A video produced by mechanical engineering graduate student Andrew Barnett highlights the Precision Medical Instrument Design Lab, where faculty and students work on projects involving: robotic needle steering, tissue cutting mechanics, tribological effect between tissue and medical instruments, diagnostic needle biopsy, brachytherapy radiation cancer treatment, and laparoscopic and endoscopic instruments.

by Edwin Giraldo

As I embarked on my path to become a Mechanical Engineer (ME) at the Pennsylvania State University, I faced enormous financial and academic challenges. Being a first-generation student, I would come across situations that were foreign to me and my family. I completed the majority of my secondary education in the city of Philadelphia, but actually graduated from a high school in my natal Colombia. Because of this experience, my diversity would be a key factor in guiding me to achieve success at the Penn State.

I completed the first two years of my degree at Penn State Abington, a small Commonwealth Campus in the outskirts of Philadelphia. There, I encountered my first obstacle: ensuring my enrollment in the controlled ME major while working a 40-hour-per-week job and a having a 45-minute commute. To add to the adversity of my situation, I unfortunately had only obtained a cumulative GPA of 2.6 in my first year, which fell short of the 3.0 Entrance to Major Requirement. The situation seemed very hopeless. I was discouraged because I had finished my freshman year with low grades and without even completing a calculus class.

Edwin Giraldo feels fortunate to attend a college that challenges him inside and outside of the classroom.

As it turns out, I faced a sophomore semester with the most difficult classes an underclassman can encounter. Fortunately for me I was truly attending one of the best schools in the world, where I was provided with the necessary resources to excel in my education. Coalescing this amazing initiative with my work ethic, balance of time, and attitude to learn, I was able to stand out in every single one of my classes, achieve Dean’s list in a crucial time, and enroll in the ME major. Even though the road wasn’t close to being over, I realized that I surpassed an important hurdle and most importantly I began believing in myself!

I made the difficult transition from a campus of nearly 3,400 students to University Park, consisting of more than 40,000. This meant that I would have to leave the city of Philadelphia and take my first in-major classes in a place that was completely new to me. At this time in my career, I didn’t want change since I just found a method where sowing hard work reaped good grades at my branch campus. I felt relevant in my campus and achieved a first-name basis with my professors. In reality, I was afraid of what the change could bring not only to my ME career but also to my life.

It turns out that the transition was extremely challenging and brought forth many unexpected obstacles. All of the students that were already at University Park possessed a colossal advantage over the students who were just arriving, like myself. I truly felt like a freshman all over again, but even worst I faced in-major classes and was expected to have all of the knowledge that my peers possessed. The students that attended University Park throughout their undergraduate career also seemed to share a distinct similarity; for the most part they had all completed an internship or Co-Op in their respective fields.

Nonetheless, I found the silver lining and came to the realization that I was also a Penn State student. I looked at the positive aspect of the situation and kept my Abington peers close and managed to schedule classes together and work strategically as a team. I was also very fortunate to come across many organizations, like the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, that bring together engineers who share similar backgrounds or career objectives. One of the most important organizations that I am fortunate to be a leader for is ChangeUP, which is a group that helps ease the transition for transfer engineering students. Overall, I received a lot of resources that aided the transition to the University Park campus. At the end of my first semester at University Park, I received an offer for a Co-Op that would allow me to obtain my very first experience as an engineer.

I believe that as an engineer you face challenges on a daily basis. It is the effort and the time that you place in addressing these obstacles that lead to success. I feel very fortunate to attend a school that challenges me not only academically, but also outside of the classroom, where I am a part of student organizations which integrate engineers from all backgrounds to become completely prepared to succeed in their fields, while giving back to the community. Finally as I currently stand facing my senior year classes and interviewing for full-time positions, I hope to be an inspiration to first-generation students and minorities struggling to better themselves through an engineering degree!

Edwin Giraldo is a senior majoring in mechanical engineering with a minor in engineering leadership development. He hopes to work as a process engineer, complete a master’s degree, and never stop learning. Edwin serves as president of the Colombian American Student Association and leader/treasurer of ChangeUP, and is active in the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers and the Multicultural Engineering Program. The Manizales, Colombia, native enjoys watching and playing soccer, dancing salsa, spending time with family, and serving his community.

A girl gets some hands-on experience in the art of origami during the Discovery Space’s day camp focused on science, technology, engineering and mathematics for girls. (Photo credit: Curtis Chan)

So what does origami have to do with engineering?

That’s the question posed to girls ages 6 through 8 during this week’s Exciting Endeavors day camp hosted by Discovery Space of Central Pennsylvania.

The half-day camp is designed to expose girls to career opportunities in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

The camp’s unit on origami was led by Mary Frecker, professor of mechanical engineering, and Rebecca Strzelec, professor of visual arts at Penn State Altoona, with help from college and high school student volunteers.

For the girls, it was an eye-opening lesson on the intersection of art and engineering. They learned how engineers use origami’s folding principles to design everything from stents that are inserted into the body to help open a blocked blood vessel to tires for Mars rovers that can greatly expand and contract, making it easier for the vehicle to explore planetary surfaces.

The point, Frecker said, is to show the girls how engineers team with artists to solve problems and develop designs.

Engineering Ambassador Brad Wile makes adjustments to an interactional robotic system that can be controlled by students.

By Sabriana Pimental and Vanessa Cardy

The Engineering Ambassadors for the Penn State College of Engineering are educating State College youth on engineering and science through their senior design project — an interactional robotic system that can be controlled by students.

The goal of Engineering Ambassadors is to inspire middle and high school students to challenge conventional ideas about science and engineering through leadership.

The Ambassadors have been focused on creating more interactive projects that resonate better with younger students.

The robotic system was developed as part of a senior design class in mechanical engineering.

“Working with middle and high school students is one of the most enjoyable things about being an Engineering Ambassador, as most students of a young age do not have much exposure to aspects of engineering,” said Mike Coia, one of the Ambassadors. “This allows us the opportunity to show them what engineers can do and what their careers consist of.”

The project originates from enrollment in ME 440W: Mechanical Engineering Senior Design class. Students of the class are partnered with the Learning Factory, an organization dedicated to providing engineering students with practical hands-on experience through industry-sponsored design projects.

“Using the Learning Factory has helped us expand our array of activities and demos to more complicated mechanisms,” said Coia. “Being able to assemble and fabricate parts and systems in the Learning Factory allows us the convenience to continue these types of projects.”

The robotic arms are an idea developed by the Engineering Ambassadors and an activity that can be used in a middle or high school science fair environment. The purpose of the robotic arms is to capitalize on children’s interest in robots and show their use in today’s society.

The robotic arms will use six standard servo motors to allow a person to move the arm to an exact point in 3-D space. The servo motor will be connected to an Arduino motor controller. The arms will have six degrees of ample range of motion and freedom for the given workspace. They will be constructed out of acrylic to provide low-cost manufacturing ease and durability.

“Having access to the Learning Factory helps us make a more robust design,” said Ambassador Brad Wile. “They have tools, such as the laser cutter, that help make our robots easier to manufacture.”

The Ambassadors will utilize the arms to allow students play games and compete with each other. The students will use a PlayStation 2 controller that can be interfaced with the Arduino microcontroller to move each of the servos on the robot.

They will be presenting their project at the College of Engineering Design Showcase on May 1 in the Bryce Jordan Center.

Pimental and Cardy are students in Penn State’s College of Communications and account associates with the student-run Happy Valley Communications.

Girls from two area middle schools teamed with Penn State engineering students to program robotic dance routines as part of their field trip to campus. One project had a Blue Band theme with a robotic drum major. (Photo credit: Curtis Chan)

Two dozen girls from two area middle schools got some first-hand exposure to engineering at the “Engineer Your Future” field trip event today (Nov. 21) on campus.

The girls, from Philipsburg-Osceola Junior High School and Park Forest Middle School, spent the day at the College of Engineering.

The event, hosted by the Women in Engineering Program (WEP), provides the girls with hands-on engineering activities and the opportunity to work with current Penn State engineering students.

The field trip included collaborating with first-year students from ME 102 LEGO Robotics to program robots with a choreographed dance routine, a tour of the Department of Architectural Engineering’s Immersive Construction Laboratory, a pizza lunch with engineering students, a presentation by the Engineering Ambassadors and an amusement park design project.

Cheryl Knobloch, WEP director and coordinator of the program, said the field trips is meant to encourage 7th and 8th grade girls to consider pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.