Email
ppatel3@wpi.edu
Education
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Mechanical Engineering
Master of Science (M.S.) in Mechanical Engineering with Thesis Research
Bachelor of Engineering (B.E.) in Mechanical Engineering
Dr. Parth Y. Patel is a Research Engineer at the Autonomous Vehicle Mobility Institute (AVMI) and an Assistant Research Professor at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). His research expertise lies in simulating and virtualizing off-road autonomous vehicle dynamics (Terramechanics) in unstructured terrain environments, severe weather conditions, and complex operational scenarios. His work focuses on enhancing autonomous ground vehicle mobility, maneuverability, and energy efficiency through advanced simulation, control strategies, and real-time optimization.
Dr. Patel’s research spans several key areas, including:
- Autonomous Driving Systems – Real-time control of vehicle maneuvering, dynamic path planning using visual sensing, and energy-efficient mobility strategies.
- Tire-Soil Interaction Modeling – Assessment and virtualization of tire-terrain interactions for real-time evaluation and control of autonomous vehicle mobility.
- Electrified Vehicle Systems – Multi-domain modeling, hardware prototyping, and experimental research on rotation kinematics sensors for fully electric vehicles.
- Virtual Vehicle Demonstrators – Development of fully electric vehicle simulations with distributed driveline and suspension systems, as well as electrically driven wheel locomotion modules with agile sensing.
- Unmanned Ground Vehicles – Mobility and energy efficiency enhancement for UGVs with individually controlled wheels.
- Immersive Technologies for Simulation – Integration of augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and mixed reality (MR) for real-time autonomous vehicle simulation and control.
- Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Modeling – Advanced simulation of external aerodynamics, including fluid-terrain interaction and wind-driven rain impacts on vehicle performance.
- Dynamic and Aerodynamic Intelligent Morphing Systems (DA-IMS) – Design and experimental validation of novel multibody systems for improved stability and operational performance of autonomous vehicles.
Prior to joining AVMI, Dr. Patel earned his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) in 2023. During his academic tenure, he authored 15 peer-reviewed publications presented at international conferences and collaborated with institutions such as Georgia Institute of Technology, California State University, Fresno, and Altec Inc., as well as contributing to an NSF-funded project at UAB.
Dr. Patel is actively involved in the professional research community. He is a co-organizer of the ASME Advanced Vehicle Technologies (AVT) conference and a member of the ASME Vehicle Design Committee. Additionally, he serves as a reviewer for several esteemed journals and international conferences, including the Journal of Autonomous Vehicles and Systems, Vehicle System Dynamics, AIAA, MSR, USCToMM, ASME IDETC/CIE, SAE WCX, ISTVS, and IAVSD.
Email
ppatel3@wpi.edu
Education
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Mechanical Engineering
Master of Science (M.S.) in Mechanical Engineering with Thesis Research
Bachelor of Engineering (B.E.) in Mechanical Engineering
Dr. Parth Y. Patel is a Research Engineer at the Autonomous Vehicle Mobility Institute (AVMI) and an Assistant Research Professor at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). His research expertise lies in simulating and virtualizing off-road autonomous vehicle dynamics (Terramechanics) in unstructured terrain environments, severe weather conditions, and complex operational scenarios. His work focuses on enhancing autonomous ground vehicle mobility, maneuverability, and energy efficiency through advanced simulation, control strategies, and real-time optimization.
Dr. Patel’s research spans several key areas, including:
- Autonomous Driving Systems – Real-time control of vehicle maneuvering, dynamic path planning using visual sensing, and energy-efficient mobility strategies.
- Tire-Soil Interaction Modeling – Assessment and virtualization of tire-terrain interactions for real-time evaluation and control of autonomous vehicle mobility.
- Electrified Vehicle Systems – Multi-domain modeling, hardware prototyping, and experimental research on rotation kinematics sensors for fully electric vehicles.
- Virtual Vehicle Demonstrators – Development of fully electric vehicle simulations with distributed driveline and suspension systems, as well as electrically driven wheel locomotion modules with agile sensing.
- Unmanned Ground Vehicles – Mobility and energy efficiency enhancement for UGVs with individually controlled wheels.
- Immersive Technologies for Simulation – Integration of augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and mixed reality (MR) for real-time autonomous vehicle simulation and control.
- Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Modeling – Advanced simulation of external aerodynamics, including fluid-terrain interaction and wind-driven rain impacts on vehicle performance.
- Dynamic and Aerodynamic Intelligent Morphing Systems (DA-IMS) – Design and experimental validation of novel multibody systems for improved stability and operational performance of autonomous vehicles.
Prior to joining AVMI, Dr. Patel earned his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) in 2023. During his academic tenure, he authored 15 peer-reviewed publications presented at international conferences and collaborated with institutions such as Georgia Institute of Technology, California State University, Fresno, and Altec Inc., as well as contributing to an NSF-funded project at UAB.
Dr. Patel is actively involved in the professional research community. He is a co-organizer of the ASME Advanced Vehicle Technologies (AVT) conference and a member of the ASME Vehicle Design Committee. Additionally, he serves as a reviewer for several esteemed journals and international conferences, including the Journal of Autonomous Vehicles and Systems, Vehicle System Dynamics, AIAA, MSR, USCToMM, ASME IDETC/CIE, SAE WCX, ISTVS, and IAVSD.
Office
Suit 303, 85 Prescott St, Worcester, MA
Research Interests
Autonomous Vehicle Aero-Road/Terrain Multibody Morphing Dynamics
Computational Fluid Dynamics and Simulations
Numerical Simulations
Inverse and Direct, Coupled and Interactive Vehicle System Dynamics
Design and Testing of Vehicles with Mechanical and Electrical Driveline Systems
Applied Fluid Mechanics
Simulation and Virtualization of off-road autonomous vehicles (Terramechanics)
Scholarly Work
Book Chapter
- Patel, P.Y., Vantsevich, V., Koomullil, R. (2022). Inverse Dynamics of the Utility Truck’s Morphing Robotic Manipulator. In: Larochelle, P., McCarthy, J.M. (eds) Proceedings of the 2022 USCToMM Symposium on Mechanical Systems and Robotics. USCToMM MSR 2022. Mechanisms and Machine Science, vol 118. Springer, Cham.
- Patel, P.Y., Koomullil, R., Vantsevich, V. (2024). A Novel Dynamic and Aerodynamic Intelligent Morphing System (DA-IMS) for the Stability of an Autonomous Utility Truck with the Boom Equipment. In: Azimov, D. (eds) Proceedings of the IUTAM Symposium on Optimal Guidance and Control for Autonomous Systems 2023. IUTAM 2023. IUTAM Bookseries, vol 40. Springer, Cham.
Publications and Technical Presentations
- Parth Y. Patel, Roy Koomullil, Vladimir V. Vantsevich, “Dynamical and Aerodynamical Analysis of Moving Road Utility Truck with the Morphing Boom Equipment under Crosswind Conditions”, IAVSD 2023 on dynamics of vehicles on roads and tracks, August 21-25, 2023, Ottawa, Canada.
- Parth Y. Patel, Roy Koomullil, Vladimir V. Vantsevich, “An Advance Method to Investigate and Manage the Stability of Autonomous Utility Trucks with the Morphing Boom Equipment under Crosswind”, ASME IDETC-CIE AVT symposium, August 20-23, 2023, Boston, MA.
- Parth Y. Patel, Inchan Yoon, Chandramouli Krishnamurthy, Vladimir Vantsevich, and Roy Koomullil, “Aerodynamic Performance of the Utility Truck with the Next-generation Morphing Structures: Computations and Wind Tunnel Testing”, IAVSD 2023 on dynamics of vehicles on roads and tracks, August 21-25, 2023, Ottawa, Canada.
- Parth Y. Patel, Chandramouli Krishnamurthy, Gavin Clausman, Vladimir Vantsevich and Roy Koomullil. "Modelling Effect of Rain on the External Aerodynamics of the Utility Truck with the Morphing Boom Equipment: Computations and Wind Tunnel Testing," AIAA 2023-1761. AIAA SCITECH 2023 Forum. January 2023.
- Patel, PY, Jannoi, T, Zou, W, Vantsevich, V, & Koomullil, R. "Aerodynamic Analysis of the Utility Truck with the Morphing Boom Equipment." Proceedings of the ASME 2022 Fluids Engineering Division Summer Meeting. Volume 2: Multiphase Flow (MFTC); Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFDTC); Micro and Nano Fluid Dynamics (MNFDTC). Toronto, Ontario, Canada. August 3–5, 2022. V002T05A033. ASME.
- Patel, P., Vantsevich, V., Happawana, G., Harned, C. et al., "Dynamic Formulation of the Utility Truck with the Morphing Boom Equipment," SAE Technical Paper 2022-01-0917, 2022.
- Parth Y. Patel, Jia H. Liu, Vladimir V. Vantsevich and Roy P. Koomullil. "Modelling Effect of Rain on Aerodynamic Performance of the Ahmed Body," AIAA 2022-0335. AIAA SCITECH 2022 Forum. January 2022.
- Parth Y. Patel, V. V. Vantsevich, Jordan Whitson, “Utility Truck: Morphing Boom Equipment for Terrain Mobility”, 20th International Conference and 9th Americas Conference of ISTVS 2021.
- Patel, PY, Happawana, G, Vantsevich, VV, Boger, D, & Harned, C. "Morphing Capabilities and Safe Operation Zone of the Utility Truck Boom Equipment." Proceedings of the ASME 2020 International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition. Volume 7B: Dynamics, Vibration, and Control. Virtual, Online. November 16–19, 2020. V07BT07A025. ASME.
- Parth Y. Patel, Roy Koomullil, Siyuan Zhang, Lee Moradi, and Vladimir Vantsevich, “Advancing Ground Vehicle Dynamics: Dynamic Morphing Technology Integration and Analysis for the Autonomous Utility Truck in High-Crosswind Conditions,” International Conference on Advanced Vehicle Technologies (AVT). Washington, DC, USA. August 25–28, 2024.
- H. Fan, S. Zhang, Parth Y. Patel, Lee Moradi, and Vladimir Vantsevich, “A Star Based Path Planning Strategy for Off-Road Vehicle Applications with Considering Wheel Mobility Performance,” International Conference on Advanced Vehicle Technologies (AVT). Washington, DC, USA. August 25–28, 2024.
Dissertation
- Parth Y. Patel (2023), “Analytical Fundamentals for Advancing Aero-Road/Terrain Multibody Morphing Dynamics and Stability of Autonomous Utility Truck in Hazardous Environment”, ProQuest, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Thesis
- Parth Y. Patel (2019), “A Study of Approximation Error in Eulerian Hydrocodes”, ProQuest, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Professional Affiliations
American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE)
American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA)
International Society for Terrain-Vehicles Systems (ISTVS)
Autonomous Vehicles and Systems
Vehicle System Dynamics
Mechanical Systems and Robotics (MSR)
The International Association for Vehicle System Dynamics (IAVSD)
U.S. Committee for the Theory of Machines and Mechanisms (USCToMM)
Professional Highlights & Honors