Prof. Dr. Wilfried Johannes Elspass

Management role

• Head of Research/Focus Area, Systems Engineering & Rapid Prototyping
• Head, Innovation and development of mechatronic products

Position at the ZHAW

Professor of design and construction methods; lecturer of the bachelor's and masters's program

http://www.zhaw.ch/ims

Expertise and research interests

Innovation & product development process incl. application of methods and tools, structural mechanics, active functional design, structronics, development of mechatronic systems

Educational background

- Studies of aero-/astro at the RWTH Aaachen, Germany
- Visiting professor at Stanford University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- PH.D's in technical sciences and engineering

Professional milestones

Industrial experience as strcutrual engineer and project leader at Dornier Systems GmbH
Lecturer at ETH Zurich, Department mechanical & process engineering 1985 - 2007
Since 2007: Professor at the institute of mechatronic systems @ ZHAW

Membership of networks

• POLE
• The Design Society
• Interessengemeinschaft Virtuelle Produktentwicklung VPE Swiss
• ASME

• Development of a new inspection robot / Project leader / Project completed
• Modular children's hand prostheses / Project leader / Project completed
• Expansion and development of an innovative fastening system for tool-free assembly of pipes and cables (multi-CLIC) / Project leader / Project completed

• Wüthrich, Michael; Gubser, Maurus; Elspass, Wilfried Johannes; Jaeger, Christian,

  2021.

  A novel slicing strategy to print overhangs without support material.

  Applied Sciences.

  11(18).

  Available from: https://doi.org/10.3390/app11188760

• Song Ko, Yee; Herrmann, Denis; Tolar, Oliver; Elspass, Wilfried J.; Brändli, Christof,

  2019.

  Improving the filament weld-strength of Fused Filament Fabrication products through improved interdiffusion.

  Additive Manufacturing.

  Available from: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addma.2019.100815

• Wüthrich, Michael; Elspass, Wilfried Johannes; Bos, Philip; Holdener, Simon,

  2020.

  Novel 4-axis 3D printing process to print overhangs without support material [paper].

  In:

  Meboldt, Mirko; Klahn, Christoph, eds.,

  Industrializing Additive Manufacturing : Proceedings of AMPA 2020.

  2nd International Conference on Additive Manufacturing for Products and Applications (AMPA), Zurich, 1-3 September 2020.

  Cham:

  Springer.

  pp. 130-145.

  Available from: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-54334-1_10

• Brändli, Christof; Groh, Arthur; Elspass, Wilfried Johannes; Herrmann, Denis; Tolar, Oliver; Kälin, Willi,

  2019.

  Präzisionsbauteile durch 3D-Druck.

  KunststoffXtra.

  2019(12), pp. 71-74.

• Elspass, Wilfried J.; Schollenberger, Fabian,

  2017.

  Modulare Prothese aus dem 3D-Drucker.

  Plastverarbeiter.

  Sonderausgabe 2017(13), pp. 74-77.

• Stadler, Konrad; Elspass, Wilfried J.; van de Venn, Hans Wernher,

  2014.

  Robo-Mate : exoskeleton to enhance industrial production [paper].

  In:

  Kozlowski, Krzysztof; Tokhi, Mohammad O.; Virk, Gurvinder S., eds.,

  Mobile Service Robotics : Proceedings of the 17th International Conference on Climbing and Walking Robots and the Support Technologies for Mobile Machines.

  World Scientific Publishing.

  pp. 53-60.

Publikationen (Journals, conference proceedings, conference proceedings mit Review**)

Sep. 1989** “Design of high precision sandwich structures us-ing analytical and finite element models”, The MSC 1990 World Users Conf. Proc., Vol. II, Paper No. 54, March, 1990.

Mai 1990** „Thermomechanical characterization of carbon-fibre reinforced peek for applications at extreme temperatures- results of cte measurements“, 17th Congress of the International Council of the Aeronautical Sciences (ICAS), Stockholm

Aug. 1990 „Integrierte Berechnung und Konstruktion“, International Conference on Engineering Design (ICED), Zürich

Sep. 1990 “Structural analysis of precision sandwich struc-tures“, Proceedings of the World Congress on Finite Element Methods, Banff

Mai 1991 „Dimensionsstabile Strukturen durch integrierten Einsatz moderner Werkstoffe, Bauweisen und Methoden“, Techni-sche Rundschau, 20/91

Mär. 1992** Design and analysis of high precision sandwich structures, Proccedings of the 2nd Sandwich Constructions conference, Gainesville, USA

Mär. 1993 „Aktive Funktionsbauweisen“, Zweites Symposium für Faserverbund-Bauweisen des IKB, ETH Zürich

Okt. 1994 “Shape control of an adaptive composite reflector panel“, Second European Conference on Smart Structures and Ma-terials, pp. 121-126, SPIE Vol. 2361

Jun. 1994 „An adaptive sandwich reflector panel fabricated in in-situ technique“, Proceedings of the 8th CIMTEC - World Ceramics Congress and Forum on New Materials,
Florence, Italy

Feb. 1994** “Design, numerical simulation, manufacturing and experimental verification of an adaptive sandwich reflector", 1994 North American Conference on Smart Materials and Structures, Orlando, Florida, SPIE Vol. 2190

Feb. 1995** “System Identification and Vibration Control for Composite Structures with Embedded Actuators", SPIE 1995 North American Conference on Smart Materials and Structures, , San Diego, USA (gemeinsam mit M. Resch und H. Berg), SPIE Vol. 2443/ 511

Aug. 1995** „Neue, integrierte Maschinenelemente durch aktive Funktionsbauweisen", International Conference on Engineering Design, ICED 95, Prag

Mär. 1995 “Design, manufacturing and verification of piezoceramics embedded in fiber-reinforced thermoplastics“, SPIE 1995 North American Conference on Smart Materials and Structures, February 1995, San Diego, USA, SPIE Vol. 2443/327

Mär. 1996 “Design, manufacturing and verification of laminates with embedded SMA actuators “, SPIE 1996 North American Conference on Smart Materials and Structures, February 1995, San Diego, USA, SPIE Vol. 2717/320

Jul. 1996 Shape Control of an Adaptive Mirror at Different Angles of Inclination, J. of Intelligent Mat. Systems and Structures Vol. 7(1996), 203-210.

Sep. 1996 Optimal design of laminated plates for active vibration control, International Conference on Noise and Vibration Engineering ISMA21 Conference, Leuven, Belgium (gemeinsam mit M. Resch)

Feb. 1997 “Design, analysis and test of an active tubular interface”; SPIE 1997 North American Conference on Smart Materi-als and Structures, San Diego, USA, SPIE Vol. 3041/ 21

Okt. 1997 Computereinsatz und Design – Optionen für die Zukunft, ”Der Einsatz virtueller Realität im Maschinenbau“, Schweizer Maschinenmarkt, 45/ 1997

März 1998 Performance enhancements of a dual reflector antenna by active means; SPIE 1998 North American Conference on Smart Materials and Structures, San Diego, USA, SPIE Vol. 3329

März 1999** Portable haptic interface with active functional design, SPIE 1999 North American Conference on Smart Materials and Structures, Newport Beach, USA, SPIE Vol. 3668/ 926

Jun. 1999 „Neuartige Tools zur effizienten Nutzung der Produktdaten im gesamten Produktlebenszyklus, Zeitschrift Konstruktion, Springer Verlag (gemeinsam mit M. Meier, Bichsel M., Wohlgensinger M., Zwicker E.)

Sep. 1999** Application of Digital Mockups as Visualization link for configuration of customer specific Products; ASME 1999 conference on Computers in Engineering, Las Vegas, USA

Jun. 1999 ,,The BlueCave"; ETHZ-internal research proposal; Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zurich, Switzerland and University of Zurich, Switzerland, 1999, gemeinsam mit L. VanGool, M. H. Gross, A. Kunz, M. Meier, G. Schmitt, O. Staadt, P. Stucki

Jul. 2000 Learning, information and training environment for product innovation, Syllabus 2000 Conference on new learning technologies, San Jose, CA, USA

Jul. 2001 The Key to Innovation - a new integrated learning platform for product innovation using WebCT - Implementation and experiences, WebCT's 3rd Annual User Conference, June 23-27, 2001, Vancouver, Canada

Jul. 2002** Product Innov@tion – the Implementation of a new Learning, Information and Communication Environment for Product Innovation, 4th International Conference on New Educational Environments, Lugano, Switzerland.

Aug. 2002** An Integrated Learning and Information En-vironment for Product Design, e-Technologies in Engineering Education, a United Engineering Foundation Conference, Davos, Switzerland.

Jul. 2003 ** An Advanced Knowledge Environment for Product Innovation, Proceedings of the 10th International Conference on concurrent engineering: research and applications, 26-30 July 2003, Madeira; Portugal

Aug. 2003** Knowledge structures and processes: teaching and learning in the context of “Product Innovation”, International Conference on Engineering Design ICED ‘03, Stockholm, August 19-21, 2003

Oct. 2003 "Product-Innovation", ETH Zurich; "Product Innov@tion" a blended learning environment for engineering, 1.SCIL Congress, St. Gallen, Switzerland (invited paper)

Sep. 2004** “Design education via collaboration in an advanced knowledge environment”, the changing face of design edu-cation, Proceedings of the 2nd International Engineering and Prod-uct Design Education Cenference, Delft, The Netherlands, September 2-3, 2004

Nov. 2004 Stochastic numerical simulation – an efficient tool for the early phases of product design, Virtual product development conference, MSC.Software Europe-Middle East-Africa User meet-ing 2004, November 22-24, Munich

Aug. 2005** “Toward a theory of distributed interdis-ciplinary project-based design education”, INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON ENGINEERING DESIGN, International Conference on Engineering Design ICED ‘05 MELBOURNE, (together with O. Eris, C. Holliger, L. Leifer)

Sep. 2005 “innoVenture - Design education in concurrent product development projects with multidisciplinary teams”, 4th ASEE/AaeE Global Colloquium on Engineering Education, Sydney, Australia (invited paper)



Weitere Veröffentlichungen
Mai 1990 Thermostabile Strukturen in Sandwichbauweise“, Dissertation Nr. 8744, ETH Zürich, ETH-BIB DISS ETH 8744

Nov. 1994 “Aktive Faserverbund-Funktionsbauweisen”, Habilitationsschrift für das Lehrgebiet Konstruktion/ Funktionsbauweisen, Technische Universität Chemnitz-Zwickau, ETH-BIB HA 45382

Jun. 1997 „Designtools der Zukunft“, KTI-WZMO-Kollo-quium, Lausanne, 1997

Wilfried J. Elspass, Manfred Flemming; Aktive Funktionsbauweisen - eine Einführung in die Struktronik, Springer Verlag Berlin Heidelberg New York 1998, ISBN 3-540-63743-5

Other contributions

Patent 177781019.9-1122; Fremdkraftbetätigte Prothese, 2019

"Prothesen packen kräftig zu", Wilfried J. Elspass, Fabian Schollenberger, MEDPLAST Sonderausgabe 13-2017, 68. Jahrgang, Seite 74 - 77, Hüthig Verlag, ISSN 0032-1338

"Die Kinderhandprothese aus dem 3D-Drucker - bezahlbar, leicht, robust", Wilfried J. Elspass, asp - das Schweizer Fachmagazin für das Gesundheitswesen, Seite 38 - 40, 36. Jahrgang 3-2019, Remo Cottiate Verlag, arztspitalpfege.ch

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