Alumnus Brandon Torres ’24 designs web prototype aimed at revolutionizing mechanical engineering course

While taking Assistant Professor of Engineering Mahdi Farahikia’s Kinematics of Machines course, which studies motion in machines such as door closers, airplane landing gear and car engines, recent graduate Brandon Torres ’24 (Mechanical Engineering) devised a faster way to complete his homework by building a new tool. 

Through funding from New Paltz’s Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE), Torres created an online calculator prototype for engineers to perform kinematics analysis, which is normally done by hand. While similar software is available, it is often expensive and difficult to use. 

“As I was learning different concepts in class, I started coding whatever I was being taught into a digital tool to help me complete my homework faster,” he said.  

Torres’ interest in coding allowed him to develop a skill not commonly taught in mechanical engineering courses.  

“I mainly started building this calculator as a way to help my classmates, but then I realized I could excel at this skill and solve some of the most common problems that come with coding on my own,” he said.  

One of those common issues with learning software coding is implementing the wrong algorithm for the wrong problem. 

“I knew I needed to find a way to create this algorithm, and I tested out my prototype multiple times before getting it right,” he said. “Having this time outside of my classes helped me find the right algorithm.”  

Once Torres cracked the code to tackle kinematics equations, he reached out to Farahikia. Upon learning about what Torres was creating behind the scenes, he took the future engineer under his wing. 

“Coding can feel like a new language for mechanical engineering students, so seeing how well he mastered it inspired me to help him,” said Farahikia.  

While Torres’s prototype is designed for academic purposes, it has potential to grow into a widely used tool in the mechanical engineering field.  

“We hope this becomes software for professional engineers,” said Torres. “As long as we keep building on this prototype, so it computes all possible algorithms for machine movement calculations, we are headed in the right direction.” 

For now, Torres and Farahikia have taken this idea on the road. Both showcased their digital calculator concept at the SUNY Undergraduate Research Conference in April and took part in August’s American Society of Mechanical Engineers’ International Design Engineering Technical Conferences & Computers and Information in Engineering Conference in Washington D.C. 

“We met professors who are teaching the same course, but maybe have not thought about going about these algorithms in this way,” said Farahikia. “This prototype is going to revolutionize the way this course is being taught in other schools.” 

Click here to learn more about the Mechanical Engineering program at SUNY New Paltz.