Chenwan Halley Zhong

about me.

As a robotics student at Northwestern University, I build robots designed to survive the transition from the lab to the real world. My expertise spans the full robotics stack, from designing custom embedded electronics and mechanical structures to implementing robust perception and motion planning pipelines. Beyond the lab, I also create indie games and write music as a singer-songwriter.

Resume

Presenting interactive installations at "Seeing Diversity" exhibition

Performing at Grassland music festivals

education.

experience.

• HKUST(GZ) Information Hub - Research Assistant Guangzhou, China

  at, arkxlab.github.io

  Oct, 2024 - May, 2025

  • Developed an ESP32-based embedded system to drive a 10.2g rack-and-pinion module for a soft robotic interface.
  • Engineered a hardware-minimized PCB (3×3 cm) optimized for mobile, on-body robotic actuation.
  • Architected a GPT-4o & ElevenLabs pipeline to map generative theater scripts into synchronized robot performances.
  • Developed a synchronized communication layer in Python via MQTT protocol for sub-millisecond coordination across a modular robot swarm.

  • Swarm Robotics
  • Soft Robotics
  • MQTT
  • TTS
  • Embedded Systems
  • HRI
  • LLM

• Lenovo Research - Software Engineer Intern Beijing, China

  at, research.lenovo.com

  Nov, 2023 - Apr, 2024

  • Developed a virtual hand-object interaction demo in C# and Unity for naked-eye 3D interactive gaming.
  • Integrated Leap Motion with a monocular camera to enable precise 3D gesture control across XYZ axes.
  • Engineered 6 custom gestures and operational logic to expand interaction complexity post-metadata acquisition.
  • Optimized system interactivity based on user test groups, contributing to a 15% rise in overall user satisfaction.

  • Unity 3D
  • Gesture Recognition
  • Leap Motion
  • Naked-eye 3D
  • Computer Vision

• NTU EEE - Research Assistant Singapore

  at, blogs.ntu.edu.sg

  Jul, 2023 - Sep, 2023

  • Analyzed commercial HVAC telemetry to extract critical power consumption features for cooling towers and industrial chillers.
  • Developed a Graph Neural Network (GNN) architecture for thermal mapping, achieving an 8% error rate in sparse sensor environments.
  • Built high-fidelity twins via Modelica & EnergyPlus to simulate building dynamics, validating 15% energy savings via optimized control.

  • IoT
  • Data Analysis
  • HVAC
  • GNN
  • Modelica
  • EnergyPlus

• Beijing Benz Automotive Co., Ltd. - Manufacturing Engineering Intern Beijing, China

  at, bbac.com.cn

  Apr, 2023 - Jul, 2023

  • Developed a C/C++ Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL) for STM32-based torque-tightening verification systems.
  • Implemented DMA-based UART/SPI drivers to synchronize force sensor telemetry in real-time.
  • Optimized interrupt-driven signal conditioning to ensure deterministic response for safety interlocks.

  • Embedded Systems
  • HIL
  • HAL
  • Communication Protocols

publications.

• SofiBuddy: A Soft Mobile Interface for On-Body Interaction SA Posters '25: SIGGRAPH Asia 2025 Posters

  Yixuan Li, Jie Yu, Chenwan Halley Zhong, Zhaowen Deng, Teng Han, Yi Cai, Xin Tong

• RoboTheater: A Multi-Robot Storytelling Platform from LLM Scripts to Stage Performance TEI 2026 Work-in-Progress

  Yinghao Gao, Yongbo Yang, Chenwan Halley Zhong, Xinyi Zhang, Junrong Song, Lawrence H. Kim, Tengfei Chang, Xin Tong