CV

Education:

• Ph.D., Computer Science, University of Colorado (2014)
• M.S., Computer Science, University of Colorado, Boulder (2013)
• M.P.S., Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP), New York University (2008)
• B.A., Philosophy, University of California, Santa Cruz, (2003)

Experience:

Senior User Experience Engineer, Autodesk EAGLE, March 2017-September 2019

•  Principle-level experience engineer on EAGLE (an electronics design program). Tasked with managing the user experience, I create visual prototypes for other developers, provide guidance and design reviews, and add new features and code (C++) to the software myself. During my tenure EAGLE has undergone a visual transformation, coming into line with Autodesk’s HIG, adding over 1500 new lines of CSS and over 300 new icons, high-dpi display support, and the introduction of numerous new core features (object inspector, design manager, selection filters, etc.).

Software Protopying Engineer, Project Soli (Contractor @ Google ATAP), November 2015-March 2017

•  As part of the research support team for Project Soli, I have worked on core aspects of various parts of the Soli ecosystem, including the Soli SDK, build and release engineering, motion capture signal integration, measurement and validation campaigns, engineering mobile data collection units, as well as internal and external facing demo development, management, and presentation.

Research and Design Swiss Army Knife, SparkFun Electronics, May 2014 – October 2015

•  I worked within the education department at SparkFun to research and develop every aspect of a supported product, from routing circuit boards, writing firmware and software to writing NSF grants, from teaching workshops for professional development to designing user studies. I was responsible for conducting, evaluating, and presenting original research as well as seeking out and maintaining mutually beneficial relationships throughout industry and academia. I was also part of an internal task force responsible for developing new hardware surrounding remotely programmable devices and the “Internet of Things”.

Research Assistant, University of Colorado, Boulder, August 2010 – May 2014

•  As part of the Craft Technology Lab, my research focused on designing and building a suite of tangible interfaces aimed at getting children to learn how to model objects for 3D printing more intuitively – by using their hands, arms, and body – something I dubbed “embodied fabrication”. I designed and built the hardware, firmware, and software for each device. I ran user studies evaluating the usability of each device while also looking at correlations with mental transformation tasks, gestural analysis while explaining modeling strategies, and developed an original rubric for analyzing 3-dimensional shape complexity.

Education Outreach Coordinator, SparkFun Electronics, May 2011 – May 2014

•  While pursuing my Ph.D., I worked at SparkFun developing material for and teaching classes on Arduino, Processing, XBee wireless communication, soldering (PTH, SMD, and stenciling), circuit design using EagleCAD, a 5-day summer semester prototyping class, and more. I also co-developed a kit, the SIKIO, based off the IOIO microcontroller board, which allowed easy interface between hardware and Android devices through Processing.

Freelance Designer, 610 Design, 2003 – 2010

•  Produced a variety of custom works in digital media, web design, print design, physical computing and database programming for a wide range of projects and clients.

•  Produced projects using state of the art tools such as Arduino, Processing, C, Java, J2ME, Android, Asterisk, Adobe CS, PHP, MySQL, Flash Media Server, FlashLite, Ajax, JavaScript

•  Developed rapid prototyping skills with Wood, Metal, Plastic, Plexiglass, Foam, Cardboard, Concrete, Dry Wall, and more.

Web and Systems Technologist, Eyebeam Atelier, September 2007 – August 2010

•  At Eyebeam, I was the lead developer on a team tasked with a complete re-design of Eyebeam’s website, moving from outdated static HTML to the Drupal content management system. I wrote an equipment inventory system in PHP, a residency application website, a blog site for the resident artists, and was responsible for designing the weekly e-mail blasts. I served as a junior systems administrator, helping to maintain all of Eyebeam’s public and private servers. While at Eyebeam I co-launched a successful Kickstarter campaign to fund the construction of an interactive, solar-powered drawing machine for Eyebeam’s window gallery, a project that was featured in the book Making Things Move (by Dustyn Roberts).

VP, Web Development, RapHappy.com, 2006 – 2008

•  Responsible for the launch of raphappy.com with one other person, including writing business plans,

•  Responsible for creating and implementing a variety of innovative web concepts for RapHappy.com, including the use of Flash Media Server to record live user-generated audio streams straight onto the web.

•  Heavily involved in the development and launch of RapHappy.com and RapHappy mobile including PHP, CSS, JavaScript, Flash Media Server, Asterisk (for phone servers), and Adobe Creative Suite.

Publications:

2015: Barker, B., Nugent, G., Grandgenett, N., Melander, J., Nelson, C., Leduc-Mills, B., and Krehbiel, M.

Developing an Elementary Engineering Education Program through Problem-Based Wearable Technologies Activities. Book Chapter, Handbook of Research on Wearable and Mobile Technologies in Education, J. Holland(Ed.), IGI Press. (In Press)

2015: Rogers, A., O’Connell, B., and Leduc-Mills, B.

Lending a Hand: Supporting the Maker Movement in Academic Libraries. ASEE 2015, Seattle, WA USA.

2014: Leduc-Mills, B. and Eisenberg, M.

PopCad: Towards Paper-Based Fabrication Tools for Children. FabLearn 2014, Stanford, CA USA.

2014: Leduc-Mills, B.

Embodied Fabrication: Body-Centric Devices for Novice Designers. Doctoral Thesis, University of Colorado, Boulder.

2013: Leduc-Mills, B.

Embodied Fabrication: Body-Centric Tangibles for Digital Making. FabLearn 2013, Stanford, CA USA.

2013: Leduc-Mills, B., Dec, J., and Schimmel, J.

Evaluating Accessibility in Fabrication Tools for Children. ACM IDC 2013, New York, NY USA.

2013: Leduc-Mills, B.; Profita H.; Bharadwaj, S.; Cromer, P.; and Han, R.

ioCane: A Smart-Phone and Sensor-Augmented Mobility Aid for the Blind. Technical Report, Dept. of Computer Science, University of Colorado, Boulder USA.

2012:  Leduc-Mills, B.; Profita, H.; and Eisenberg, M.

Seeing solids via patterns of light: evaluating a tangible input device. Digital Fabrication for Educational Contexts Workshop, IDC 2012, Bremen, Germany

2011: Leduc-Mills, B. and Eisenberg, M.

The UCube: A Child-Friendly Device for Introductory Three-Dimensional Design ACM IDC 2011, June 20-23, 2011, Ann Arbor, USA

Honors / Awards / Exhibitions:

• Invited Faculty, Constructing Modern Knowledge Conference, Manchester New Hampshire (2016)
• Presidential Fellowship, Teaching and Research residency, Wabash College, Crawfordsville, Indiana (2016)
• Dean’s Outstanding Merit Fellowship, College of Engineering and Applied Science, University of Colorado, Boulder (2010-2011)
• SparkFun Electronics Graduate Student Fellow, University of Colorado, Boulder (2012-2013, 2013-2014)
• Departmental Fellowship, Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP), New York University (2006-2007, 2007-2008)
• Grand Prize winner of MTVU and Cisco Systems Digital Incubator competition for RapHappy.com (with Matt Fargo). Initial $30,000 grant as a finalist, plus a $100,000 grand prize. (2006/2007)
• Invited Lecture: Nokia Invited Lecture Series on Mobile and Future Technologies, Georgia Tech (2012)
• Featured demo and talks for UCube 2.0, Untitled #49 (Ideate), Denver Art Museum (2012)
• Editor’s Choice Award for SADbot, Maker Faire New York (2010)
• Installation (SADbot) at Eyebeam Art + Technology Center’s Window Gallery, (2010)
• Installation (SADbot) at ArtBots 2011, Gent, Belgium (2011)
• Featured Project (MAPP) at “Dance Robot Dance: An Evening with Maker Faire”, Internet Week NYC (2008)
• Installation (MAPP) at the ITP Summer Gallery (2008)
• Work displayed (< /title >) at the Busan Art Festival, South Korea (2008)
• Highest Social Design Value Award (Click), Yahoo! Design Expo (2007)
• Highest Honors in the Major (Philosophy), University of California Santa Cruz (2003)
• Benjamin F. Porter Award for Overall Academic Excellence, University of California Santa Cruz (2003)