Our senior design project focuses on developing a bio-inspired hopping robot that mimics the mechanics of human locomotion through elastic energy storage and release. The system uses a motor-driven ball screw to compress an extension spring during a wind-up phase, storing mechanical energy that is rapidly released to generate vertical motion. Analytical modeling, including energy conservation, momentum, and kinematics, is used to size components and predict performance such as hop height and cycle stability. The design emphasizes controllability, efficiency, and repeatability while integrating mechanical, electrical, and control subsystems. The final system will be tested using onboard sensors and data acquisition to evaluate performance metrics such as force output, power consumption, and sustained hopping cycles.

Team Advisor: Andrew Spence, PhD

Sr Design Instructor: Yah-el Har-el, PhD

Team Members: Joaquin Cohen Freue, Connor Cuddy, Benjamin Sharbek, Isaiah Wynter

Polyacrylamide (PA) hydrogels are a standard substrate utilized to interrogate cellular response to stiffness and have exceptional uses in the industry of mechanobiology. Current attempts to streamline the production of PA hydrogels have resulted in improper gel stiffness and continued manual dispensation. To address this gap Team 2 fabricated an automated PA hydrogel casting device capable of precisely dispensing microliter-scale volumes while supporting simultaneous multi-dish gel production. The device includes four main components: a silicone-gasket sealed vacuum chamber, a PLA plastic multi-dish array, a vertical syringe pump design, and a horizontal lead screw for movement. In addition to targeting 3 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDG), this device serves as a new innovation responsible for decreasing the level of human interaction required to produce PA hydrogels.

Team Advisor: Karin Wang, PhD

Sr Design Instructor: Yah-el Har-el, PhD

Team Members: Justin Kerney, Lilly Funk, Flynn Mount, Brandon Henry

This project aims to address challenges derived from long-duration spaceflight, where prolonged exposure to altered gravities contributes to adverse effects across musculoskeletal and cardiovascular systems, rooted in disruptions in cellular mechanotransduction. Current in vitro models lack focused parameters to study altered gravities, limiting knowledge in space biology. Therefore, there is a need for physiologically relevant experimental platform capable of simulating the combined gravitational and mechanical forces experienced during spaceflight to better understand the impact on the human body; ground-based systems are needed to link translation science to space biology. The proposed solution is a compact actuator-based uniaxial strain bioreactor integrated with the Random Positioning Machine (RPM). This system induces cyclic strain onto a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) scaffold to biomimic mechanical loading observed across native tissues. Programmed strains up to 10% while subjected to altered gravity, providing a robust in vitro model to study morphological and cell behavior changes associated with spaceflight.

Team Advisosr: Peter Lelkes, PhD and  Yah-el Har-el, PhD

Sr Design Instructor: Yah-el Har-el, PhD

Team Members: Elena Plazola Reyes, Smriti Nair, Deevanshi Patel, Armando Ortez

Lipedema is a painful and chronic fat tissue disorder characterized by excessive tissue build-up that affects over 10% of women. Although there is currently no cure, symptoms of the disease are often managed using compression garments. Currently, the BellasFATLab develops 3D organ-on-chip models of fat tissue, known as the Fat-on-Chip, to investigate lipedema and similar disorders. This project aims to develop a dynamic compression device compatible with the Fat-on-Chip model to replicate compression garment–induced forces on lipedema adipose tissue and enhance disease modeling. We are developing an electrically powered device that delivers controlled compression profiles designed to replicate physiologically relevant forces and durations associated with compression garment use in patients. Results are underway to verify motion patterns and optimize usability within a laboratory space.

Team Advisor: Evangelia Bellas, PhD

Sr Design Instructor: Yah-el Har-el, PhD

Team Members: Nicole Estephan, Aman Sitapara, Genevieve Livingston, Sidratul Urbi

Visually impaired individuals currently lack a practical way to independently play text-heavy card games like Magic: The Gathering or Pokémon. Existing Braille tools are limited to paper, often expensive, and incompatible with materials like plastic card sleeves. As a result, there is no reliable way to add durable, readable tactile information without damaging the cards. This gap restricts participation in widely played games and highlights a broader limitation in accessible tools for non-paper applications.

Our project addresses this gap by developing a low-cost, automated Braille embossing system capable of producing accurate, standardized tactile features on plastic card sleeves. Building on prior work and inspired by the open-source BrailleRAP platform, our device integrates a solenoid-based debossing mechanism with a two-axis motion system, including a lead screw-driven x-axis and a roller-based y-axis, adapted for card sleeve intake.

The system is designed to meet established Braille standards while remaining accessible, user-friendly, and compatible with existing BrailleRAP systems. By enabling reliable embossing on materials like plastic card sleeves, this device expands the functionality of at-home Braille printing and supports greater independence, accessibility, and inclusion for visually impaired users across educational, recreational, and everyday contexts.

Team Advisor: Jonathan Gerstenhaber, PhD

Sr Design Instructor: Yah-el Har-el, PhD

Team Members: Matthew Morello, Zachary Pacuraru, Suruthikha Vijay, Pooja Arvind 

The SEMS project aims to design, develop, and test a prototype that integrates hardware, software, and user-facing applications to optimize energy use in residential homes. The system will provide real-time monitoring, intelligent control, and data-driven recommendations to reduce energy consumption and costs while maintaining user comfort.

Team Advisor: Maryam Alibeik, PhD

Sr Design Instructor: Maryam Alibeik, PhD

Team Members: Dhruvil Patel, Reid Kush, Maximilian Duque, Adam Lawrence, Nish Patel

Designed a digital signal processing (DSP) audio filter system for amateur radio applications. Updated analog controlled system to a digital architecture allowing full control through a RPI3 + Touchscreen. Validated control of center frequency (CF), bandwidth (BW), and volume across the operating range of 200 to 3500 Hz. The intended received signal is in the audio frequency range of 300 - 3000 Hz, often with additive noise. The end goal is to provide real-time filtering to improve the reception of the signal.

Team Advisor: Dennia Silage, PhD

Sr Design Instructor: Maryam Alibeik, PhD

Team Members: David Guidi, James Connolly

This project is a demo that showcases different aspects of Electrical and Computer Engineering, hoping to inspire prospective college students to pursue careers in Electrical and Computer Engineering. We centered this project around two Raspberry Pi computers that connect to each other over ethernet to play chess against each other (or a user vs. one RPi), displaying events that occur in the game on an LED ring and LCD screen (win, loss, total wins, etc). We connect a laptop to the box via USB that hosts a graphical user interface, allowing users to customize and view the game, even allowing the RPi's to behave as custom trained models of real chess players. We packaged this in a portable, easy-to-use case that we designed and 3D printed. We hope this demo can be used in the future at college fairs and expos to drive up interest and enrollment in ECE programs.

Team Advisor: Joseph Picone, PhD

Sr Design Instructor: Maryam Alibeik, PhD

Team Members: Dylan Boles, Samuel Georgi, Shane Mullin, Zephan Joseph

This project, in collaboration with NASA, will deploy a tandem perovskite solar cell into space. Using STELLA (solar tracking for enhanced light leveling arm), the panel will orient normal to the sun for maximum efficiency. The system enables precise light sensing, testing advanced solar technologies in low earth orbit while optimizing energy capture through active tracking.

Team Advisor: John Helferty, PhD

Team Instructor: Maryam Alibeik, PhD

Team Members: Liam McLaughlin, Jackson Walker, William Messina, Alexander Guilbot, Erich Sands

This project addresses the lack of accessible, low-cost hardware for simulating spacecraft attitude control. Original Mercury flight instruments are analog, expensive, and incompatible with modern digital simulators. We designed a digital system that converts analog joystick inputs into roll, pitch, and yaw outputs using Hall-effect sensors, an Arduino-based processing unit, and a TFT LCD. The system samples inputs at 0.3 ms (target ≤10 ms), achieves 10-bit resolution, and implements a ±2% dead zone to reduce noise. A rotation matrix is used to correctly map orientation dynamics across axes. Results show accurate real-time tracking and stable visualization, with response performance meeting or exceeding key requirements. This demonstrates that complex spacecraft instrumentation can be replicated digitally at low cost (~$362), enabling scalable educational tools and realistic simulation interfaces.

Team Advisor: Mark Calhoun, PhD

Sr Design Instructor: Maryam Alibeik, PhD

Team Members: Ken Chong, Imad Lofti, Timilehin Olofinyolemi

Imagine a future where people were not responsible for sorting recyclables from waste. All recyclable materials would be recovered for reuse, and proper sorting would be a thing of the past. The purpose of this project is to take the first steps towards that future. 

Current sanitation standards place the responsibility of sorting recyclables on citizens, leading to contamination and significant safety and economic ramifications. Team 11 and Team 19 have collaborated to design a waste collection vehicle that automates that sorting process. By combining mechanical waste collection with autonomous sortation guided by an Arduino microcontroller, this vehicle can collect a mix of waste and recyclables, sort them accordingly, and deliver the sorted units to a designated location. 

Sponsored by ASME’s Philadelphia Section, this 1/24 scale vehicle will be entered in the 2026 ASME Student Design Competition, competing against other student-designed vehicles in Dallas, TX on April 11th.

Team Advisor: Osman Sayginer, PhD

Sr Design Instructor: Julie Drzymalski, PhD

Team Members: Shareef Mohammed, Jake Scarsellato, William Cooney, Michael Friedman

Our project involves experimentally measuring stress concentrations around geometric discontinuities, which is a key aspect of mechanical design. We built a tensile testing setup using a machined aluminum specimen with a central circular hole, equipped with strain gauges placed around the discontinuity. The specimen is loaded in a Tinius Olsen H5KT universal testing machine, and strain gage data is collected via a Wheatstone bridge and data acquisition system. The experiment aims to compare measured local strains with both theoretical and computational predictions. The results show that the experimentally obtained stress concentration factors closely align with theoretical solutions and finite-element models, confirming that these modeling methods accurately reflect real material behavior. This setup will be used in the ME 3305 Materials Laboratory, giving students practical experience with strain measurement, stress concentration analysis, and understanding the link between theory, simulation, and experimental validation.

Team Advisor: Kurosh Darvish, PhD and Alex Pillapakkam, PhD

Sr Design Instructor: Julie Drzymalski, PhD

Team Members: Jeffrey Rander, Patrick Kreuzburg, Owen Wright

This project uses a multicriteria decision-making (MCDM) support tool to evaluate redevelopment options based on environmental, economic, social, and infrastructural factors. The aim is to identify the best overall redevelopment choice for a specific site. TOPSIS, a method for evaluating these options, was implemented in Python, enabling ranking of redevelopment options based on the factors, their weights, and the alternatives' importance scores. For the case study of 2537 N Broad Street, three redevelopment options were considered: a heavy manufacturing-focused industrial facility, a logistics and distribution center, and a mixed industrial development area. After running the model with data from the North Philadelphia site, the heavy manufacturing industrial site was selected as the best redevelopment option, indicating it would be the most suitable use. This tool can also be used by urban planners and developers to assess different redevelopment plans for industrial sites.

Team Advisor: Julie Drzymalski, PhD

Sr Design Instructor: Julie Drzymalski, PhD

Team Members: Ben Feldman, Jasmine Miller, Teya Gougoustamos, Benjamin Dang, Deandre Dixon

The priority of this project is to redesign a battery fixture to prevent battery slippage and loss of electrical contact during testing. According to Soudbaksh et al (2020), the current fixture allows both ends of the battery to disconnect from the test nodes when the battery bends, interrupting data collection. A new design must securely hold the battery in place, maintain continuous electrical contact for the full test duration, and remain easy for clients to use. 

The fixture also must accommodate batteries of different sizes and be adaptable for larger test setups. For example, larger diameters and different lengths. Cost, safety, and manufacturability are key considerations for this design and fabrication. The design should be affordable and comply with relevant safety and manufacturing standards, and be fabricated in the machine shop at Temple University

Team Advisors: Damoon Soudbakhsh, PhD

Sr Design Instructor: Hamid Heravi, PhD

Team Members: Arin Bambhrolia, Zachary Alan Cremeans, Ryan Gomez, Muhannad Abuelhawa

Since the start of the Ukraine War in 2022, first-person-view (FPV) drones have demonstrated increasing operational capability and accessibility. Their small size, high maneuverability, and low cost enable the delivery of explosive payloads while minimizing risk to the operator. As a result, FPV drones represent a growing threat to the personnel serving in these environments, military hardware, and surrounding infrastructure.
Existing countermeasures have largely focused on disrupting the radio-frequency (RF) communication link between a drone and its operator. While effective in certain situations, these methods cannot counter drones controlled by hard-wired fiber optic cable. This shift highlights the need for systems capable of tracking and targeting these drones. 
OWL-SIGHT seeks to meet this need by combining acoustic triangulation, computer vision, and motorized tracking. These components combine to generate targeting data for integration with practical counter measures.

Team Advisor: Osman Sayginer, PhD

Sr Design Instructor: Hamid Heravi, PhD

Team Members: Connor Beck, Henry Krumrine, Rocco Haeufgloeckner

The building’s thermal performance was modeled using TRACE® 3D Plus based on geometry, construction assemblies, occupancy schedules, internal loads, and climate data. To validate TRACE results, a load calculation model was developed through MATLAB, utilizing the radiant time series method.  The mechanical system layout, air distribution, and equipment zoning were then designed in Autodesk Revit. 

Team Advisor: Hamid Heravi, PhD

Team Instructor: Hamid Heravi, PhD

Team Members: Adam Kerrick, Jared Priest

NASA’s return to the Moon demands new mobility systems capable of operating in extreme terrain and temperature conditions. As part of the Rock and Roll with NASA challenge, a novel compliant wheel design was selected for prototyping on the MicroChariot rover. The wheel is a single piece, additively manufactured structure featuring engineered honeycomb lattices that balance compliance, traction, and maneuverability. Quantitative testing demonstrates sustained compliance at higher rotational speeds, scalable load bearing performance, and reduced, normalized ground pressure, key for minimizing sinkage in regolith. Additionally, material and structural behavior indicate strong potential for low temperature operation with a sustainable life cycle. These results validate the feasibility of a lightweight, monolithic wheel architecture that improves rover efficiency and durability in lunar environments.

Team Advisors: John Helferty, PhD and Alex Pillapakkam, PhD

Team Instructor: Hamid Heravi, PhD

Team Members: Guy Porter

Access to affordable, hands-on electric propulsion systems is limited for university engineering students. Commercial Hall Effect Thruster systems are expensive which restrict opportunities to gain applied experience in electric propulsion design. Therefore, there is a need for a low cost, educationally focused electric propulsion platform that allows for practical learning. We are a student team comprised of MEs and EEs who decided to embark on designing, fabricating, and testing of a hall effect thruster. Using industry tools like Ansys and Solidworks, and concepts learned in class, we were able to simulate the subsystems that allow the hall thruster to function properly. Once testing is completed, we will be able to compare our real world values with our simulated and calculated values for the magnetic field and plume characteristics. We also hope to inspire future teams to build similar projects or improve upon ours and be a reference for them.

Team Advisor: Bchara Sidnawi, PhD

Team Instructor: Hamid Heravi, PhD

Team Members: Victoria Rodriguez, Jack Millacio, Jenny Im, Justin Ok, Massimo Graham

This project addresses inefficient and unsafe manual waste sorting by developing a 1/24 scale automated collection vehicle. Team 19 focused on the design and integration of the sorting and dumping subsystems, enabling separation and controlled release of materials. The sorting mechanism directs mixed inputs into designated paths, while the dumping system ensures reliable discharge at target locations. Quantitatively, the system meets strict width and height constraints required by the competition while operating within force and stress limits, with negligible displacement and stresses below material yield, confirming structural integrity. These results demonstrate consistent sorting and unloading without failure, improving efficiency and reducing contamination. This system will be evaluated at the 2026 ASME Student Design Competition in Dallas, TX.

Team Advisors: Osman Sayginer, PhD

Team Instructor: Laura Riggio, PhD

Team Members: Emily Johnson, Peter Tobias, Krysta Zapiec, John Buchanan, Nicholas Waller

Cryogenic tire recycling enables clean separation of rubber, steel, and nylon from end-of-life tires, but without thermal monitoring, operators cannot optimize liquid nitrogen consumption or validate computational models critical for commercial deployment. We instrumented the Temple-GRSI cryogenic tire recycling system with four K-type thermocouples achieving high accuracy across -200°C to +25°C, integrated with LabVIEW-based automated control. The system maintains rubber specimens below the critical glass transition temperature (-80°C) throughout processing. Automated control cycles the liquid nitrogen valve whenever the temperature of the system falls beneath the critical temperature of -80°C, reducing LN₂ consumption by a large amount compared to continuous flow while maintaining temperature stability through a DC powered fan and proper insulation.

Team Advisor: Kurosh Darvish, PhD

Team Instructor: Laura Riggio, PhD

Team members: Ebenezer Ejemai, Eason Asad Sloley-Mitchell, Ryan Brady

This project focuses on automated optical quality control for laser-drilled perforations in acrylic sheets. The test samples consist of acrylic sheets with holes approximately 1 to 2 mm in diameter at predetermined locations. An existing XYZ motion control system with a mounted camera is used to capture high-resolution images of each hole. Custom Python-based software integrates motion control and image processing to detect hole circularity and accurately measure dimensions. These measurements are then used to assess the precision and consistency of the laser cutting process. Variations in laser intensity can lead to inaccuracies, such as oval-shaped or cone-shaped holes, resulting in differences between inner and outer diameters. This system provides efficient, repeatable inspections and provides quantitative data on laser cutting performance and overall quality.

Team Advisor: Haijun Liu, PhD

Team Instructor: Laura Riggio, PhD

Team Members: Andrea Rodriguez

The project focuses on creating a torsion testing device that is accessible to undergraduate students at Temple University. Currently, the Bioengineering department lacks access to such devices due to commercial equipment usually exceeding $10,000, leaving students without hands-on experience in torsional testing. To address this issue, a torsion testing device was designed and fabricated using 3D printed components, precision-machined parts, and commercial-off-the-shelf hardware. The device provides a torque range of 0-3N·m with a measurement accuracy of 1%. While operating the device, students can view a live output of torque vs. angle of twist. The device is expected to provide enough torque to fracture a chicken bone while maintaining structural integrity. The solution allows students to perform torsional experiments on biological specimens, furthering their understanding of material behavior under physiological loading conditions.

Team Advisors: Ruth Ochia, PhD

Team Instructor: Laura Riggio, PhD

Team Members: Danny Tran, Kristi Baholli, Trang Phung, Monica Yoo

Students will design a wrapped-face mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) wall to resist self-weight, active earth pressures, and prescribed vertical and horizontal surcharges while minimizing reinforcement mass and facing material. Design performance is evaluated internally and externally by using Factors of Safety (FoS), targeting ≥1.5 for sliding and overturning, ≥2.0 for bearing capacity, and ≥1.5–2.0 for reinforcement pullout and tensile rupture. These calculations guide optimization of reinforcement length, spacing, and strength.
Following GeoWall competition guidelines, the wall is constructed using a single sheet of kraft paper reinforcement and a poster board facing within a standardized sandbox containing a tunnel obstruction. The wall is subjected to a 50 lb vertical surcharge and a 20 lb horizontal load, followed by a dynamic 5 lb drop-weight impact. 
To replicate competition conditions, the team will simulate fabrication, assembly, construction, and staged loading with time constraints, enabling quantitative evaluation of stability, efficiency, and constructability.

Team Advisors: Yichuan Zhu, PhD

Team Instructor: Sanghun Kim, PhD

Team Members: Alex Miller, Thomas Kelley, Bryanna Hoisington, 

The Student Steel Bridge Competition is the design, analysis, and fabrication a 1:10 scale steel pedestrian bridge intended for the use of people and emergency vehicles. Team 25’s final design was a stacked Warren truss bridge featuring a cantilever end. Optimizing efficiency and minimizing weight, while supporting a loading of 2.5 kips, the design achieved a maximum vertical deflection of 0.36 inches and 0.46 inches of lateral sway. As safety and user comfort are major factors, these results ensure the bridge has sufficient stiffness to prevent excessive movement. The final design reflects a balance of aesthetics, structural performance, and constructability. Ultimately it was decided that we would move forward with Team 24’s design for the fabrication in which we will build the bridge and simulate real world conditions.

Team Advisor: Sanghun Kim, PhD

Team Instructor: Sanghun Kim, PhD

Team Members: Morgan Birney, Rocco Braghelli, Maria Agustina Tucceri, Thamara Frasser

The Student Steel Bridge Competition is the design, analysis, and fabrication a 1:10 scale steel pedestrian bridge intended for the use of people and emergency vehicles. Team 25’s final design was a stacked Warren truss bridge featuring a cantilever end. Optimizing efficiency and minimizing weight, while supporting a loading of 2.5 kips, the design achieved a maximum vertical deflection of 0.36 inches and 0.46 inches of lateral sway. As safety and user comfort are major factors, these results ensure the bridge has sufficient stiffness to prevent excessive movement. The final design reflects a balance of aesthetics, structural performance, and constructability. Ultimately it was decided that we would move forward with Team 24’s design for the fabrication in which we will build the bridge and simulate real world conditions.

Advisor: Sanghun Kim, PhD

Team Instructor: Sanghun Kim, PhD

Team Members: Tyler Schneikart, Jeremiah Familia, Arnaldo Rivera, Mario Seitaj

This project aims to establish a solution for treating PFAS, emerging toxic contaminants, in water. The intended outcome is a suitable method which can be implemented in water treatment facilities as an initial treatment step through laboratory experimentation. The process explored involves foam fractionation, a separation driven by air bubbles which concentrate and adsorb surface active molecules, leaving contaminated foam at the water’s surface. Potential solutions researched in order to determine what setup would be most viable through a combination of chemical or organic surfactant and vacuum, gravity, or scraper foam removal. Various functional and design requirements were considered such as compliance with EPA regulations to treat water to 4ng/L of PFOA and PFOS, no byproduct production, budget, and more. The chosen solution was a setup which implemented dissolved organic matter as a surfactant and utilized vacuum removal.

Team Advisors: Gangadhar Andaluri, PhD

Team Instructor: Sanghun Kim, PhD

Team Members: Tristan Arnold, Sophia Gonzalez, Colin McClellan, Rayan Hajjar

Our team aims to evaluate interlayer bonding in 3D-printed concrete and understand how material composition and curing influence this behavior. There are two solutions our team has chosen which is an Enzymatic Solution and Cellulosic Nano fibrils (CNF). These solutions are implemented into the printing workflow. The CNF is applied into the main concrete mixture and printed, while the Enzymatic solution is sprayed onto the surface of each layer prior to deposition of the subsequent layer. Based off our quantitative results, our team wants to increase the interlayer bond strength by 25-50%, decrease mechanical anisotropy by 25%, decrease interlayer water adsorption by 50%, and have an acceptable extrusion pressure of 60-100 N.

Team Advisors: Medhi Khanzadeh, PhD

Team Instructor: Sanghun Kim, PhD

Team Members: Marissa Bowers, Anthony Cardone, Armin Hajihassani

This project addresses the treatment of stormwater runoff contaminated with the emerging contaminant 6PPD-Q (N-(1,3-dimethylbutyl)-N-phenyl-p-phenylenediamine quinone) at Grays Ferry Bridge in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As a ubiquitous anti-ozonant in vehicle tires, 6PPDQ is released via roadway tire wear into urban waterways, where it exhibits acute toxicity to aquatic ecosystems at very low concentrations. To mitigate its transport into the Schuylkill River, our team designed a rain garden featuring a biochar adsorbent. Laboratory testing demonstrated 99.34% biochar removal efficiencies for influent concentrations up to 250 ppb 6PPDQ. Given that current EPA screening limits 6PPDQ to 11 ng/L, our results indicate that biochar is an effective treatment medium. This design provides a practical strategy to reduce 6PPDQ contamination and protect aquatic ecosystems while adding aesthetic value to the neighborhood and managing up to 50-year storms.

Team Advisor: Gangadhar Andaluri, PhD

Team Instructor: Sanghun Kim, PhD

Team Members: Tanishka Shah, Tristan Aves, Michael Blinn, Maddy Mailloux, Kelsey Nazaruk