Experience – Grace Z. Chen, ’24

Experiences are listed with the most recent experience at the top.

For my HCD (Human-Centered Design) research, click here

Rev Ithaca Startup Works

Hardware Product Development Assistant
January 2025 - Current

Collaborated with startup companies to develop, design, & manufacture their products, using CAD & rapid prototyping techniques during their Manufacturing Hardware Accelerator
Supported EquiPad & Marrs Solutions

Mechanical Design Engineer/Product Development Engineer
October 2024 - December 2024

Volunteered time as mechanical designer
Assisted with product development of their startup through CAD and manufacturing

Mechanical Engineering Intern on Hybrid Electric Team, Electrified Powertrain Flight Demonstrator (EPFD) Project
June 2024 - August 2024

Revamped oil collection and testing procedures, which are critical in assessing motor generator health, to become more detailed to mitigate hand-off confusions between different teams and to provide a better tracker for testing progress
Monitored the entire oil sampling and analysis process which included communication with 5 other teams and external vendors, and created a new standard order of procedure for draining and refilling a lube system with new oil
Interpreted 28 groups of SEM data for size of particle, chemical composition of particle, and the potential origin of particle within the motor generator/lube system, specifically looking for harmful particles that could damage engine rotating parts
Modified electromagnetic interference (EMI) shield assembly instructions to properly reflect the new model with the use of NX software
Assisted in characterizing the reasons of failure of an x-ring in the stator of an engine by examining thermal properties and o-ring squeeze calculations
Completed and passed a 35hr course on GD&T per ASME Y14.5 standards

Project Manager and Professional Development Lead
January 2023 - June 2024

Lead the Graphics Team in designing custom graphics that suit the needs for both internal DALI teams and external partners
Monitor design process using Figma, organize notes & calendar in Notion to ensure proper progression during 10-week school term
Conduct team meetings, act as facilitator between the team and partner, hold members accountable for deadlines while fostering a healthy team environment

Below is a gallery of DALI/the graphics team at team socials and some of the graphics that we created!

Small Satellite Mechanical Design Intern in xLab, Member of Space Work Force 2030
June 2023 - August 2023

Designed plates and hardware for vibration testing, ground support equipment, and other tests needed for flight programs (Aerocube 13 & DiskSat) using SolidWorks
Drafted 50+ drawings of flight components using GD&T per ASME Y14.5 (more than ½ of the components for Aerocube 13), worked with machine shop to fabricate parts, monitored process through Jira Agile, & released through PDM process
Composed assembly instructions for RF ground stations that consisted of 10 different assembly documents by identifying missing information & conversing with other departments, which allows xLab to create their own ground stations
Assembled 3D-printed models of previous flight programs (tapped holes, inserted helicoils, used fasteners) in a lab environment
Conceptualized how to build a satellite in space and what the in-space satellite assembly factory would look like
Participated in 2-day Space Systems Overview Course lead by Aerospace’s subject matter experts, topics included launch systems, payload design, spacecraft subsystems

Teaching Assistant
March 2022 - September 2022

Mentored students in Intro to Engineering (design course with 49 students) & Systems (48 students)
Guided students in prototyping process, gave feedback on project presentations & reports, helped students understand material by hosting weekly 2-hour TA sessions

Software Intern
March 2023 - May 2023

Established 10+ test cases for software that models thermodynamic cycles and processes in Java Script
Found bugs and inconsistencies in existing software, verified equations coded into software are accurate using MathCad & Excel, reported errors and possible improvements in Jira

Federal Railroad Association Bridge Identification Project Intern
June 2021 - August 2021

Identified railroad bridges in the USA using GIS software to deliver database to FRA; analyzed 25,000+ data points
Attended seminars depicting various geospatial technology and its applications (augmented reality, agriculture management, etc.)