Mark Schenk's homepage

Mark Schenk

Introduction

Mark Schenk (BSc, MSc)

I am a 3rd year PhD research student studying at the Structures Group under supervision of Dr. Simon Guest and Dr. Keith Seffen. Previously I studied Mechanical Engineering at Delft University of Technology where I obtained my BSc. and MSc. degrees.

For more information, see my CV on my personal website.

Contact Details

Research

Current Research

My current research is focused on the development and analysis of novel 'textured' shell structures. The idea is to apply a local texture to the shells in order to alter, and hopefully tailor, the global properties of thin-walled shells. I am currently investigating techniques to create a local texture using Origami fold patterns.

A current list of literature can be found here.

Previous Research

For my Master thesis I investigated the "Theory and Design of Statically Balanced Tensegrity Mechanisms". Tensegrities are a special class of prestressed bar frameworks, where the self-stress is required for stability. I researched the combination with static balancing, by replacing the tension elements with zero-free-length springs. This allows the construction of structures that are in equilibrium over a continuous range of positions, require no external work to move and thus have zero stiffness. More information can be found on my tensegrity website.

Journal and Conference Publications

2009
Schenk, M., Guest, S.D. (2009), "Folded Textured Sheets", In proceedings of IASS 2009 Symposium, September 28-October 2, 2009, Valencia, Spain. [PDF]
2009
Barents, R., Schenk, M., Van Dorsser, W.D., Wisse, B.M., & Herder, J.L. (2009), "Spring-to-Spring Balancing as Energy-Free Adjustment Method in Gravity Equilibrators", Winner of the Best Paper Award at the ASME IDETC/CIE 2009 conference, August 30-September 2, 2009, San Diego, CA. Paper number DETC2009-86770. [PDF]
2008
Van Dorsser, W.D., Barents, R., Wisse, B.M., Schenk, M. & Herder, J.L. (2008), "Energy-Free Adjustment of Gravity Equilibrators by Adjusting the Spring Stiffness", Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers Part C, Journal of Mechanical Engineering Science, Volume 222, Issue 9, pp. 1839–1846. [DOI]
2007
Schenk, M., Guest, S.D. & Herder, J.L. (2007), "Zero Stiffness Tensegrity Structures", International Journal of Solids and Structures, Volume 44, Issue 20, pp. 6569–6583. [DOI | PDF]
2006
Schenk, M., Herder, J.L. & Guest, S.D. (2006), "Design of a Statically Balanced Tensegrity Mechanism", In proceedings of ASME IDETC/CIE 2006 conference, September 10-13th 2006, Philadelphia, USA. [PDF]

Theses & Reports

2008
Schenk, M. (2008). "Textured Shell Structures", First-year PhD report at University of Cambridge.
2006
Schenk, M. (2006). "Theory and Design of Statically Balanced Tensegrity Mechanisms", Master's thesis at Delft University of Technology. [PDF]
2005
Schenk, M. (2005). "Statically Balanced Tensegrity Mechanisms — A Literature Review", Literature review at Delft University of Technology. [PDF]

Presentations

2009
"Origami: Art, Architecture & Engineering". I was asked to give a guest lecture for the Architectural Engineering course at the Cambridge University Engineering Department, November 12 2009. [PPT]
2009
"Folded Textured Sheets". Structures Group Seminar, Cambridge University Engineering Department, October 16 2009. [PPT]
2009
"Folded Textured Sheets". Presented at IASS 2009, September 28, 2009, Valencia, Spain. [PPT]
2009
"Origami: Art, Architecture & Engineering". I was invited to speak at Atelier One, a London based structural engineering firm, on February 3rd 2009.
2009
"Introduction to JabRef". At the structures groups Student Research Session I gave a brief overview of how to use JabRef to manage your BibTeX references. I here provide the talk outline. [PDF]
2008
"Origami for Engineers: Folded Shell Structures". Graduate Research Forum (GRF), Clare College, Cambridge, December 9 2008. [PPT]
2007
"Zero Stiffness Tensegrity Structures". CUED Structures Seminar, Cambridge, November 23 2007. [PPT]

Posters

2009
"Folded Shell Structures". Poster presented in the House of Commons on 9th March 2009, for the Engineering Session of SET for BRITAIN. [PDF]
2008
"Folded Shell Structures". Poster for Vitae EE Hub poster competition, presented December 4th 2008. The poster previously won the GSCUED poster competition, on October 22nd 2008. [PDF]
2008
"Morphing Structures". Poster for International Visiting Committee visit to CUED, October 2008. [PDF]
The poster describes past and present work on Morphing Structures, done within my research group. Although it does not actually contain an example of my work, I designed the poster and wrote the content.

Teaching

For the 2009/2010 academic year I will demonstrate and supervise the following courses:

During the 2008/2009 academic year I demonstrated and supervised the following courses:

Matlab simulation for Example Paper 1, Question 7

I wrote a Matlab simulation for Example Paper 1, Question 7, which aims to illuminate what happens. [Matlab files].

Revision Paper IA Structures

This revision example paper covers free body diagrams and friction, and also illustrates how (structural) mechanics can be applied to `daily life' problems.

[Example Paper]

Research Tools

MiKTeX
MiKTeX is the de facto standard LaTeX installation for Windows, and many LaTeX-related applications rely on its presence.
TeXmaker
TeXmaker is a full-featured editor for LaTeX documents. LaTeX is the markup/formatting language of choice for scientific publications.
JabRef
JabRef is a reference manager, using the BibTeX bibliography format. It allows for easy management of your references and corresponding files, and allows for a wide range of export options.
BibTeX4Word
Occasionally one is forced to submit a paper in Word (doc) format. Fortunately Mike Brookes has written BibTeX4Word, which allows you to use your BibTeX file directly in Word. The UI is a bit crude, but it works and you don't need Endnote, c.s..
TeX4PPT
Having written all your equations in LaTeX, it is a pain to have to retype your equations when writing a presentation in Powerpoint. TeX4PPT provides a solution by allowing you to embed TeX-formatted equations into Powerpoint.

© Cambridge University Engineering Dept
Information provided by Mark Schenk (ms652)
Last updated: October 2009