Team COBORG
Feng Xiang
Technical Lead: Actuated Manipulation Subsystem
Background: Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics
Feng is a mechanical engineer with a strong background in mechatronics engineering. Graduating from George Washington University with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and a minor in Electrical Engineering, he carries project experiences working with mechanical design, mechanisms, CAD, and microcontrollers.
“To grow is to overcome. To succeed is to execute. To lead is to mentor. To live is to question.” – Anonymous
Feng plans to enter the robotics engineering industry working in human-robot-interaction field.
Yuqing Qin
Technical Lead: Vision subsystem
Background: Software Engineering
Yuqing is a software engineer in the team, mainly working in sensing and localization sub-system implementation. She graduated from University of Minnesota, Twin Cities with Computer Science and Computer Engineering Bachelors’ degrees. Previously, she worked at UCSD as a Research Assistant during the summer.
“Wait ’til my brother sees you! You’re going to help so many people, buddy. So many!”―Tadashi to Baymax
Yuqing has a “Baymax” dream, and she plans to work in the medical robot field in the near future!
Gerry D’Ascoli
Technical Lead: Voice Subsystem, Electrical System
Background: Electrical Engineering, Systems Engineering
Gerry graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering in 2018. He worked a year at Leidos and a year at Northrop Grumman before coming to CMU to pursue higher education in Robotics. With this experience, he brings electrical system design, machine/microcontroller level system and sensor interfacing, and some software engineering skills.
“For now, we assume that self-evolving robots will learn to mimic human traits, including, eventually, humor. And so, I can’t wait to hear the first joke that one robot tells to another robot.” – Lance Morrow
Gerry hopes to pursue a career in Human-Robot Interaction and Automation to use robots to improve the lives of everyday people.
Jonathan Lord-Fonda
Integrations & Validations Lead
Background: Mechanical Engineer, Medical Devices
Jonathan graduated from Messiah College with a B.S. in Biomedical/Mechanical Engineering and a minor in physics in 2017. He worked three years as an engineer at Telefex Incorporated before coming to CMU to pursue the Masters in Robotics System Development (MRSD). His experience in project documentation and experimental design are integral to the Coborg team.
Husam Wadi
Project Manager, Technical Lead: Hardware
Background: Robotics Engineering
Husam graduated from the University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering in 2017. He was an avid medical robotics researcher during his bachelors degree, and worked several years as an industrial roboticist before coming to CMU to pursue the Masters in Robotics System Development (MRSD). With his experience, he is able to overview and understand system level integration, and can help accelerate the design and progress of the Coborg Platform.
“I don’t quote other people” – Husam Wadi