Bios of Sr Exhibition Judges
Saturday, September 19, 2020 8am - 10:30am (EDT)
Updated on Sep 12, 2020. Listed by Last Name
John Arnold - John is the lead account partner in IBM Global Business Services, responsible for consulting services with US aerospace & defense customers. John worked as an engineer and program director in the aerospace industry as well as in enterprise software consulting with industrial customers; continually inspired to work with people that design, explore and build things. John has been working to develop partnerships between IBM, LTU Robofest and Detroit Public Schools to support youth STEM robotics programs to help inspire and motivate the next generation of builders. John earned a Masters of Science degree in Electrical & Cyber Physical Control Systems Engineering from Syracuse University and a Bachelors of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Rochester Institute of Technology.
David A. Carbery P.E. has been involved with Robofest since 2012 as a coach and judge in multiple competitions. He has recently taught a Bottle Sumo program at Bates Academy in Detroit. In 2018 he went to represent LTU at the Robofest competition in Mexico. David had previously worked with FIRST Robotics team 472. He has been working for FANUC America Corporation for 30 years. David has held positions in software and hardware design. He is currently a Product Development Staff Engineer. Responsibilities at FANUC include Hazardous Location approvals and electrostatics. David has recently signed a patent application for a new robot design. David earned a B.S. from LTU in Electrical Engineering. The degree requirement to take the F.E. exam set him up to earn an engineering license. David is scoutmaster of Boy Scout Troop 248 and is also a Merit Badge Counselor for: Engineering, Electronics, Electricity, Robotics, and Game Design. His daughter Jennifer participated in Robofest and volunteers periodically.
Benancio Gonzalez - Ben received his B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Lawrence Technological University. After working in Automotive and Aerospace Applications for 7 years went to Ford Motor Co. Ben received his MSEE from Wayne State University with a concentration in Electronic and Computer Controlled Systems. He also attended University of Detroit earning a Master’s Degree of Business Administration (MBA) with a concentration in International Business attending the program in Amsterdam, Holland as part of the curriculum. During his time at Wisne and AT&T he developed various Automated Test Systems for the Military (Security Clearance), V6 Engines and Robotic Lines for laydown Body side Welding. At Ford he developed Test stands for Electric Fuel Pump Development and various Electronic Modules. Ben was the Engineering Launch Manager at Chicago Assembly Launching the first Police Interceptor Vehicles, in addition to the Taurus/Explorer/MKS Vehicles
Wuming Jing received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Harbin Institute of Technology, China, and Xi’an Jiaotong University, China, in 2006 and 2009, respectively. He had the Ph.D. degree from Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, in 2014, also in Mechanical Engineering. From 2014 – 2016, he worked as Postdoctoral Research Associate in MSRAL, Purdue University. Currently, he works at Lawrence Technology University (LTU), Southfield, as Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical, Robotics and Industrial Engineering (MRIE). His research interests are on the micro-, nano-scale robotics. He also serves as faculty advisor for LTU Formula SAE team.
Wei & Yan Liu
Wei Liu has been involved with Robofest since 2011 as a coach in both Jr and Sr teams in exhibition, game, Vcc competitions. His team RobCuisers represented USA for WRO Russia final in 2015 and Qatar final in 2016, winning top places in exhibition and advanced Robotics competition. His team RobSTEAMers also worked together with Robofest in developing a new VCC platform-Edubot, which has been used in the Vcc competition for the past two years. Wei received his PH.D degree in Mechanical and Thermal Engineering from Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xian, China in 1995. He worked in Computational Fluid Dynamics companies in Japan and USA before 2005, and is currently a Principal Engineer with Model Based Department in Toyota Research and Development Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Yan Liu received her PH.D in Mechanical and Thermal Engineering from Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xian, China in 1993. She worked for NATIONAL AEROSPACE LABORATORY, Tokyo, Japan as a researcher for two years before she took a job at Toyota Research and Development Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Currently, she is a principal engineer, and her job responsibility is CFD analysis on vehicle HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning), vehicle aero drag, engine cooling and heat damage. Yan served as a judge a couple of times at Robofest game and exhibition category in Michigan and World Championship, and was a Judger for Advanced Robotics Competition category in 2015 World Robotics Olympiad final in Sochi, Russia.
Morgan McCann has been involved with Robofest since 2005. He has been with General Motors for one year, and he is part of the graduate rotational program (TRACK). Morgan has held positions as an Electric Motor Calibration and Integration Engineer, and a Structural Development Engineer. He is currently pursuing a Master's of Science in Mechatronics Systems Engineering at Lawrence Technological University in Southfield, MI. He graduated from Lawrence Technological University in 2018 with a Bachelor's of Science in Mechanical Engineering with an Automotive Engineering Concentration. During Morgan's time at Lawrence Technological University, he has been part of the Formula SAE team where he helped develop the first aerodynamic package in the history of the university. He has developed several different composite manufacturing techniques used to produce the aerodynamic components of the vehicle. He has also published a SAE paper while developing the FSAE vehicle titled "Using Computational Fluid Dynamics for the Design, Assessment and Optimization of an Aerodynamic Body Kit on a Newly Designed Formula SAE Collegiate Competition Vehicle". He is still an active member of the team helping to support composite manufacturing and aerodynamic development on his fourth vehicle. He is currently exploring membrane tube infusion, and working on developing methods to make the composite manufacturing method more eco-friendly.
Andrea Meister has been involved with Robofest since 2007 as a participant, mentor, intern, workshop instructor, and judge. Since graduating with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, she has combined a long love of robotics with practical application in the supply chain industry at Vecna Robotics, working in project management and business. Her current work takes her to warehouses around the world to scope and implement autonomous solutions.
Elmer Santos has been the Robofest Assistant Director since 2017. Elmer is a Mechanical Engineer with a BS inMechanicalEngineering from Cornell University and MS in Manufacturing Systems Engineering from Stanford University. He worked for General Motors for 30 years in body assembly, industrial engineering, injection molding, paint engineering, and advanced vehicle development as an engineer and an engineering group manager. At GM, Elmer has worked with various robotics applications in Body Shops (resistance spot welding, material handling) and Paint Shops (sealing, painting). He has been involved with student robotics activities since 2001, mentoring teams and volunteering in Robofest, First Lego League, First Tech Challenge, First Robotics Challenge, Vex Robotics Competition, Vex IQ Challenge, and World RobotOlympiad. (Coordinator)