Dr. Yu She, Assistant Professor in Purdue University’s Edwardson School of Industrial Engineering and Director of the Mechanisms and Robotic Systems (MARS) Lab, is solving one of robotics' most persistent challenges: how to create robots powerful enough for industrial tasks yet safe enough to work directly alongside humans. His groundbreaking work on variable stiffness robotic arms has now earned him the prestigious Freudenstein Young Investigator Award from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME).

 

The Freudenstein Young Investigator Award, one of ASME's most competitive early-career recognitions, has been established to, "encourage young investigators in accomplishing high-quality research." 

 

Dr. She was specifically recognized "for making significant original contributions to the theory and practice of mechanisms in collaborative robots." His research centers on a revolutionary concept: robotic arms that can dynamically adjust their stiffness and compliance, balancing high performance with inherent safety for human collaboration.

 

"Traditional industrial robots are effective but unsafe without cages or barriers, while softer systems often sacrifice precision and load capacity," Dr. She explained. "By bridging this gap with compliant and tunable stiffness designs, my work makes robotics more usable in dynamic, human-centered environments such as homes and hospitals."

 

His innovations include shape optimization frameworks for compliant robotic links, shape morphing methods for tunable-stiffness arms, and efficient dynamic modeling methods that enable precise prediction of robot behavior under real-world conditions. Dr. She successfully implements theoretical advances into practical robotic systems, earning recognition through Most Accessed and Spotlighted papers in ASME journals and Best Paper Award Honorable Mention from the ASME Journal of Mechanisms and Robotics. 

 

Since joining Purdue University in 2021, Dr. She has extended these designs into applied domains including digital agriculture, manufacturing, and healthcare robotics. His lab currently operates with support from the National Science Foundation, USDA, and Google, exploring cutting-edge topics in reconfigurable robot designs, multimodal sensing, and intelligent learning frameworks.

 

"This work represents more than just technological advancement," Dr. She noted. "These contributions have provided the foundation for safer, more capable collaborative robots that could reduce workplace injuries and expand the use of robotics in healthcare, construction, automotive, and manufacturing sectors."

 

His current research builds on these foundations, integrating multimodal sensing and intelligent manipulation to enable robots not only to move safely but also to perceive and interact with the physical world with human-like dexterity.

 

As Director of the MARS Lab, Dr. She mentors a diverse team of postdoctoral researchers, PhD students, master's students, and undergraduates who continue pushing the boundaries of what's possible in human-robot collaboration. Their collective work promises a future where robots and humans can work side by side safely and effectively, transforming industries and improving lives.