Members

SymBio-X Lab Group Photo, Fall 2025
SymBio-X Lab • Fall 2025 • Vanderbilt University

Principal Investigator: Dr. Yayun Du

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PI Dr. Yayun Du is an Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Vanderbilt University, with an affiliation to the Vanderbilt Institute for Surgery and Engineering (VISE). Dr. Yayun Du got her Ph.D. in Robotics and System Control (Minor: Solid Mechanics) from University of California, Los Angeles. From 2022 to 2024, Dr. Du was a postdoctoral scholar at the Rogers Group at Northwestern University, where she led 5 projects, focused on developing multimodal and multiparametric wearable and implantable sensors with integrated edge AI for monitoring cardiopulmonary (e.g., aortic stenosis, atrial fibrillation, and heart failure), neurological (e.g., sleep studies, delirium, coma, and epilepsy), and vocal system health, as well as for disease diagnosis and drug delivery. Her work has led to the deployment of four types of sensors across seven hospitals, benefiting hundreds of users globally, from neonates to the elderly, in countries including China, Canada, Mexico, the U.S., and the U.K.

Currently, Dr. Du involves in commericializing the sensors she developed and serves as an Associate Editor for ICRA 2025. She has submitted several first-authored manuscripts to prestigious journals that are forthcoming. Dr. Du has also published in top robotics journals and conferences, including the IEEE-Robotics and Automation Letters (RAL), IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), and IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS). Her work was a finalist for the Best Paper Award in Agri-Robotics and the Best Paper Award in Robot Mechanisms and Design at IROS 2021 (selected 4 out of 1261 for each category).

Selected Honors and Awards

Graduate Students (Three more are joining)

Tengyue Wu
Tengyue Wu (M.S., incoming Ph.D.)
  • Date Joined: January 2025
  • Concentration: Electrical and Computer Engineering
  • Project/Team: Firmware and Application Design
  • "My goal is to gain a comprehensive understanding of the whole engineering system and work on things that are meaningful to people—something that can actually contribute to scientific progress."
Kindeep Dhatt
Kindeep Dhatt (M.Eng.)
  • Date Joined: May 2025
  • Concentration: VISE Engineering (Biomedical Engineering, Surgery & Intervention)
  • Project/Team: Signal Processing/Machine Learning, Sensor Development, Wearable Devices
  • "Everything is theoretically impossible, until it’s done." — Robert A. Heinlei
Hangqi Ren
Hangqi Ren (M.S.)
  • Date Joined: August 2025
  • Concentration: Electrical and Computer Engineering
  • Project/Team: Human Robot Interaction
  • "My aim is to advance and build reliable medical robotics algorithms for precision medicine."
Devon A Pytel
Devon A Pytel (M.Eng.)
  • Date Joined: August 2025
  • Concentration: ViSE Engineering
  • Project/Team: Sensor Development
  • "Driven by a deep appreciation for the impact of medical intervention, my goal is to contribute meaningful research at the intersection of engineering and surgery to improve patient outcomes and advance the future of care."

Undergraduate Students

Caiwan Sun
Caiwan Sun
  • Date Joined: February 2025
  • Year: 2nd Year
  • Major: Electrical and Computer Engineering
  • Project/Team: Circuit Design
  • "I joined the lab to turn hands-on experience into real-world impact."
Yuming Xie
Yuming Xie
  • Date Joined: June 2025
  • Year: 4th Year
  • Concentration: Biomedical Engineering
  • Project/Team: Signal Processing and Machine Learning
  • "I joined Du Group to explore and contribute to the development of innovative biomedical and electrical technologies that improve healthcare and benefit those in need."
Htet Htet Paing
Htet Htet Paing
  • Date Joined: November 2025
  • Year: 2nd Year
  • Major: Mechanical Engineering
  • Project/Team: Circuit Design
  • "."
Kaylyn Sethakosee
Kaylyn Sethakosee
  • Date Joined: November 2025
  • Year: 2nd Year
  • Major: Biomedical Engineering
  • Project/Team: Circuit Design
  • "."

High School Students

Zoe Eveland
Zoe Eveland
  • Date Joined: August 2025
  • Project/Team: Robtics and Learning
  • "I joined Dr. Du's lab because I wanted learn about various elements of robotics and its applications while being able to contribute to technology that will help people in need."

Alumni

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