Vishal Misra

RKS Family Professor of Computer Science; Vice Dean of Computing and Artificial Intelligence

Highlights: Designing for Impact

Here’s a look at some of the capstone projects on display at Senior Design Expo 2026. Credit: Timothy Lee

Large group photo of students on a stage in front of a screen reading “Senior Design Expo ’26, Columbia Engineering.”
Biomedical Engineering students pose with Lecturer Lauren Heckleman (center).
A team in “Senior Design Expo ’26” shirts stands behind a table display for “DesiCool: Humidity-First Air Conditioning,” with prototypes and a monitor.
DesiCool (Mechanical Engineering) is a product that aims to mitigate the effects of humidity, enabling more energy-efficient dehumidification.
Four students pose beside a research poster
The Industrial Engineering and Operations Research team Advisor Assistant created an AI-enabled email advising system that can generate and draft email responses.
A student in a “Senior Design Expo ’26” shirt explains a safety harness worn on a mannequin to an older attendee.
Mechanical Engineering’s LumenFlex is a science-backed wearable device that limits harmful spinal motion contributing to multiple forms of back pain.
A presenter gestures toward a poster titled “TurmerID Wipe” while two attendees listen at a project display.
TumerRID Wipe (Chemical Engineering) is a specialized stain remover that uses an optimized solvent system to remove hard-to-clean stains.
Close-up of hands demonstrating a device with tubing connected to a mannequin head on a tabletop.
Biomedical Engineering’s O2-Matic is an automated, low-cost respiratory ventilation system that reduces the inconsistency of manual ventilators and improves patient outcomes.
A team presents medical-device prototypes and a project poster to an attendee at a crowded expo table.
GJ-Stay (Biomedical Engineering) aims to prevent Gastrojejunostomy tube flipping by providing a new design that anchors the tube in the small intestine.
Five students stand behind a table display for “NiNa,” showing prototypes, a laptop, and a monitor with the tagline “Secure, noninvasive comfort for all.”
NiNa, The Night-Time Nanny (Biomedical Engineering) is a real-time baby monitoring system that checks vital signs and sleep duration of newborn infants.
Two students sit at a table looking at a laptop, with a football in the foreground.
Electrical Engineering’s Smart Football provides measurements on the acceleration, spin RPM, and spirality for immediate feedback for quarterbacks to refine their throws.
Two presenters stand at a “PaceMate” display about wearable EMI awareness for pacemaker safety, speaking with an attendee across the table.
PaceMate (Biomedical Engineering) sought to create a more reliable and convenient way to alert patients with pacemakers on the presence of high Electromagnetic Interference.
A student wearing a “Senior Design Expo ’26” sweatshirt stands next to a poster about a phone-screen crack-filling resin.
Chemical Engineering’s Samir Farraj created ScreenSavior - a solvent that can heal cracks on a phone or tablet screen.
Two students examine and adjust a clear scale model of a suspension bridge on a table at an indoor exhibit.
Civil Engineering’s Baltimore Blueway Bridge aims to redesign and construct the Francis Scott Key Bridge, a truss bridge that collapsed after a cargo ship collided with one of its piers.
A speaker at a podium addresses the crowd onstage, with a large screen behind reading “Senior Design Expo ’26, Columbia Engineering.”
Dean Shih-Fu Chang addresses attendees of the Senior Design Expo.
Five students in “Senior Design Expo ’26” shirts pose behind a table of laptops and electronics, with one holding up a sensor device on a cable.sor device on a cable.
The Electrical Engineering team at CLACS shows off their clip-on live-annotation system, which uses AI to recognize letters as they're written and transcribe them to a companion app.
Four students pose in front of project posters at the expo; one holds a wearable device strapped to their leg.
Mechanical Engineering’s GoPower created a wearable, energy-harvesting device that converts the motion of walking into usable mechanical energy, for long-distance hiking and off-grid travel.
At a demo table, a presenter points to a screen showing circuit-board designs while another student watches and an attendee leans in to look.
Anura (Mechanical Engineering) created noise-canceling headphones with live translation capabilities.
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Many of the projects in this year’s expo integrated AI with custom hardware. The Clinical Handwashing Coach, which tracks handwashing sessions, is being tested at a hospital in Pasadena, California. The team of electrical engineering students designed an AI system to ensure that medical professionals comply with handwashing protocols. Other teams from the department used AI to create noise-canceling headphones with real-time language detection and translation (team ANURA) and a wearable device that inexpensively creates digital transcriptions (CLACS).

A couple of projects tackled wheelchair comfort and mobility autonomy. The Mechanical Engineering team STAR (Self-Transfer with Automated Reversing) Lift made moving in and out of a wheelchair easier for wheelchair users with upper-body mobility, allowing them to transfer themselves to a bed without assistance. Team Wheel-E created a specialized seat cushion for wheelchair users that helps alleviate the painful symptoms of prolonged sitting. 

Urban green infrastructure was the main theme for many projects in the Department of Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics. The Morningside Park Rehabilitation Project reimagined the local neighborhood park by proposing two new community centers for public use and an upgraded drainage system that can handle heavier rainfall runoff. 

From AI devices to reimagining a neighborhood park, the Class of 2026 proved that the best engineering goes beyond the classroom and makes an impact in the world.

Highlights from “Women at the Frontlines of Change”

Photos by Brandon Vallejo/Columbia College

Two speakers sit onstage in armchairs during a talk; one woman speaks into a handheld microphone while the other smiles and listens.
Two attendees talk during a reception; one holds a drink while the other smiles, with other guests mingling in the background.
Three attendees sit at a round table during a reception, smiling toward the camera with small plates of food on the table.
Close-up of a speaker holding a microphone and gesturing while another seated moderator listens in the background.
Group photo of four attendees standing close together and smiling in an indoor reception area.
Wide shot of a large hall with a stage, audience seating, and “Columbia College Women” projected on the walls.
A woman stands in the aisle speaking into a microphone as seated attendees listen.
A woman speaks at a podium labeled “Columbia University” while another speaker sits onstage behind her.
An audience member stands and asks a question into a microphone in a crowded auditorium.
Group portrait of six event attendees standing in a row indoors, smiling for the camera.
Attendees mingle and talk in a crowded reception hall during a networking event.
Five attendees pose smiling around a high-top table with candles at an indoor networking reception.
Six attendees stand arm-in-arm and smile for a group photo at an indoor event venue.
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