Hovakimyan recognized for translational research impacting society

MechSE Professor Naira Hovakimyan is this year’s recipient of The Grainger College of Engineering’s Award for Excellence in Translational Research.

The award honors faculty or staff researchers for special achievement in translational research, such as entrepreneurial activities related to research outcomes, technology transfer of research through licensing of intellectual property, and research leading directly to products/outcomes with notable societal impact.

Hovakimyan’s impact through translational research can be seen, in part, in her 11 patents in the field of adaptive control and machine learning. The significance of her patents is in the capabilities of the groundbreaking adaptive control technology that was not previously available for use in mission-critical and control system applications. Her patents have been commercialized by numerous companies and her work on machine learning was already directly patented by her startup company Intelinair, which has raised more than $25M since its inception.

Equally well known are the first manned tests of Hovakimyan’s adaptive control technology on Learjet and F-16 aircraft at Edwards Air Force Base in 2015 and 2016. All of the flight tests served validated, again, her underlying mathematical theory, which provides guaranteed, consistent, and uniform performance, regardless of the nature of the failure configuration.

The company she co-founded, Intelinair, has revolutionized farming methods in the Midwest and beyond. Beginning with flying technologies and attracting initial investments from farmers, the advancements translated into fundamentally new research areas, including computational agriculture. She also cofounded iRACE Technologies, LLC in 2008 to support consulting activities with major industries.

Hovakimyan is the W. Grafton and Lillian B. Wilkins Professor in Mechanical Science and Engineering. She joined MechSE in 2008. She will be recognized at the college awards ceremony April 29.