I'm a robotics engineering intern and researcher specializing in autonomous systems, UAV design, and multi-agent coordination. I'm currently interning at Kathedra designing precision gantry systems, while continuing research at SmartNet Lab (UNCC) on multi-drone coverage optimization with deep reinforcement learning.
My work focuses on bridging the gap between simulation and reality — building systems that are theoretically sound and practically deployable. From designing VTOL aircraft in CAD to programming distributed control algorithms in ROS2, I thrive at the intersection of mechanical design and intelligent software.
I'm co-authoring a paper on autonomous drone swarm coverage for the AIAA SciTech 2027 Student Paper Competition (Uncrewed and Autonomous Systems track), and lead InspireNC, a student-run nonprofit that has raised $35K and partnered with the US Air Force, MetLife, and Lenovo to bring engineering education to students across North Carolina.
Technical Skills
Robotics & Control
- ROS2 (Jazzy)
- Gazebo Harmonic
- MRS UAV System
- Path Planning
- Swarm Intelligence
Programming
- Python
- C++
- TypeScript / React
- Git/GitHub
- Linux/Ubuntu
Design & CAD
- SolidWorks
- OnShape
- FDM 3D Printing
- Carbon Fiber Composites
- Aerodynamics
Journey
June 2026 – Present
Kathedra — Robotics Engineering Intern
Sized motor and controller for a rack-and-pinion gantry against a 385 N force ceiling; caught a firmware mismatch in the initial vendor selection that would've broken ROS2 integration. Designed a custom shaft bushing to fix a metric/imperial mismatch between motor and gearbox. Traced a 1.1 mm/cycle drift in an indexing mechanism to a gear pitch mismatch and reworked tooth count and pitch radius to fix it.
July 2025 – Present
SmartNet Lab — Research Assistant
Built a three-drone autonomous coverage simulation in ROS2/Gazebo using the MRS UAV System (Apptainer, Ubuntu 24.04) with a custom world of 25 ground targets. Implemented a Deep Q-Network coverage policy; diagnosed a convergence plateau by identifying the task as a static placement problem and built a grid-search optimizer that achieved 76% coverage as a benchmark. Co-authoring a paper for the AIAA SciTech 2027 Student Paper Competition (Uncrewed and Autonomous Systems track).
Jul 2023 – Present
InspireNC — Director
Led a student-run nonprofit building STEM pathways in North Carolina. Raised $35K over 6 months through grants, fundraisers, and donations. Partnered with the US Air Force, MetLife, and Lenovo to spread engineering education to children.
2022 – 2026
FRC 6908 Infuzed
Four seasons of FIRST Robotics — capped by the 2026 season as programmer and drive coach on a swerve-drive robot with Field2d pose visualization. Implemented AprilTags alignment for autonomous movement and computer vision for shooter control.
Dec 2025
VTOL UAV Development
Engineered a custom 2-axis tilt-rotor mechanism capable of 90-degree transition for VTOL operations. Optimized the airframe for Design for Additive Manufacturing (DFAM) — shelling, offset split-planes, and tolerance analysis for successful FDM printing.
Mar – May 2026
NASA Space to Soil Challenge
Designed an adaptive SmallSat + drone swarm concept for soil health monitoring: onboard edge AI flags anomalies from NASA HLS/SMAP data and downlinks only a lightweight cue packet, triggering a coordinated drone fleet for ground-truth verification.
2025 – Present
Project Prism
AI-powered universal code generator using Google Gemini that transforms text, voice, and images into production-ready React, 3D WebGL, and Python applications.
