Attend a seminar on the Automated Design and Fabrication of Multimaterial Robots, Oct. 11

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Robert MacCurdy is an assistant professor in mechanical engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder where he leads the Matter Assembly Computation Lab, or MACLab. He is developing new algorithms, materials and fabrication tools to automatically design and manufacture electromechanical systems in robotics. He is hosting a seminar on automated design and the fabrication of multimaterial robots.

Join the School of Manufacturing Systems and Networks for a seminar on the Automated Design and Fabrication of Multimaterial Robots.

About

Robert MacCurdy is an assistant professor in mechanical engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder where he leads the Matter Assembly Computation Lab, or MACLab. He is developing new algorithms, materials and fabrication tools to automatically design and manufacture electromechanical systems in robotics. MacCurdy did his doctoral work with Hod Lipson at Cornell University and his postdoctoral work at MIT with Daniela Rus. He holds a bachelor’s degree in physics from Ithaca College, a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Cornell University and a master’s degree and doctoral degree in mechanical engineering from Cornell University.

Abstract

Current electromechanical design relies on expert judgment through an iterative process that requires skilled humans at every step. This approach doesn’t scale well because it is labor-intensive and leads to expensive, long-lasting, general-purpose robot designs to justify costs. While suitable for some applications, others could benefit from rapidly built, special-purpose or single-use robots. Automated design and fabrication tools are essential to reducing costs, speeding up development and meeting specific application needs.

MacCurdy’s goal is to make robot design and fabrication so simple that application experts can create robots tailored to their needs. Although robots are often promoted for dull, dirty and dangerous tasks, their high cost and slow build times can make them too valuable for riskier applications. By making robots more disposable, MacCurdy plans to rethink potential use cases.

To achieve this, MacCurdy and his team are developing tools that translate non-expert requirements into multimaterial electromechanical designs, new materials for additive manufacturing and fabrication methods that turn these designs into functional robots.

Automated Design and Fabrication of Multimaterial Robots Seminar
Friday, Oct. 11, 2024
10:30 a.m.–noon
Peralta Hall (PRLTA) 130, Polytechnic campus [map]
Registration info coming soon