Hi there, my name is Lenworth Thomas Jr, but I go by TJ! I’m a 4th year Ph.D. student at Carnegie Mellon University. My research focuses on the intersection between robotics and ecology. I have 8 years of hands-on experience in full-stack robotics and hardware development. I have led projects from early-stage concepts to high-volume deployment, spanning consumer technology, robotics, and automotive, where I’ve demonstrated my ability to be a systems thinker but to also dive deep on technical topics. My thesis focuses on enhancing small autonomous systems for environmental sensing through bio-inspiration. Through multiple peer-reviewed publications, I have demonstrated the ability to communicate and disseminate complex technical work clearly. Shoot me an email if you have any questions or would like to collaborate: ltjthomas2000@gmail.com
Research Projects
Wind-Informed Odor Source Localization on a 50 g Quadrotor
L. Thomas, T. Bridges, S. Bergbreiter
We miniaturized a whisker-inspired flow sensor to enable autonomous chemical plume tracing on a pocket-sized drone.
Asymmetric Whisker-Inspired Sensor Pairs for Enhanced Airflow Sensing on Drones
T. Kent, L. Thomas, Tjaden Bridges, Sarah Bergbreiter
We used a whisker pair to distinguish between self motion and ambient wind.
Straight to the Source: A Wind-Driven Approach for Faster Odor Source Localization on a Micro-Quadrotor
L. Thomas, Tjaden Bridges, Sarah Bergbreiter
We introduced odor source localization on a Crazyflie, using a dynamic servoing method.
Airflow Source Seeking on Small Quadrotors Using a Single Flow Sensor
L. Thomas, Tjaden Bridges, Sarah Bergbreiter
We introduced flow direction sensing on an 80 g drone. The direction was used as a setpoint in a wind seeking anemotaxis controller.
Personal and Course Projects
Autonomous F1-Tenth Racing
We programmed a RC car to race around a track autonomously against other teams.
Skills: ROS2, Python, C++
Jellyfish-Inspired Robot for Aquatic Environmental Monitoring
Designed and manufactured a jellyfish-inspired robot which uses a novel magnetic pulley system to actuate a silicone flexure.
Skills: CAD, SLA Printing, Mechatronics Design, Silicone Mold Making
Autonomous Mobile Robot for Actuating Ship Controls
Designed and manufactured an AGV and gantry system to actuate valves in a simulated ship control room.
Skills: CAD, Mechanism Design, Computer Vision
TJ Thomas 