معرفی
Colby C. Swan is a Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Iowa's College of Engineering, where he has been a faculty member since 1993. He leads the Swan Research Lab and maintains active memberships in ASCE, ASME, ISSMO, and USACM, contributing to computational mechanics and digital human modeling research.
His educational background includes a PhD in Civil Engineering from Princeton University (1993), an MS in Ocean Engineering from the University of Miami (1985), and a BS in Civil Engineering from the University of Maine (1983).
Professor Swan's research spans Computational Mechanics, Topology Optimization, and Biomechanics, with pioneering work on multi-scale computational clothing models for digital humans and structural topology optimization of compliant mechanisms. His lab develops physics-based simulation frameworks for applications in civil infrastructure, protective clothing design, and bone adaptation phenomena, integrating advanced computational methods with real-world engineering challenges.
His publication trends reveal a sustained focus on digital human modeling (notably the Santos virtual human environment) and topology optimization, with significant contributions to continuum structural optimization, woven fabric mechanics, and human locomotion analysis. Recent work emphasizes virtual prototyping for protective systems and computational morphogenesis for structural design.
- American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)
- American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
- The Fiber Society
- International Society for Structural & Multidisciplinary Optimization (ISSMO)
- United States Association for Computational Mechanics (USACM)
Professor Swan directs the Swan Research Lab, which collaborates on interdisciplinary projects involving computational modeling for engineering design and human performance analysis. His work bridges civil engineering with biomechanics through digital human simulation, particularly in protective gear development and structural optimization applications.
