Homepage Mark Schenk - Cambridge University Engineering Department

Introduction

Mark Schenk (BSc, MSc)

I am a 3^rd 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

E-mail: ms652
Telephone: +44 (0)1223 (7)66682
Office: S2 Office, Department of Engineering, Trumpington Street, Cambridge CB2 1PZ
College: Clare

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 3^rd 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 9^th March 2009, for the Engineering Session of SET for BRITAIN. [PDF]
2008: "Folded Shell Structures". Poster for Vitae EE Hub poster competition, presented December 4^th 2008. The poster previously won the GSCUED poster competition, on October 22^nd 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:

IA Structural Mechanics (supervision of Newnham, Wolfson and Lucy Cavendish students)
Structural Design Course, Michaelmas & Lent term (assistant demonstrator)
IIA Mechanics of Solids (3C7), Experimental Stress Analysis (demonstrator)

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

IA Structural Mechanics (supervision of Newnham students)
Structural Design Course, Michaelmas & Lent term (assistant demonstrator)
IIA Mechanics of Solids (3C7), Experimental Stress Analysis (demonstrator)

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.

Mark Schenk's homepage