Education

• Ph.D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1985
• S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1982
• B.S., State University of New York at Buffalo, 1980

Background

In 1979 Dr. Lee conducted radiation research as an undergraduate assistant at the State University of New York at Buffalo, where he modeled and simulated the nongray particulate radiation in an isothermal cylindrical medium. At MIT, he designed high-performance fluidic amplifiers and fluid signal transmission systems and investigated analytically and experimentally the effects of temperature changes on fluid power control systems for flight backup control applications. Dr. Lee began at Tech in 1985 as an Assistant Professor.

Research

• Automation and Mechatronics; System dynamics, control, automation, optomechatronics, vision, magnteics, flexonics, and handling of biomaterials

Since 1985, Dr. Lee's interest in dexterous actuators and sensors for high-precision motion control systems and manufacturing automation has led to some of the first detailed studies on the creation of a three degrees-of-freedom ball-joint-like variable-reluctance spherical motor and a means to provide noncontact direct sensing of roll, yaw, and pitch motion in a single joint. He then developed a flexible integrated vision system for real-time, multi-degrees-of-freedom motion control systems. Sponsored by Maxtor Corporation, Lucent Technologies, the U. S. Poultry and Eggs Association, and the Georgia Agricultural Technology Research Program (ATRP), his vision-based motion control research has found several unique manufacturing automation applications, including high-precision servo-track-writing, robotic pickup of moving objects, automated transfer of live broilers to moving shackles, and automated de-boning process in poultry processing applications. In collaboration with colleagues in Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology (SIMTech), Nanyang Technological University and Korea Institute of Machinery & Materials (KIMM), his research team at Georgia Tech has recently developed several novel designs of cost-effective spherical motors for precision motion controlled systems and for micro-factory applications.

More recently, Dr. Lee develops several new research initiatives taking advantages of his prior research findings in machine vision, micro-magnetics and flexible structure designs to address emerging scientific and engineering problems which require pooling together interdisciplinary expertise and resources beyond a single unit. Some of his research projects include (but not limited to):

• Alternative Technologies and Visual Prosthetics for Visually Impaired People
• Multi-DOF Actuators and Sensors for Desktop Machining of Biomedical devices
• Bio-Inspired Flying and Climbing Mobile Sensor Network for Structural Identification and Damage Detection