Conference: Support for Broadening Student Participation in the Mechanical Vibration and Noise (VIB) Track at the 2026 ASME IDETC Conferences; Houston, Texas; 23-26 August 2026

This grant fosters excellence and promotes student engagement in the fields of Dynamics, Vibration, and Acoustics by supporting participation in the 38th Conference on Mechanical Vibration and Noise (Technical Track VIB), part of the 2026 ASME International Design Engineering Technical Conferences (IDETC 2026), to be held 23–26 August 2026 in Houston, Texas. VIB is a leading technical conference covering a wide spectrum of experimental, analytical, and computational research in dynamics, vibration, and sound/acoustics engineering. Key topics include nonlinear dynamics and control of smart structures, contact dynamics, data-driven and machine learning techniques in vibration and dynamics, industrial applications, acoustic metamaterials, energy harvesting, and vibration measurement and signal processing. The conference fosters the exchange of ideas and information among engineers and researchers within the vibration and acoustics community.

The primary objective of this grant is to broaden participation and strengthen the academic and professional development of K–12 students, undergraduate and graduate students, and postdoctoral scholars through targeted student-focused activities at VIB 2026. This objective will be achieved through four complementary activities. First, a K–12 outreach workshop will introduce high school students in the host city to foundational concepts in sound and vibration through hands-on demonstrations and researcher-led instruction. Second, travel support for students and postdoctoral scholars will reduce financial barriers to participation and enable early-career researchers to engage with peers and senior experts, fostering a vibrant and inclusive research community. Third, the grant will support Best Student Paper Awards that recognize outstanding student contributions in dynamics and acoustics and incentivize high-quality research. Finally, an industry–academia careers panel will provide guidance on career pathways across academia, industry, and government, linking academic research with practical engineering applications and equipping participants with insights for successful professional transitions. Through these activities, the grant strengthens technical preparation, promotes scholarly excellence, and enhances professional networking opportunities for early-career participants. Expanding access to VIB 2026 is expected to support long-term integration of students into the vibration and acoustics community and contribute to the development of a technically skilled and competent future workforce.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

Award Number: 2609868
Principal Investigator: Mohammad Bukhari
Funds Obligated: $25,000
State: MI