Yuchen Yao

Address: 30 Shuangqing Road, Haidian District, Beijing, China 100084 | Phone: 86 18968395449 | E-mail: yuchen_yao_thu@163.com

Education

Tsinghua University, Xinya College

Major: Creative Design and Intelligent Engineering

Beijing, China

Expected 06/2024

Dual Degree: Bachelor of Engineering in Automation, from the School of Information Science and Technology

Bachelor of Arts in Product Design, from the Academy of Arts & Design

GPA: 3.77/4

Relevant Courses: Foundation of Artificial Intelligence, Numerical Analysis and Algorithms, Data Structures, Fundamentals of Analog Electronics, Fundamentals of Mechanical Design, Digital Electronics, Design Project in Electronic Technology, Measurement and Test Technology, Theory of Automatic Control, Signals and System Analysis, Fundamental of Machine Manufacturing, Operations Research, Innovative Design and Design Practice, Advanced Design Technology, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Practice, Product Design, Experience Design, Interaction Design, Design Method and Service System, Ergonomics Application, Society Investigation

Research

Pervasive Human-Computer Interaction Lab, Tsinghua University

Undergraduate Research Fellow, Supervisor: Dr. Yuntao Wang

Beijing, China

08/2022-Present

* Carry out human-computer interaction research, focus on platform development and user experimentation for affective computing projects

* Conduct literature review, update research findings during group meetings, and design the user experiment pipeline for verifying the hypothesis

* Summarize the research results and contribute to writing two research papers “UnlockFear: Predicting Fine-Grained Fear of Heights with Physiological Signals in VR” and “G-VOILA: Enabling Gaze and Voice Information Retrieval Using LLMs”, both articles are submitted for publishing

The Future Lab, Tsinghua University

Undergraduate Research Fellow, Supervisor: Prof. Yingqing Xu

Beijing, China

03/2022-07/2022

* Conducted design and manufacturing practices, primarily focused on creating new interfaces for emerging spatial media technologies

* Carried out literature research, and engaged in technical experimentation and circuit design, culminating in the fabrication of a frameless ink screen technology prototype

Internships

Microsoft Research Asia (MSRA)

Interaction Design Intern, Innovation Engineering Group

Beijing, China

11/2022-04/2023

* Worked on three user experience (UX) design projects and collaborated with front-end, back-end, and algorithm engineers to complete the projects

* Participated in the web UX design of “AimWriting”, an AI writing teaching system that aims to help teachers and students living in poverty areas, achieved an artistic and user-friendly webpage design, and the “AimWriting” project has partnered with more than 10 schools and helped over 10,000 students and teachers in China

* Involved in “ASL Sign Search”, a sign language accessible translation engine’s product management, user experience, and user interface design work, communicated with algorithm engineers in the Intelligent Multimedia Group to confirm the database requirements, interactive functions, and product form of the sign language translation engine for implementation

* Focused on the UX design of "Kosmos", a conversational multimodal big language model, working with the engineering team, product manager, and team managers of the Machine Learning Group to discuss the UX flow, interface design, and future features of the conversational AI product, and the "Kosmos" was successfully launched internally at MSRA

Beijing Nolibox Technology Co., Ltd.

Intelligent Design Intern, AI & Design Lab

Beijing, China

08/2021-09/2021

* Worked as an intelligent design intern and an assistant to the Chief Technology Officer for the Design Knowledge Graph project, assisted in the advancement of the creation of the design knowledge graph, and focused on quantifying design that could enable graphic design to be accomplished with the assistance of algorithms

* Wrote a categorization structure of elements for the design knowledge graph and corresponding attribute documents, created a complete set of descriptive specifications to quantify graphic design

* Communicated with the algorithm and designer teams to plan a design knowledge graph test project, prepared the design material library and corpus, defined the test objectives and methodology, and successfully realized the expected results

Projects

An Augmented Reality (AR) Headset for Better Learning Engagement in Hearing Impaired Children's Class

Individual Project & Capstone Project

Beijing, China

08/2023-Present

* Collaborate with China Deaf, conducting expert interviews and shadowing studies on the education of deaf children

* Conduct technical experiments to achieve shared visual fields and intent analysis based on AR displays

* Work on product design, create a precise prototype and follow by user testing

A Real-time Sign Language Translation System for Deaf Individuals' Remote Calls

Internship Project

Beijing, China

12/2022-04/2023

* Undertook the position of a product manager intern and coordinated the team for weekly meetings and project planning

* Took responsibility for UX design, collaborated with engineers to refine the feature list, and finalized the user interface design

* Assisted in website development and functional testing, culminating in the completion of the product prototype.

An Art Installation Presenting Visual Concertos for Deaf People

Team Project

Beijing, China

03/2021-05/2021

* Explored an idea of a visualized concerto for deaf people in The Future Laboratory at Tsinghua University

* Conducted technical experiments to transform symphonic music into a light performance

* Completed the device's structure design, crafted a refined prototype, and presented it at a course-related exhibition

Honors & Awards

Zhang Ronghua Scholarship, Tsinghua University

Gold Medal, International Genetically Engineered Machine Competition

Social Work Excellence Award, Tsinghua University

Technology Innovation Excellence Award, Tsinghua University

Tsinghua-Toyota Scholarship, Tsinghua University & Toyota Motor Corporation

Best Communication Award, Imperial College London - Royal College of Art Design for Global Challenges Winter School

Outstanding Student Leader Award, Tsinghua University

Award for Excellence in Literature and Art, Tsinghua University

Qu Yuzhi Scholarship, Tsinghua University

Outstanding Member of Communist Youth League, Tsinghua University

Award for Outstanding Academic Achievement, Tsinghua University

Gold Medal, The 29th International Biology Olympiad (IBO)

12/2023

11/2023

10/2020, 10/2021, 10/2022 & 10/2023

10/2022 & 10/2023

12/2020 & 12/2022

02/2022

10/2022

10/2022

12/2021

10/2021

10/2020

07/2018

Extracurricular Activities

China Rehabilitation Research Center for Hearing and Speech Impairment

Volunteer & Teacher

Beijing, China

09/2023-11/2023

* Participated in leading classroom teaching activities, including language training, physical training, social training, etc., accumulating over 30 hours

* Led a university student volunteer activity program, guiding students to understand the rehabilitation training process for deaf children and establishing channels for collaboration between schools and research institutes

Student Council, Xinya College, Tsinghua University

President

Beijing, China

06/2021-06/2022

* Oversaw the operation of the student council, organized and coordinated meetings and activities of the departments and student clubs at Xinya College

* Promoted a series of changes and improvements within my term, including establishing a questioning and feedback system, planning recreation and sports events during school breaks, and creating systems of joint meetings of study committees

* Managed Xinya College’s social media platform and reviewed all the articles before publishing on the social media platform

* Organized annual student events, such as cultural events during Chinese traditional holidays, student council meetings, welcome reception for new students, recruitment of student council and student clubs, etc.

Imperial College London - Royal College of Art Design for Global Challenges Winter School

Participant & Group Project Leader

Online

01/2022-02/2022

* Participated in the Design for Global Challenges winter school online course and learned conceptual, analytical, and problem-solving skills through case studies and projects

* Led a group project to focus on developing a soft robot companion for depressed people during the COVID-19 pandemic, conducted the final presentation, and the group project received the Best Communication Award

Languages & Skills

Language: English (Proficient, TOEFL: 112), Chinese (Native)

Programming: Machine Learning, Signal Processing, Embedded System

Modeling: Rhinoceros, SolidWorks, AutoCAD, KeyShot, 3D printing, Metalworking, Laser Cutting

User Research: User Interview, Contextual Inquiry, Storyboarding, Journey Mapping, Wireframing

Nolibox (confidential)

#Algorithm #AI Design #Knowledge Map

NeRF Virtual Avatar Reconsturction

Utilizing NeRF technology, I achieved the reconstruction of virtual avatars from 2D photos to 3D models. A 3D model was rebuilt from 24 high-definition photographs.

Learn more about this program

SpaceFlow

An astronaut-specific tea kettle leveraging space’s zero-gravity. It’s engineered to avoid spills and enables convenient swapping of tea bags.

Tools: Rhino, Realflow

Floral Echos

An artistic phone sound amplifier with a special chamber design for audio enhancement, doubling as a vase for fresh flowers, offering both visual and auditory delight.

Tools: Rhino, Keyshot

Bugoides

A biomimetic animal based on a four-bar linkage, replicating an insect’s gait, composed entirely of one type of part.

Tools: Solidworks, Mechanical Manufacturing

→ Learn more about this program

Kinetic Art

A dynamic art installation, emulating Alexandar’s style, depicting a Chinese verse:

“You stand on the bridge, beholding the view / While from the tower, the viewers behold you / The bright moon adorns your window’s frame / And in others’ dreams, you do the same.”

i: Companion

A personal companion app that establishes a unique personality, founded on the ‘I as my own partner’ principle, by constructing a virtual self from user’s linguistic inputs.

Tool:  Swift

Moonster Music

‘Moonster’ has identified users’ tendencies to either venture beyond or stick to their comfort zones in music.

This platform allows you to explore what songs others are enjoying and adapt your monster persona to mingle in various music-listening groups.

Tools: Figma

→ Visit my video to read more

Space Article Builder

An exploration into a new reading medium. I’ve envisioned a virtual space where users can create virtual buildings, embedding articles, videos, and other information within, offering a non-linear reading experience.

Tool: Minecraft

→ Visit my video to read more

New Wave

‘New Wave’ is a memorable art performance event. It took five months of preparation and was presented to over 1,000 spectators. Yuchen served as the stage director, and the event featured a ‘vintage radio’ artistic concept, linking all performances in a time-traveling radio story.

ASL Sign Search (not released)

#UX #CV #Assistive Technology

Connect with me

yuchenyao_thu@163.com

→ LinkedIn

→ Instagram

Tabc T

TabcT (Thermal Activated Bacteria Cancer Therapy) is a temperature-controlled bacterial therapy developed by Tsinghua 2023, targeting breast cancer, and it offers the advantages of being 5C: cheap, convenient, controlled, continuous, and comprehensive. This is a collaborative project, Yuchen partook in this program as a design advisor and software developer.

→ Visit our wiki to see more

Fufu Companion

“Record and soothe depression with a soft robot”

Fufu’s diary is program aimed at helping the depression patients, especially in the situation thatCOVID-19 pandemic is separating people physically, making it harder to get offline treatment.

Fufu contains both Online And Offline (OAO) product, all the way to an integrated service system. Here we present fufu’s diary, in a very story-telling way.

→ See more details

MuSee

“Reimagine the unheard miracles in an alternate expression”

Imagine a world where no mellifluous birdsong, soft-spoken words, or majestic melodies exist. How poignant to miss these sounds! Yet, 448 million globally endure this quietude due to auditory impairment.

In 2021, a group of Tsinghua University students aspired to bridge this void. They sought to ‘play’ a symphony in lights, enabling those with hearing loss to partake in the symphony’s wonder, in a one-to-one sensory dance.

→ See more details

Unlock Fear

Current Status: IMWUT 24′ under review

“Unlock the secret of fear”

Acrophobia, the fear of heights, significantly affects overall quality of life. People who suffer from acrophobia know this fear is excessive and unreasonable, yet 6.4% of total population suffer from this issue.

We investigated the feasibility of passive sensing data for fear measurement and discern the most influential physiological and behavioral indicators. 

→ See more details

Resonant Echoes​

“Bridging Deaf Children to Quality Education Recovery”

Resonant Echoes  is an innovative augmented reality interface that helps teachers understand the intentions of language-impaired kids, facilitating better rehabilitation and social engagement for deaf students.

Deaf children often lack sufficient language skills during rehabilitation, which hinders their socialization due to difficulties in communication. The ‘Resonant Echoes’ helps therapists overcome understanding difficulties with an XR display and embedded AI, focusing on a role-play game scenario.

→ See more details

G-Voila

Current Status: IMWUT 24′ under review

“Can AI understand us better if eye data is shared?”

As developers of general artificial intelligence increasingly shift their focus towards incorporating more modalities of information such as images and sounds, we can’t help but wonder: If we provide such rich eye movement information to artificial intelligence, could it enable them to better understand us?

→ See more details

Kosmos-2 Interface (not released)

#UX #LLM #Interface

Time of City

An artistic installation that embodies a variety of light and shadow patterns within its Sisyphean cycle.

Tools: Raspberry Pi, Smart Car

→ Visit my video to read more