About

William Emfinger is a highly skilled Electrical, Embedded, Software, and Systems Engineer with a passion for advancing the state of the art. He is currently the Director of R&D at Permobil SmartDrive, where he is expanding the company's product portfolio to encompass connected wearables and controllers, novel learning-enabled component-based systems, and novel alternative drive controls for powered wheelchairs. William is also building a state-of-the-art research lab for connected smart systems to enable complete integration with Permobil's products, powering the independence of their users. William has a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Vanderbilt University, where he also earned his Bachelor of Engineering in Biomedical/Medical Engineering and Electrical Engineering. He has over eight years of relevant experience, including serving as an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Vanderbilt University, where he was the faculty advisor to the Vanderbilt Aerospace Design Lab (VADL). His work at VADL focused on systems engineering, electrical and software engineering, and physical dynamics, including small satellite engineering, small rocket in-flight control systems, collaborative model-driven development, and hardware-in-the-loop system development and testing. William's expertise in hardware-in-the-loop simulation has led him to develop new techniques and capabilities for integrating coordinated simulation of multiple physical domains for real-time analysis and testing of distributed cyber-physical systems. Using these HIL testbeds, he can analyze the resilience and security of both hardware and software in the CPS. William is passionate about exploring the solar system and improving people's lives through cyber-physical embedded systems. He is looking to the forefront of model-based engineering, hardware-in-the-loop design and testing, augmented reality/human-machine interfacing, and cyber-physical systems engineering. He is driven and curious and will never stop trying to learn. His tech stack includes test, research scientist, integration, and ML.