My name is Michael Leonard and I am currently a Senior at the University of Arkansas. I am double majoring in Electrical Engineering and Physics and expect to graduate with Honors in both programs in May of 2013. My main interests within Engineering include consumer electronics development and renewable energy concerns and I hope to someday apply these interests to be a force for positive change.
Outside of work life, I am an avid SCUBA diver and enjoy travel, even though I don't get to do enough of either. I also enjoy a good round of golf, unfortunately, I don't experience that very often either. If you would like to look at some of my other work feel free to browse my projects. If you have any questions or would like to discuss anything, please feel free to get in contact with me or browse through the rest of my site.
This is a project that I am starting in May of 2013. I would like to build a first person view multi-rotor aircraft. Ideally I will design and build the flight control system or some similar mechanism in order to put my EE degree to good use. But for the first time around I would like to just ensure that I end up with a working tricopter.
As a final project for my Analog Integrated Circuits course we were required to design and simulate a high-CMRR/low-noise two stage operational transconductance amplifier. The purpose of this project was to demonstrate an understanding of the various topics touched on during the course such as current supply design, amplifier design, stability analysis, and SPICE simulation of CMOS circuits. My circuit was desiged and submitted on time and satisfied 7 out of 9 of the design requirements. For a more in depth analysis, visit the project page.
As a Senior Design project, I am leading a team of three people in developing, building, and testing an audio receiver that will send an audio signal to a wireless speaker/amp where it will be amplified and output.
As a year-long project in Electronics II, I led a team of three people in designing and performing layout of an IC Notch Amplifier and Filter. The purpose of the Filter/Amp was to pick up a local radio station and amplify the signal. Our project was successful as far as filtering, however due to time constraints we were not able to test the amplification capability.
Starting in the Summer of 2012, I began working on this project with a team of four at MSCAD. The project is funded through the Semiconductor Research Corporation and we are working closely with Texas Instruments. The objective is to develop a method and tool for the automatic synthesis of a behavioral simulation model for switching regulators. This will allow us to greatly reduce the model creation and simulation time for many power electronics devices going forward. This project is ongoing.
As an honors project for Microprocessors Systems Design, I worked with a team of three to build and demonstrate a robot that used ultrasonic sensors to navigate a maze in a reasonable amount of time. In order to distance ourselves from the mechanical challenges of working with a robot, we were allowed to use a We successfully completed the project in one week.
In order to show mastery of the concepts of Honors University Physics II, I worked with a partner to build and demonstrate a project utilizing the knowledge we learned in class. We built a simple system which demonstrated inductive power coupling, as well as the powerful effects of coupled resonance. This was a successful project that was completed, from design to test, in less than two weeks.
Microwave and Optics Laboratory for Imaging and Characterization, Summer 2010 and 2011
As a rising Sophomore and Junior I worked in this lab under the direction of Dr. Vasundara Varadan through the summer working mostly to develop experiments dedicated to educating K-12 students about the mechanics and benefits of alternative energy solutions.
Mixed Signal Computer Aided Design Laboratory, Spring 2012 - Present
Beginning in my Junior year I have been working at MSCAD under the direction of Dr. Alan Mantooth. My current project is funded by and involves working closely with Texas Instruments in order to develop automated modeling solutions for switching regulators.
Lambda Chi Alpha, 2009 - 2013 (Academic Chairman 2010 - 2011)
As Academic Chairman I enacted initiatives that allowed us to achieve continued academic success as the highest Mens fraternity GPA for the seventh consecutive semester. Additionally, serving as a member of the executive committee allowed me to develop my group leadership abilities while helping guide an organization with a budget of +$200,000/year.
University of Arkansas Associated Student Government Director of Philanthropy, 2012 - 2013
As Director of Philanthropy, it has been my primary duty to oversee the philanthropy events for the student government at the University of Arkansas. This includes planning new events, organizing existing events, and recording the volunteer activity of the members of student government.
Make-A-Difference Day Volunteer, 2009 - 2012 (Project Leader 2012)
Since matriculating at the University of Arkansas I have regularly given my time at a project for this campus wide project which reaches out to the local community with the help of over 1,000 student volunteers. This year I will be leading a project and be in charge of directing a team of 20+ volunteers.
Volunteer Judge for 2011-2012 Engineering Research Symposium, 2011 - 2012
I used my knowledge of current events combined with my understanding of Engineering and Physics in order to provide useful feedback for undergraduate students participating in the annual Freshman Engineering Research Symposium.
Volunteer at Root Elementary School, Fall 2010
Every other Friday for one semester I went with a group of students to an area Elementary school and read to students.
Volunteer Mentor for FIRST Robotics Team (Springdale High School GearHogs), 2012 - 2013
As a volunteer mentor I began the 2013 season by designing and implementing a new website for the GearHogs which can be found at gearhogsfrc3612.com. After finishing that I moved into more technical work involved in implemnting control logic for their robot drive system and frisbee loader. The language used was C with extensive libraries provided by FIRST.