Huan Liu Successfully Defends PhD Dissertation on Inertia-Dependent Distance Measures for Kinematic Applications
Congratulations to Huan Liu, a PhD student in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Stony Brook University, who successfully defended their doctoral dissertation, “Inertia-Dependent Distance Measure and Its Kinematic Applications.”
Liu’s research introduces a new approach for modeling rigid-body motion by accounting for the size, shape, and inertia of moving objects. Unlike traditional kinematic methods that describe motion through abstract reference frames, Liu’s work treats objects as finite bodies and develops an average squared distance (ASD) measure to capture how an object's physical characteristics influence its movement.
Using this framework, Liu developed new methods for motion interpolation, motion generation, kinematic hull construction, and mechanism synthesis. The research also extends these concepts to applications such as radiotherapy planning, where ASD-based motion modeling can improve the representation of planning target volumes for radiation planning.
Liu’s dissertation provides a foundation for geometry-aware motion analysis and design, with potential applications in robotics, mechanical systems, and other areas involving complex object motion.
Liu completed their doctoral research under the guidance of Professor Jeff Ge. Reflecting on Liu’s research contributions and the significance of this milestone, Professor Ge said:
She has made breakthrough contributions to kinematics. Her accolades include 2025 ASME AT Yang Award in Theoretical Kinematics, a best student paper award at the 14th IFToMM International Symposium on Science of Mechanisms and Machines, Brasov, Romania, in 2025 and best paper finalist at the 20th International Symposium on Advances in Robot Kinematics, Barcelona, Spain, in July 2026. She achieved all while being a mother of two sons, including giving birth to her second son during her PhD study. She is to start her faculty career this fall as a tenure-track assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin, Platteville. Needless to say, I am so proud of her.
Liu’s successful dissertation defense marks an important milestone in their academic journey and reflects their significant contributions to the field of mechanical engineering and kinematic modeling. Congratulations to Dr. Liu on this outstanding achievement.