The electrical and computer engineering faculty are conducting research in the following areas:

  1. Learning, Computing, & Security, including artificial intelligence, machine learning, cloud computing, data analytics and bioinformatics, IoT (Internet of Things), cyber security, cyber physical systems, and quantum computing;
  2. Robotics & Automation, including robotics and unmanned systems, computer vision, embedded systems, and human-robot interaction;
  3. Power, Energy, & Materials, including power electronics and systems, renewable energy and smart grids, electronic and optoelectronic materials and nanotechnology;
  4. Communication & Networks, including 5G communication, wireless and fiber optic communication, distributed sensors and secure network, and positioning and navigation; and
  5. Electronics & Computer, including electronic sensors and actuators, computer architecture, and VLSI design.

    The department research expenditure increases steadily in the past few years, reaching a record high of $8.7million in the FY2021-2022, with funding support from NSF, ARO, ONR, AFOSR, ARL, AFRL, DOE, DOT, NASA, LLNL, NRC, SNL, ANL, Google, NVIDIA, Seagate, City of San Antonio, CPS Energy, and SAPPT.
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Research Facilities
Undergraduate Research

Many laboratories and institutes at UTSA are open to and actively seeking motivated undergraduate students to contribute their skill and interest toward cutting edge research. If you are an undergraduate student, please do not hesitate to contact research groups on campus to learn more about getting involved! Furthermore, there are funded research opportunities for undergraduate students such as the NSF REU program (below). 

NSF REU (Research Experience for Undergraduate) Site: AI Powered Robotics in 5G Network

The REU site at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) is funded by National Science Foundation and Department of Defense. It will host ten undergraduate students from colleges nationwide to conduct research on applications of artificial intelligence (AI) into autonomous vehicles based on 5G communications. (Put a link of Application page) Rapidly deploying 5G core networks have enhanced mobility and service provisioning while increasing the amount and complexity of the data. Integrating AI into 5G networks could effectively orchestrate applications such as autonomous driving of unmanned vehicles and optimal charging management of electric vehicles. Autonomous vehicles, 5G communication network, and AI have been identified as national priorities to enhance the leadership of the U.S. in future technologies. However, there is a lack of students entering the workforce or graduate schools in this area, in particular female and underrepresented students. The REU site at the University of Texas at San Antonio is designed to train undergraduate students with hands-on research activities on AI, autonomous vehicles, and 5G networks with direct mentorship by faculty mentors. The REU site also seeks to encourage the REU participants to pursue their studies for graduate degrees in STEM, which is imperative to enhance the competitiveness of the future workforce. 

The goal of this project is to equip undergraduate students with knowledge and skills of the latest engineering research on AI, robotics, autonomous driving, and optimal charging of electric vehicles in 5G mobile networks. The designed REU projects address the frontier research problems through hands-on applications, such as practical assembly of real robotics, data collection with 5G mobile devices, data processing with AI algorithms, building charging converters for electrical vehicles, and establishing a framework for control and communication between multiple unmanned vehicles. These are valuable activities for novice undergraduate researchers to gain direct research experiences. The REU site will also integrate the learn-practice-service cycle into research activities, encourage team spirit, and build students’ self-esteem by recognition and rewards for achievements. The REU program integrates research and education activities to enable REU students to develop essential skills through various training sessions, hands-on lab activities, and seminars on research and career development. The research activities are also integrated with outreach activities to local communities including field trips to the NIWEEK event and local industries. 

For more information, please visit the REU main website.

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We appreciate your interest in the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering at UTSA and extend our warmest welcome to you from the Department.

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