A few of our recent MODEL Group Highlights
Below are our recent lab engagements, where we’ve showcased our research to academia, industry, government, and media
Yang Presents at ASME IDETC 2026
Yang presented research on AffordRAG-Factory: A Hierarchical Edge VLM and Knowledge Graph Framework for Ambiguous Heterogeneous-Robot Task Execution in Manufacturing at the ASME IDETC 2026 conference in Huston, TX.
Runu Presents at ASME IDETC 2026
Runu presented research on sharing an experimental protocol for understanding students’ failure experiences during engineering problem solving at the ASME IDETC 2026 conference in Huston, TX.
MODEL wins NSF Awards at ASME IDETC 2026
So proud of our group! Several members won the NSF Design Essay Competition. Congratulations to Tyler, Shafikul, Ashlyn, Bruna, Brandon, Will, Churan, Mozhdeh, Jiajia, Varshini and Zuxin.
Jiajia Presents at 2026 NAMRC
Jiajia presented her co-first-authored research with Yang at the 2026 NAMRC Conference held at Penn State University, focusing on combining LLM-based pedestrian trajectory prediction with path planning to help AGVs proactively avoid pedestrians and navigate safely and efficiently in dynamic manufacturing environments.
Aiyana Presents at 2026 NAMRC
Aiyana presented her work at the 2026 NAMRC Conference in State College, PA focusing on using microwave sintering to autonomously convert Martian regolith simulant into structural bricks for Mars surface construction, in collaboration with NASA JPL.
MODEL Team Named Blue Sky Competition Finalist
Congratulations to Fatemeh, Yang, Jialia, Mozhdeh, and Dr. Morkos for being named finalists in the NAMRI | SME Blue Sky Competition at NAMRC 54. Their work explored the future of shop-floor intelligence through human–machine co-evolution.
Han Presents at 2026 ASEE
Han presented research on teachers’ adoption of AI tools in education through the lens of the Technology Acceptance Model and Task-Technology Fit at the ASEE Annual Conference 2026 in Charlotte, NC.
MODEL wins NSF Awards at ASME IDETC 2025
So proud of our group! Several members won the NSF Design Essay Competition. Congratulations to Runu, Tathyana, Emily, Han, Charlotte, Yang, and Niloofar.
Best Paper Award
Yang (first author) and Charlotte receive a plaque for the best paper award at IDETC. Great job Yang and Charlotte!
Mozhdeh Presents at ASME IDETC 2025
Mozhdeh presented research on AI-supported requirements engineering in industry projects at the 2025 ASME IDETC Conference in Anaheim, CA.
Yang Presents at ASME IDETC 2025
Yang presented research on the use of LLMs and Knowledge Graphs to support robotic movement in manufacturing at the ASME IDETC 2025 conference in Anaheim, CA. This work received the best paper award at the conference.
Bruna Presents at ASME IDETC 2025
Bruna presented research on AI Image models for use in detection in agricultural processing at the 2025 ASME IDETC Conference in Anaheim, CA.
Aiyana Presents at 2025 NAMRC
Aiyana presented her research at the 2025 NAMRC Conference in Greenville, SC focusing on how music can serve as a medium for communication between humans and artificial intelligence in manufacturing environments.
Mozhdeh Presents Her Research at ASME IDETC 2025
Jiajia presented her research at the ASME IDETC 2025 conference in Anaheim, CA.
KT Presents His Research at ASME IDETC 2025
KT presented his research at the ASME IDETC 2025 conference in Anaheim, CA.
Han Presents Her Research at ASME IDETC 2025
Han presented her research at the ASME IDETC 2025 conference in Anaheim, CA.
Jiajia Presents Her Research at ASME IDETC 2025
Jiajia presented her research at the ASME IDETC 2025 conference in Anaheim, CA.
Emily and Runu Present Research ASME IDETC 2025
Emily and Runu both presented their research at the ASME IDETC 2025 conference in Anaheim, CA. Yang and Charlotte crashed their photo.
Yang Presents His Research at ASME IDETC 2025
Yang presented his research at the ASME IDETC 2025 conference in Anaheim, CA.
Brandon Presents His Research at ASME IDETC 2025
Brandon presented his research at the ASME IDETC 2025 conference in Anaheim, CA.
Aiyana wins Rising Star Award
Aiyana received the RISE Start Award at the ASME IDETC 2024 in Washington, DC. At MODEL, we’ve always known Aiyana was a star, it’s about time everyone else noticed!
Claire wins NSF Award at ASME IDETC 2024
Claire won the NSF Design Essay Competition at ASME IDETC 2024. Another award for Claire, just business as usual.
Aiyana Presents her Research at ASME IDETC 2024
Aiyana presented her work on the role of music in Human-AI interaction in Manufacturing at ASME IDETC 20204 in Washington, DC.
Cody Presents at ASME IDETC 2024
Cody presented his Master’s thesis work on requirements embedding at the ASME IDETC 2024 in Washington, DC.
Logan Presents at ASME IDETC 2024
Logan presented research on requirements and standards modelling at the ASME IDETC 2024 in Washington, DC.
Logan Presents at Agricultural Manufacturing Workshop
Logan Played a pivotal role in both organizing and leading a discussion on pecan shelling during the manufacturing workshop. During this event, we discussed the progress of our USDA project
Federal Funders
Some of the recent organizations and agencies which have funded our research
Industry Funders
Our team works extensively with Industry. Here are some of our Industry Partners that have funded our Research.
