🔬 Joining the UbiComp Lab at UW

A New Chapter Begins! 🎉

I can’t believe it’s been a few days since I officially joined the UbiComp Lab at UW! Working with Prof. Shwetak Patel and PhD student Alex Ching has been a dream come true. The lab’s energy is infectious, and I’m already diving headfirst into some fascinating research directions.

To be honest, this lab was one of the main reasons I decided to pursue my master’s degree at UW in the first place. I’ve been following their work for a while now, and seeing their innovative approaches to health sensing, novel interactions, and real-world deployments really inspired me to want to be part of this research community.

What We’re Working On

The projects I’m getting involved with are exactly the kind of work I’ve been hoping to do. We’re exploring some really cool applications of wearable sensing that could genuinely change how people interact with technology.

Strain Sensor Gesture Recognition: One of the most exciting projects involves using strain sensors to detect different hand and finger gestures. The idea is to create a seamless interface where your natural movements can control digital environments. We’re particularly interested in integrating this with AR and VR systems - imagine being able to manipulate virtual objects just by moving your fingers naturally, without any bulky controllers or cameras tracking your every move. The strain sensors can pick up subtle muscle movements and finger positions that traditional methods might miss.

Cuffless Blood Pressure Monitoring: Another project that has me really excited involves PPG (photoplethysmography) sensors for continuous, cuffless blood pressure monitoring throughout the day. Traditional blood pressure cuffs are bulky and can only give you snapshots of your BP at specific moments. But what if we could monitor your blood pressure continuously, 24/7, using just a small wearable device? We’re working on algorithms that can extract blood pressure information from PPG signals, which could be a game-changer for people with hypertension or cardiovascular conditions who need constant monitoring.

Why This Matters to Me

Coming from my background in embedded systems and IoT, these projects feel like the perfect intersection of hardware innovation and real-world impact. There’s something incredibly satisfying about building technology that people can actually use in their daily lives, rather than just publishing papers that sit on shelves.

The lab environment here is unlike anything I’ve experienced before. Everyone is genuinely excited about pushing the boundaries of what’s possible with ubiquitous computing, and there’s this collaborative spirit where ideas flow freely between different projects and research areas.

Looking Ahead

I’m still getting my bearings and learning the ropes, but I’m already brainstorming ways to contribute meaningfully to these projects. The next few months will probably involve a lot of prototyping, data collection, and probably some late nights in the lab - but honestly, I can’t wait.

Thanks to Prof. Shwetak and Alex for taking a chance on me and bringing me into this incredible research community. Here’s to building the future of human-computer interaction, one sensor at a time!