About

I recently earned my Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan, advised by Prof. Ram Vasudevan in ROAHM Lab.

My research interests include modeling, controls, and optimization applied to human movement and wearable robots. I've also used engineering tools to investigate hypotheses about biomechanics and evolution in coral snakes.

Additionally, I am participating in the Science, Technology, and Public Policy certificate program in the Univeristy of Michigan's Ford School of Public Policy.

I graduated from the University of Portland with a B.S. in Civil Engineering in May 2016.

During my time as a student, I've conducted research at the University of Portland, Los Alamos National Laboratory, and the Engineering Institute at Jeonbuk National University in Jeonju, Korea. I am a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow.

Research

Human Biomechanics

By studying and modeling human movement, I aim to increase safety in wearable robotic systems, such as exoskeletons and prostheses.

Animal Biomechanics

I work with Dr. Talia Moore, PI of EMBiR Lab, to uncover explanations for patterns in evolution and ecology. Often, engineering and robotics can help us test hypotheses and learn more about animal movement.

Check out my Github page for related code! More open-source projects coming soon.

Publications

Journal Papers

S. M. Danforth, X. Liu, M. J. Ward, P.D. Holmes, and R. Vasudevan, "Predicting sagittal-plane swing hip kinematics in response to trips," Robotics and Automation Letters, June 2022. Best Paper Award, IEEE BioRob 2022. [url]

T. Y. Moore, S. M. Danforth, J. G. Larson, and A. R. Davis Rabowski, "A quantitative analysis of Micrurus coral snakes reveals unexpected variation in stereotyped anti-predator displays within a mimicry system," Integrative Organismal Biology, March 2020. [url]

P. D. Holmes, S. M. Danforth, X.-Y. Fu, T. Y. Moore, and R. Vasudevan, "Characterizing the limits of human stability during motion: perturbative experiment validates a model-based approach for the Sit-to-Stand task," Royal Society Open Science, January 2020. [url]

Conference Papers

S. M. Danforth, M. Kholer, D. Bruder, A. R. Davis Rabosky, S. Kota, R. Vasudevan, and T. Y. Moore, "Emulating duration and curvature of coral snake anti-predator thrashing behaviors using a soft-robotic platform," IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, Paris, France, June 2020. [url]

S. M. Danforth, J. T. Martz, A. H. Root, E. B. Flynn, and D. Y. Harvey, "Multi-source sensing and analysis for machine-array condition monitoring," in Proceedings of the SEM XXXV International Modal Analysis Conference, Garden Grove, CA, January 2017. [url]

T. A. Doughty, L. J. Cassidy, S. M. Danforth, and N. Pendowski, "Varied system geometry and noise implementation applied to nonlinear model tracking," in Proceedings of the ASME 2016 International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition, Phoenix, AZ, November 2016. [url]

T. A. Doughty, L. J. Cassidy, and S. M. Danforth, "Implementing noise, multi-frequency stimulus, and realtime analysis to nonlinear model tracking," in Proceedings of the SEM XIII International Congress, Orlando, FL, June 2016. [url]

Preprints

S. M. Danforth, P. D. Holmes, and R. Vasudevan, "Trip Recovery in Lower-Limb Prostheses using Reachable Sets of Predicted Human Motion," 2020. [arXiv preprint]

C. H. Kim, S. M. Danforth, P. D. Holmes, D. R. Raz, D. Yao, A. Bedi, and R. Vasudevan, "Automated camera-based estimation of rehabilitation criteria following ACL reconstruction," 2018. [arXiv preprint]

Presentations

S. M. Danforth, P. D. Holmes, C. H. Kim, D. Yao, A. Bedi, and R. Vasudevan, "Assessing rehabilitation progress following ACL reconstruction surgery," poster presentation in Dynamic Walking, May 2020. [pdf] [poster]

S. M. Danforth, J. G. Larson, A. R. Davis Rabowski, and T. Y. Moore, "A Kinematic Analysis of Micrurus Coral Snake Thrash Duration and Curvature Enables Quantitative Characterization of Non-Locomotory Behavioral Motion," presentation in Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology, Austin, TX, January 2020. [url]

S. M. Danforth, P. D. Holmes, and R. Vasudevan, "Inverse optimal control with sit-to-stand data," presentation in Dynamic Walking, Canmore, Alberta, Canada, June 2019. [pdf] [presentation]

P. D. Holmes, X.-Y. Fu, S. M. Danforth, T. Y. Moore, and R. Vasudevan, "N-step reachability to characterize human mediolateral stability during perturbed walking," poster presentation in Dynamic Walking, Canmore, Alberta, Canada, June 2019.

P. D. Holmes, S. M. Danforth, T. Y. Moore, and R. Vasudevan, "Perturbative sit-to-stand experiment for validating a quantitative method for stability estimation," presentation in World Congress of Biomechanics, Dublin, Ireland, June 2018.

P. D. Holmes, S. M. Danforth, T. Y. Moore, and R. Vasudevan, "Perturbative sit-to-stand experiment for validating a quantitative method for stability estimation," presentation in Dynamic Walking, Pensacola, FL, May 2018. [presentation]

P. D. Holmes, S. M. Danforth, T. Y. Moore, X. Y. Fu, and R. Vasudevan, "Humans minimize error in task-relevant dimensions during sit-to-stand," presentation in Dynamic Walking, Mariehamn, Finland, June 2017. [url]

Science and Technology Policy

I'm in the last semester of the Science, Technology, and Public Policy graduate certificate program at University of Michigan! In this program, I've learned about policy's role in science and technology, developed policy writing skills, and explored the interaction of science, technology, and society. My projects in this certificate program include:

  • A series of memos about facial recognition in law enforcement from the perspective of NIST, and a presentation at a simulated Congressional roundtable,
  • A series of memos about a current controversy regarding essential facilities in the Oregon Coast's tsunami zone,
  • A case study on the organizational and political causes of the 2005 Jilin Petrochemical Plant explosions, and
  • A grant proposal and preliminary research for a study comparing standards/regulations between upper- and lower-limb robotic prostheses.

Science Communication

Videos

A highlight of my time as a Ph.D. student has been creating videos to ensure my work is presented in a straightforward manner. Here is a video I made recently for some work published in Integrative Organismal Biology:

In addition to making videos about my own research, I am interested in creating videos for outreach and education. Below is a 20-minute activity that introduces engineering ethics and design. I made this video for a group project in IOE 491: Quantifying Human Motion Through Wearable Sensors.

Check out my SciComm Youtube Playlist for more!

Presentations

I've made a few helpful presentations about topics in science/engineering that you are welcome to use for teaching or learning. Below are PDFs and links to view-only Google Slides (most have animations that help make the information more digestible):

Science Journalism

I have begun to work with the Michigan Engineer News Center staff so I can gain more experience in science journalism. My first news article is about UM student Dan Bruder designing and prototyping a DIY ventilator.

I also completed an online journalism course titled Journalism in a pandemic: Covering COVID-19 now and in the future. Although I will not be explicitly covering news about COVID-19, I recognize that the pandemic remains impactful on engineering research, teaching, and student wellbeing.

Fun (and still slightly informative) Videos

Entertaining videos can make STEM research more accessible to a non-technical community, and also give colleagues a laugh when submitted to conferences every once in awhile. Here's a video I wrote and edited for the Dynamic Walking annual meeting, starring my labmate Patrick. This video was also featured on IEEE Spectrum's Video Friday.

Media

  • Kelly Diamond, "Not all flashy snakes thrash dance the same," IOB Open. [url]
  • Saima Sidik, "The robotic snakes that could teach us about animal behavior," Scope. [url]

Honors and Awards

2018-2021 Graduate Research Fellowship Program recipient, National Science Foundation
2020 ComSciCon Michigan attendee
2019 People's Choice Award winner, Scientific Visualization Competition, University of Michigan
2019 Rising Stars in Mechanical Engineering workshop attendee, Stanford University
2015 Education Foundation Scholarship recipient, American Institute of Steel Construction
2015 Tau Beta Pi Scholarship recipient

Contact Me

Feel free to contact me at sdanfort@umich.edu