Dr. Pei Zhang

Biography

Pei Zhang is an Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Michigan. He received his PhD in Electrical Engineering from Princeton University. Prior to joining the University of Michigan in 2021, he was a faculty member at Carnegie Mellon University. His research interests are centered around Structures Sensors, which involves utilizing physical properties of devices and structures such as cars, buildings, and rooms to discover physical information about the environment, including people, roads, and animals. His work focuses on combining machine learning-based data models, physics models, and heuristic models to enhance the understanding of physical systems, with applications in fields such as medicine, eldercare, farming, and smart buildings. He developed the ZebraNet system at Princeton University, which is used to track zebras in Kenya. This wireless, ad-hoc, mobile sensor network earned a Test-of-Time award at SenSys 2017. His work has been featured in various popular media outlets including CNN, Scientific American, Science Channel, Discovery Channel, CBS News, CNET, Popular Science, and BBC Focus. He is also a member of the Department of Defense Computer Science Studies Panel.

Research Interests