Current Students:

Minhazul Alam, Ph.D. Student 

Contact: [email protected]

Minhazul Alam is a Ph.D. student in the CORE Lab whose research interests focus on the optimal mission planning of energy-harvesting robotic vessels within a spatiotemporally varying marine environment.

Aleksandra Dudek, Ph.D. Student 

Contact: [email protected]

Aleksandra Dudek is a Ph.D. student at the University of Michigan focused on the development of a control framework that leverages game theoretic modeling and iterative learning control to improve human-robot collaboration. She previously completed her Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering at the University of California, Los Angeles. In her free time, Aleksandra enjoys running, reading, and spending time outdoors!

Jacob Fine, Ph.D. Student 

Contact: [email protected]

Jacob Fine is a Ph.D. student who is focused on the development of real-time control co-design of reconfigurable tethered energy systems. Prior to starting his graduate degree, he completed his Bachelors in mechanical engineering at Vanderbilt University in 2021. In his free time he enjoys rock climbing and windsurfing.

Kavin Govindarajan, Ph.D. Student

Contact: [email protected]

Kavin Govindarajan is a graduate student within the Robotics department at U of M. His research focus is on developing and implementing optimal control algorithms for sustainably powered robotic systems in spatiotemporally varying environments. Specifically, he works on the control of a solar-powered autonomous surface vessel (ASV) for persistent oceanographic observation.

Harrison Kosak, M.S. Student

Contact: [email protected]

Harrison Kosak is a Master’s student whose research focuses on the modeling and control of a first-in-world wind-powered rover capable of net upwind motion.

David Li, Ph.D. Student

Contact: [email protected]

David Li is a Ph.D. student who is currently focused on designing tunably adaptive path-planning algorithms that ensure successful coordination between a renewably powered autonomous surface vehicle (ASV) and other vehicles that are powered by the ASV. Prior to entering the Ph.D. program, he graduated with honors from the University of Michigan with a major in electrical engineering and minors in mathematics and statistics. In his free time, he enjoys playing chess, tutoring math, and riding electric skateboards.

Limeng Liu, Ph.D. Student 

Contact: [email protected]

Limeng Liu is a Ph.D. student focused on learning control algorithms for the optimal control of a mobile, anchorless wave-powered desalination platform. Before entering the Ph.D. program, he received MSME and MSME degrees, both in mechanical engineering, from Purdue University. In his free time, he enjoys making tasty food for his friends.

Mary Maceda, Ph.D. Student (NC State) 

Contact: [email protected]

Mary Maceda is a Ph.D. student at NC State who focuses on the optimization of underwater kite designs and the development of model predictive control (MPC) algorithms for real-time optimization of kite performance. She completed her Bachelor’s degree at Saint Vincent College, where she was a student-athlete. In her free time, Mary enjoys playing softball and ultimate frisbee, in addition to reading books and participating in trivia nights.

Benji Wu, Undergraduate Student

Contact: [email protected]

Benji Wu is an undergraudate student who is assisting with several projects within the lab, including the spherical sailing omnidirectional rover (SSailOR) project and mobile, wave-powered desalination project. He is also an active member of the U of M Baja Racing team.

Zihan Yu, Ph.D. Student

Contact: [email protected]

Zihan Yu is a Ph.D. student specializing in learning-based techniques for human-centered autonomous systems, with a particular focus on autonomous vehicles and mobile robots. Prior to starting his Ph.D. program, he earned a Bachelor of Engineering degree from Northeastern University (China) and a Master of Philosophy degree from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. In his free time, he enjoys watching soccer and basketball games, reading history books, and traveling.

CORE Lab Alumni:

Ph.D.: James Reed (ARA), Andrew Abney (Ursa Major), Kartik Naik (University of Michigan), John Borek (Blue Origin), Ayaz Siddiqui (Altaeros), Mitchell Cobb (Blue Origin), Christian Earnhardt (Ford), Ben Groelke (Toyota), Joe Deese (Corvid Technologies), Alireza Bafandeh (MEMC), Ali Baheri (Rochester Institute of Technology), Nihar Deodhar (GE Transportation)

M.S.: Zak Leonard , Chris DiMarco, Parvin NikpoorParizi

B.S.E.: Brendan Rindfusz, Joshua Daniels, Jack Cole, Carly McKenna, Andrew Dahl, Kyle Tucker, Nathan Landon, Jared Sielaff, Timothy Muyimbwa (M.S. from UCLA), Shay Marceau, Lazar Trifunovic, Hannah Brooks, Brian Smith

High School: Linus Jacobs

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