Fast Robots @ Cornell

Teaching Team

E. Farrell Helbling (she/her)

Farrell is an Assistant Professor at Cornell in the department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. She teaches Fast Robots, a graduate seminar in Micro/ Nano Robotics, and formerly taught ECE2300 from 2021-2023. She runs the Helbling Robotics Lab, which focuses on the design of cm-scale autonomous robots. Her research interests encompass cm-scale manufacturing and assembly techniques, as well as the integration of custom sensing and power systems with severe size, weight, and power constraints. In her spare time, she is either swimming, rowing, or cold plunging (anything to be on the water).

Hang “Harry” Gao (he/him)

Hang Gao is a PhD student at Cornell University, advised by Prof. Farrell Helbling. His research focuses on integrating control, sensing, communication, and power electronics into microrobots designed to operate under stringent constraints on computing, memory, latency, and power.

Cameron Urban (he/him)

Cameron Urban is an MAE PhD student in Dr. Farrell Helbling’s lab. His research is focused on fish-inspired micro robots. He received a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from Washington University in St. Louis. In the past, he has spent time researching bat flight at Brown University, engineering space systems at MIT Lincoln Laboratory, and working with hardware-focused startups in Shenzhen, China. When not working, Cameron enjoys contributing to open-source software projects, scuba diving, and getting beaten in chess.

Mikayla Lahr (she/her)

Mikayla is a Masters of Engineering student in MAE with a focus on robotics. Coursework has included classes such as Fast Robots, Foundations of Robotics, and Robot Perception. Mikayla previously worked in Professor Petersen’s Collective Embodied Intelligence Lab and is currently working in Professor Ferrari’s Laboratory for Intelligent Systems and Controls. She likes rowing and has a corgi named Belle.

Daria Kot (she/her)

Daria is a Senior, majoring in Computer Science, minoring in Robotics and Fine Art. She is interested in embedded software and robotics! She is also a member of the Cornell Rocketry team. In her free time Daria enjoys creating art, especially painting and printmaking!

Chenyu “Cheney” Zhang (he/him)

Cheney Zhang is an MAE graduate student from Prof. Helbling’s lab interested in microrobotic systems and biologically-inspired design. In his spare time, he enjoys classical music and tennis. He also loves fossil hunting and cross-country. (He uses macOS 12 with Intel processor)

Nandita Nagarajan (she/her)

Nandita is a senior studying Electrical and Computer Engineering, with a minor in Mechanical Engineering. She is on Cornell Rocketry Team, and has been the electrical subteam lead for the past two years. In her free time, she loves to sing and has been singing for 15 years!