Professor Robert X. Gao
Director, Electromechanical Systems Laboratory
Department of Mechanical and
Industrial Engineering
University of Massachusetts
Phone: (413) 545-0868 | Fax: (413) 545-1027 | Email: gao@ecs.umass.edu
Robert Gao received his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from the Technical University of Berlin, Germany, where he has worked on developing a new embedded sensing methodology for the on-line measurement of energy and load distributions within rotating ball mills. The research was sponsored by the Federal Ministry for Research and Technology (BMFT).
Prof. Gao’s research interest and
expertise are in the areas of physics-based sensing, design of smart
structures, system miniaturization, vibration analysis, multi-domain signal processing,
and energy-efficient wireless sensor networks. His research take a mechatronics approach, focusing on the
synergistic integration of physical sensing elements with embedded control
algorithms and wireless communication to introduce a new paradigm for
integrated machine health management. One of his research thrust areas, sponsored
by the National Science Foundation (NSF), the
National Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST), and the machine tool industry, focuses on establishing the theoretical
framework and design guidelines for developing machine components and
structures (e.g. bearings and spindles) with self-diagnostic capabilities. The
objective is to integrate "intelligence" into machines to enable
early defect identification, failure mode diagnosis, and remaining life prognosis, to ultimately minimize
unexpected machine downtime. In addition to manufacturing-related research, Prof.
Gao has been working on assistive technologies to aid
persons with disabilities, in particular in the area of orientation and
mobility aid for the visually impaired. He has also collaborated with medical doctors
at the Baystate Medical Center on biomechanics modeling and
experimentation to investigate the effects of fixation techniques on lumbar spine
stabilization, with the goal to establish a systematic biomechanical evaluation
procedure for minimally invasive spine surgery.
As a researcher, he
has successfully established a competitive research
program focused on sensors, having served as the PI and Co-PI for over $6
million in grants from federal and state funding agencies and industrial companies,
and published over 140 refereed technical papers. As an educator, he has
developed several interdisciplinary graduate courses in the areas of
mechatronics systems design and advanced measurement systems, graduated 6 Ph.D.
and 22 M.S. students, and is presently supervising 2 postdoctoral fellows, 3
Ph.D., and 3 M.S. students.
Prof. Gao is an Associate Editor
of the IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and
Measurement, an Associate Editor of the ASME Journal of Dynamic Systems, Measurement,
and Control, and serves on the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Manufacturing
Research. He is a Co-Editor of the book “Condition Monitoring and Control for
Intelligent Manufacturing”, which was published by the
Springer-Verlag in 2006. He is a Co-Chair of the SPIE International Symposium on Sensors and Smart Structures Technologies for Civil, Mechanical and
Aerospace System in 2005 and
2006. He chaired the Sensors and Instrumentation Panel of the ASME Dynamic Systems and Controls
Division during 2000-2003, and presently co-chairs the Technical Committee on Built-in-Test and Self-Test (TC-21) of the IEEE Instrumentation
and Measurement Society. He is a Senior Member of the