Welcome to my Homepage

I am currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Colorado State University and the director of the Adaptive Robotics Lab. My research focuses on adaptive and shape-morphing robotic systems that integrate mechanical design, control, and learning to achieve robust performance in real-world environments. My work spans adaptive and shape-morphing robots, multimodal locomotion and manipulation, and embodied intelligence.

I am always looking for motivated student to join my lab. Prospective Ph.D. students interested in adaptive robotics and robot learning are encouraged to reach out and apply.

Highlights

• Director, Adaptive Robotics Lab; PI/Co-PI on federally funded projects in adaptive and shape-morphing robotics
• 100+ peer-reviewed publications across robotics and multidisciplinary venues (T-RO, Soft Robotics, Nature Communications, Science Advances)
• Editorial roles: Associate Editor, IEEE Transactions on Robotics; Technical Editor, IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics
• Research themes: shape morphing, multimodal locomotion/manipulation, design–control–learning co-optimization, embodied intelligence

Education

• Ph.D., Electrical and Computer Engineering, Michigan State University, 2015
• M.E., Mechanical Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology (P.R. China), 2007
• B.E., Mechanical Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology (P.R. China), 2005

Employment

• Colorado State University, Associate Professor in Mechanical Engineering — Fort Collins, CO (07/2021–Now)
• Colorado State University, Assistant Professor in Mechanical Engineering — Fort Collins, CO (08/2015–07/2021)
• Michigan State University, Research and Teaching Assistant — East Lansing, MI (08/2008–05/2015)
• Johnson Electric, Electrical Engineer — Shenzhen, China (02/2008–07/2008)

Research interests

• Adaptive and shape-morphing robots
• Multimodal locomotion and manipulation
• Design–control–learning co-optimization
• Embodied intelligence and physical AI