Marshall T. Graybill

University of Colorado Boulder

Research in Marine-Inspired Robotics (Xu Lab). See research →

Focus on fluids, controls, and mechanism design · GPA 3.97 / 4.00

Summa Cum Laude with Honors · GPA 3.99 / 4.00

Scholarships & Awards
CU Esteemed Scholars (2017), Regent Scholarship (2018), and Dean's List (2017–2021)

Fellowships
Dean's Fellowship for Excellence (2023)

Investigated how soft materials, compliant structures, and surface textures influence flapping-fin propulsion efficiency and control of bioinspired uncrewed underwater vehicles (UUVs).

• Designed and built a 4-axis gantry system for repeatable evaluation of robotic fin propulsion in a 2-meter-long tank.
• Developed shark-inspired sub-mm surface textures using SLA printing to reduce drag and delay flow separation.
• Prototyped and tested silicone fins to quantify efficiency and thrust tradeoffs between soft and rigid propulsors.
• Led a senior design team to build a fin-propelled robot for testing fin propulsion and autonomous swimming control.
• Built a low cost (<$500), penguin-inspired UUV capable of agile maneuvers using only two control surfaces.

Robotics research startup driving 16x improvement of lab automation to accelerate pharmaceutical development. Led R&D process for automated mechanisms and managed a team of mechanical engineers.

• Developed the first chemical reactor that enables mixing chemicals as they are added in real-time.
• Designed eight novel mechanical systems and inventor on a pending patent.
• Owned system engineering of the product and led cross-functional teams to meet company deliverables.
• Awards: New Venture Challenge (1st place, $45,000) and Lab Venture Challenge (Finalist, $125,000).

Selected to be one of two engineers in a small startup Water Filtration business in a $7B multinational company.

• Worked with overseas CMs in the early stage development of four consumer-oriented filtration products.
• Developed a countertop pumped filtration system, reducing filtration time while meeting NSF standards.
• Used PDM software to store revisions of CAD files and access other company projects.

Related work: Kohler Splash · Clarity Water Pump

Part of a year-long industry senior project. Led design of a LiDAR sensor enclosure for autonomous construction and agriculture vehicles.

• Iterated rapidly through design concepts to evaluate the viability of various approaches.
• Constructed sealed aluminum enclosure with a polycarbonate window and thermal Peltier system to protect LiDAR.
• Worked with machinists to fabricate tight tolerance metal and plastic components for IP69K.

For a graduate design class, sought ways to create more sustainable, backyard compostable takeout packaging.

• Developed a rapidly biodegradable material made of brewers' spent grain for sustainable food packaging.
• Designed tapered hexagonal containers for ease of stacking, gripping, and compression molding.
• 3D printed mold and prototyped a line of products for usability and wear testing.

Created an elegant hand sanitation solution that was visually appealing, touchless, and messless.

• Focused on DFA by minimizing components, incorporating snap fittings, and creating alignment features.
• Applied DFM concepts to model plastic components for injection molding and ease of assembly.
• Continued evolution of design for a graduate Design for Manufacturability and Assembly class.

University of Colorado Boulder

Graded homework and hosted office hours for a senior-level class.

Graded homework, led labs, and hosted office hours for a junior-level class.

Made grading rubrics and graded homework assignments for a junior-level class.