Wess Gates Email & Phone Number

Santa Monica, Ca, Us

Irvine, Ca, Us

Interdisciplinary engineer, scientist, and system integrator in the areas of new product design and development. Primary experience in modeling, simulation, guidance, navigation, and control in conjunction with embedded electronic system design and development. Currently leading the design and development of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle and Flight Control System performing multidisciplinary work in the areas of aerodynamics, aircraft sizing, configuration and performance, CAD/CAM, manufacturing, embedded and electronic system design and development, sensor selection and integration, and flight control algorithm and firmware development.

Kent, Wa, Us

Led a team of six modeling and simulation engineers in support of the development of a space vehicle GNC 6DOF simulation. The simulation architecture is based on MATLAB and Simulink which implemented automatic code generation (ACG) of the Flight Dynamics Model (FDM) to C/C++ as a deliverable into a Hardware In The Loop (HIL) framework. AGC was also used to implement the GNC Flight Algorithms as a deliverable software subsystem for integration into the production vehicle Flight Software (FSW) / Flight Computer (FC). As the simulation Responsible Engineer coordinated and negotiated technical simulation approaches and design decisions with adjacent disciplines such as the Structural Dynamics Team addressing simulation features pertaining to flex modeling of vehicle appendages and flexible/rigid body/slosh modeling and coupling. Additional team facilitations included those of GNC Hardware, Electrical Power Systems (EPS), Propulsion, Configuration Management, Trajectory, and Simulation Infrastructure (CI/CD - DevOps). Supported interviewing, hiring, and training and mentoring of modeling and simulation engineers company wide and participated in coordination of cross organizational lessons learned, best and common practices, in addition to demonstrating simulation and co-simulation modernization approaches (Simulink - ADAMS and Simulink-STK as examples) by persistently monitoring industry methods, features, and approaches. Recruited and managed external contracted Subject Matter Experts (SME) supporting modeling and simulation development features as required.

Natick, Ma, Us

Principal Aerospace & Defense Industry Engineer for MathWorks USA West Coast. Contributions include DoD fiscal year budget analyses and award tracking. Monitor Aerospace and Defense technology trends as related to model based engineering, model based systems engineering, model based design, digital engineering, digital twins, and test engineering workstreams. Engage in technical engineering discussions with customers in support of design and simulation workflow requirements and recommend appropriate and relevant simulation workflows.

Irvine, California, Us

Hardware In-The Loop design, development, and management using Matlab, Simulink, Simulink Real-Time, and SpeedGoat performance systems and hardware I/O cards. Develop, integrate, and test emulators and simulators for supporting subsystems such as sensors, actuators, for full system level testing in an integrated closed loop space vehicle simulation environment. Integrate HITL simulation environment software and hardware with existing space vehicle flight software and flight hardware.

Arlington, Virginia, Us

As part of the Systems Engineering discipline lead and establish Model Based Design (MDB) technical capabilities and work flow for small Unmanned Aerial Systems (sUAS). Establish Hardware In the Loop (HIL) and Software In the Loop (SIL) capabilities in support of all phases of engineering design, development, test, and verification and validation. Adopted Matlab/Simulink tool suites and SpeedGoat hardware for implementing real-time test and simulation of model based design. Primary focus on MBD for Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GNC) and aerodynamic system modeling, development, and test with Rapid Control Prototyping (RPC) and auto-code generation for target specific applications. Lead a Failure Reporting, Analysis, and Corrective Action System (FRACAS) for determining root cause failures of a system LRU. Effort included root cause investigation via reverse engineering, bench test and flight test, and analysis. Identified root cause failure and developed internal report documenting root cause factor , mitigating practices, and corrective actions.

San Clemente, California, Us

Pomona, Ca, Us

Part time instructor, co-designer, and developer of the specialized course titled Sensing, Data Acquisition, and Controls. This course is focused on developing the applied electrical engineering skills of aerospace engineering students. The course guides the students from "zero to closed loop" in only ten weeks. The required final project is that of the inverted pendulum type but often times students are allowed to assume their own final project should it meet the course objectives as can be seen from the success cases in the linked videos. The course starts out with basic signals and electronics, integrated circuits and signal conditioning, and ends with an overview of Cypress Programmable System on a Chip for developing an embedded closed loop control system for use with the final project.

Supported reverse engineering and development of a reconfigurable power system controller. Reverse engineered a SDLC interface and a protocol over SDLC in effort to specify and source a USB to SDLC interface device in order to support the development of an emulated user interface by the software team. The hardware and software components were used for interfacing and testing of the reconfigurable power system controller. Developed HMI level software using a proprietary development environment and participated in code reviews and system hardware/software development efforts.

Flap actuation system analysis, testing, software debug and review. Requirements verification, validation, and trace. Safety of flight letters and reports.

Irvine, California, Us

Developed a course titled "Applied Control Theory for Embedded Systems". Delivered the course to Western Digital Engineers onsite at Western Digital Irvine, CA facility. Courses:EECS_X497.4 Applied Control Theory for Embedded SystemsEECS_X497.36 Embedded Systems Architecture Course

Pasadena, Ca, Us

Served as the lead system integrator and project lead of the GALCIT Adaptive Wall Wind Tunnel modification plan on behalf of The Boeing Company. Led a cross functional team to complete a structural design modification for installation of a traversing strut mount into the existing wind tunnel design. Reversed engineered the existing electronics and data acquisition system for documentation and schematic development. Conducted unit testing of existing actuators and sensors. Compiled a final design report for Caltech summarizing a system testing, integration, verification and validation modification implementation plan.

Arlington, Va, Us

Served as an engineer/scientist exploring advanced concepts as part of a research and development organization in the area of guidance, navigation, and controls of aerospace vehicles. Developed simulation tools using C, C++, Fortran, and MATLAB®/SIMULINK® for multi body dynamics simulation and visualization environments. Principal investigator for guided parachute clusters. Investigated Mars navigation and ascent vehicle using Mars moons Phobos and Deimos for navigation of a multi stage ascent vehicle and satellite rendezvous. Conducted analysis for Solar Electric Propulsion Trajectory Optimization for a minimal time/fuel problem. Developed a satellite ephemeris approximation tool using Tschebyshev polynomials. Developed math models and end-to-end simulation lab requirements for space based space surveillance satellite. Researched pathogenic detection methods and air quality monitoring sensors for aerospace applications. Performed on orbit analysis of solar array rewind and its effects on vehicle performance, bending, slosh, and stability. Established and led rapid prototyping labs for exploring low cost research concepts with the main goal of providing a low-cost low-risk environment for developing engineering hardware, testing, and integration experience. Led various clean sheet design projects that led to the full scale production of the resulting products. Such products include an uninhabited aerial vehicle and a sensor test bed for parachute drop testing. Major leadership responsibilities included coordination with company leadership, policy compliance, $30-$50k/yr annual budget, scheduling, safety, and planning for manufacturing. Technical responsibilities included design, analysis, flight testing and range coordination, and system integration. Served as part of the staff team for the vice president of engineering researching engineering process models, company business practices, communication, and engineering tools.

Los Angeles, Ca, Us

Graduate student focused on fluid dynamics and controls research. Investigated and modeled standing water waves in a 2D water body.

Served as Field Service Engineer providing customer support for fuel pumps, anti-skid braking systems and their components including wheel speed transducers, control boxes and hydraulic systems. Addressed and investigated FAA communications such Airworthiness Directives with customers to ensure immediate resolution and compliance.

Daytona Beach, Florida, Us

Researched designed and implemented an eight node, GNU/Linux operating system, Beowulf cluster. Co-designed and implemented a sixteen-node, GNU/Linux, hypercube cluster. Aided in the research, design and modification of a Cessna 182. The focus of the project was the conversion of the factory-installed engine to a diesel engine. Worked in areas of structural design and manufacturing, flow/inlet design, cowling mold design and manufacturing, thermal design, and avionics integration. Provided supplemental CATIA V5 and Varimetrix instructional sessions. Instruction included class time and the development of an online CATIA tutorial. Supported CAD/CAM, and post processing software for CNC tool path generation. Operated and maintained a stereolithography lab. Constructed an inner lab network providing integrated web services across the various aerospace engineering labs. Network design included Apache web server, Network Information System, and Network File System configurations using Linux

Savannah, Ga, Us

Troubleshoot and improve the design of the Gulfstream V & IV Environmental Control Systems to include APU components, valves, ducts, anti-ice systems, and oxygen systems hardware. Review engineering change requests submitted by production line for parts redesign Study requests accordingly and redesign if necessary using CADAM. Major projects included G IV cargo door and ground support structural design

M.S. Aerospace And Mechanical Engineering, Fluid Dynamics

Bsae, Aerospace Engineering

Bachelor'S Degree, Aerospace, Aeronautical And Astronautical Engineering