My research mostly focuses on the mechanisms and robotics field of mechanical engineering. The ultimate target for me is to develop novel mechanisms and robots, with a focus on establishing methods and tools for design and analysis of such systems. Meso-scale and micro-scale applications are of special interest, and they have a wide variety of uses. In particular, I have great passion for working in the fields of medical and surgical robotics, space exploration, energy harvesting techniques and bio-mimetic motion.
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The title of my dissertation (under preparation) is “Development of a Design Framework for Compliant Mechanisms using Pseudo-Rigid-Body Models”. I have worked on improving the concept of pseudo-rigid-body models which act as approximations for compliant elements since I first used them for design optimization for a flapping wing micro air vehicle. I see potential in these approximations to help simplify analysis and design. Apart from developing an optimization framework for easy derivation of various parameters, I have introduced extension properties into these models while maintaining their generality. Curved beams, previously underutilized in flexure mechanisms, have also been incorporated. I am currently working on an approach for general design of compliant mechanisms through topology optimization techniques using pseudo-rigid-body models.
Service-oriented activities have been a big part of my life for some time now, and I take pride in the sense of responsibility that drives me towards such projects. Prostheses for rehabilitation and recovery and high fidelity apparatus for precision surgery can improve the everyday lives of many humans. Development of transducers for harnessing energy from hitherto untapped sources can have lasting effects for the future. Pushing the borders of our knowledge through space expeditions can only be achieved with significant input from the mechanical engineering community. I have also had a fascination for nature since I was a child, and mimicking its elements may provide solutions to many bottlenecks, especially at smaller length scales.
