Associate Professor Steve Collins of Mechanical Engineering and his collaborator Greg Sawicki at North Carolina State University have developed a lightweight, unpowered, wearable exoskeleton device called the walking assist clutch to reduce the energy cost of human walking. Read about this and other department highlights on pages 12 and

CIVIL & ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING In January, 2015, the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering formally established the Center for Engineering and Resilience for Climate Adaptation (CERCA). CERCA is an interdisciplinary research center committed to developing a suite of novel methods, tools and analyses needed to incorporate the impacts of climate change into engineering infrastructure designs and decision-making.

With a foundation in civil and environmental engineering methods, the Center adds expertise from multiple engineering disciplines, public policy, social and decision sciences, and other fields with a goal of changing the way we think about infrastructure. “We feel that understanding climate change adaptation for infrastructure will be essential for civil and environmental engineers, whether they are just starting out or already leaders in the field,” says Costantine Samaras. MECHANICAL ENGINEERING Associate Professor Steve Collins of MechE and his collaborator Greg Sawicki at North Carolina State University have developed a lightweight, unpowered, wearable exoskeleton device called the Walking Assist Clutch to reduce the energy cost of human walking. This wearable boot-like apparatus, when attached to the foot and ankle, reduces the energy expended in walking by around 7% by using a spring that acts like the Achilles’ tendon and a clutch that mimics the calf muscles. While 7% may seem like a small reduction in energy, the added support will benefit many populations — particularly those recovering from injuries or whose professions require much standing or walking. “Think of nurses, emergency response workers, soldiers, or the millions of other people who walk many hours a day,” says Collins. “7% would make a difference to them.”

ELECTRICAL & COMPUTER ENGINEERING Marios Savvides, research professor of ECE and director of the CyLab Biometrics Center, is developing a long-range iris enrollment and recognition system. This “iris scanner” system is able to acquire images of eyes from a range of up to 12 meters, with image quality comparable to shorter range systems that are already being deployed. Innovative devices and technologies capable of analyzing such traits as retinas, irises, voice patterns, facial features and hand measurements are already being used for biometric authentication across a wide array of areas including corporate and public security systems, military surveillance, counter-terrorism initiatives and point of sale applications. But Savvides’ long-range acquisition capability, in conjunction with the iris segmentation and matching techniques developed within the Center, pushes the boundaries of existing iris recognition systems. Such marked improvement of this technology will have many applications for the future, such as prevention of human trafficking, reduction of traffic violence and increase in biometric password security.

ENGINEERING & PUBLIC POLICY Associate Department Head and Professor Scott Matthews and Assistant Teaching Professor Deanna Matthews have received a grant from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to develop online and traditional course materials related to environmental performance standards, with a specific focus on ISO 14040. This is a life cycle assessment standard designed to highlight the environmental impact of a product throughout its lifespan and areas for improvement in its production and use.