/08 Ron Crockett BSME 1962 CEO, Emerald Downs Transportation/Aircraft Recreation
2/12/07 Brian Horman   Director of Capital Projects, Amgen, Inc. Biotechnology
2/19/08 Frank Robinson BSME 1957 CEO, Robinson Helicopters Transportation/Aircraft
2/26/08 David Melin BSME 1979   Software/Manufacturing
3/4/08 Jim Skaggs BSME 1959 (retired) CEO, Systems Development Corporation & Tracor, COO of AMEX Systems Computer Software/Hardware
3/11/08 Dwayne Arola BSME 1989; MSME 1991; PhD 1996 Associate Professor, University of Maryland – Baltimore County Academia

ME student receives Boeing award

ME student Sooyeun Kim was recognized in November 2007 as one of Boeing's Flight 2007 "Engineering Student of the Year" for her research on the Boeing Smart Window Project. Ms. Kim has been working with ME Research Assistant Professor Chunye Xu.

Chunye Xu featured in Seattle Metropolitan Magazine's 'How Seattle is Inventing the Future Technology'

Research Assistant Professor Chunye Xu was featured in the October 2007 issue of Seattle Metropolitan Magazine, themed “50 Ways Seattle Will Change the World.” The article, "The Smartest City in the World, How Seattle is Inventing the Future Technology,” showcased her work on “smart” sunglasses, which use layered electroactive polymers to create sunglasses that change color at the touch of a switch, using very little power.