2021

Claire Tomlin is a pioneer in hybrid control systems research, particularly aeronautical applications to address problems in aircraft flight control and collision avoidance. She has developed algorithms to help determine when unsafe conditions may arise as variables and interactions become increasingly complex. Her work includes issues of autonomous control of… Read More

Solutions is published biannually by the Vanderbilt University School of Engineering Office of Communications. Editor Pamela Coyle Writers Pamela Coyle, Brenda Ellis, Marissa Shapiro, and Jenna Somers, Design and Illustration Mary Alice Bernal, Finn Partners Southeast Cover Mary Alice Bernal, Finn Partners Southeast Photographers Joe Howell, Emily… Read More

Researchers devised a hybrid, hyperbolic-silicon photonic waveguide platform that transmits mid-IR and near-IR light at the same time, on the same chip, demonstrating dual-band optical processing.  Illustration: Caldwell Lab A team led by Vanderbilt engineers has achieved the ability to transmit two different types of optical signals across a single chip… Read More

The extraordinary, creative efforts of five engineering faculty members to adapt to their new teaching environments in Fall 2020 were recognized recently with a Teaching Innovation Award from Philippe Fauchet, Bruce and Bridgitt Evans Dean of Engineering. The honorees quickly converted their in-person classes to online formats due to the… Read More

Vanderbilt University Medical Center is the busiest cochlear implant center in the U.S., performing more than 300 implant surgeries each year. A key driver is close collaboration among engineers, surgeons, audiologists, speech scientists and other experts. This interdisciplinary, trans-institutional work has enabled a truly customized approach for each patient. Read More

Michael Miga, Harvie Branscomb Professor at Vanderbilt and professor of biomedical engineering, has been named a Fellow of SPIE, the international society for optics and photonics, for achievements in technology guided surgery and computational modeling for therapeutic and imaging applications. SPIE will honor 57 new Fellows of the Society for 2021. Read More

With COVID-19 protocols, Engineering Week 2021 looks different from prior years but retains its signature combination of events for fun, enlightenment and career planning. The lineup features trivia contests, gear giveaways, public school outreach, game nights and more. Undergraduate engineering students started the week Monday by getting new professional photos… Read More

Left, Civil engineering alumnus Sean Ticknor (Marc Olivier LeBlanc). Right, Sean Ticknor and members of his Big Skills Tiny Home team work on structures that help the high school-aged team members learn many aspects of homebuilding. (Courtesy of Big Skills Tiny Homes) For Sean Ticknor, BE’99, the light-bulb moment came… Read More

A steerable, MRI-guided needle-size robot would access the hippocampus through the foramen ovale, a natural opening in the cheek. A team of engineers and neurosurgery faculty is taking the next steps to develop this less invasive procedure for treating temporal lobe epilepsy. A Vanderbilt research team has received a $2… Read More

Vanderbilt researchers have identified the protein receptor in specialized heart cells that, when removed, preserves cardiac function after a heart attack. This discovery has significant implications for survival after a heart attack, with a promising therapeutic development now underway at the Warren Center for Neuroscience Drug Discovery. The research… Read More