Sep Makhsous

Sep Makhsous is an Assistant Teaching Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Washington. He holds a Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering and an MBA in Technology Commercialization from the University of Washington. Makhsous's research interests include digital signal processing, controls and robotics, embedded systems, and entrepreneurship.

Makhsous's research focuses on developing intelligent systems for specific real-world applications. Currently, he is working with industrial partners, NASA, JCATI, and Airforce to create modern motor controllers for electric aircraft. His previous research has included developing algorithms for real-time digital signal processing, which have been used in a variety of applications, including biomedical signal processing, wireless communications, and radar systems.

In addition to his research, Makhsous is an accomplished entrepreneur with expertise in technology commercialization. He has gained valuable experience in launching successful startups through his participation in the NSF I-Corps program as both a fellow and a PI. Sep has also honed his entrepreneurial skills by competing in several prestigious startup competitions, including the Rice University Business Plan Competition, UW Dempsey Start-Up Competition, and UW Environmental Innovation Challenge. In addition to his competition experience, Sep has worked on five successful startups and has helped to spin out two companies from the University of Washington. Currently, Sep serves as an associate at OMEGA Venture Partners, where he evaluates startup pitches for business and technical viability and merit.

Makhsous is also passionate about teaching and mentoring. He has designed and taught several courses in electrical and computer engineering, including Introduction to Robotics, Introduction to Digital Systems using FPGAs, and Entrepreneurship in Engineering. Makhsous believes in active learning as the best approach in classrooms. He is dedicated to providing his students with a collaborative and engaging learning environment, where they can explore their passions and develop the skills necessary to become leaders in their field.

• 2021 - James A. Cottone Award for Excellence in Investigative Research. Research entitled: "Evaluating Aerosol Persistence During Dental Procedures Using a Real-Time Network of Sensors."
• 2020 - Outstanding Research Award Nominee. Research entitled: "Generalizable Methodology for Measurement and Analysis of Nutritional Intake."
• 2019 - CoMotion Innovation Gap Fund Award. Awarded for Project entitled: "AeroSpec: a portable air quality analyzer." 
• 2018 - Jandhyala and Vaidyanathan Endowed Innovation Award in Electrical and Computer Engineering
• 2017 - NSF I-Corps Entrepreneurship Award

1. Efficient Motor Control for Electric and Hybrid-Electric Aircraft: Design and Implementation of a High-Performance Motor Control System
2. Optimizing Building Energy Consumption and Indoor Air Quality: A Novel Approach using Sensor-Based HVAC Control
3. Enhancing Remote ECG Monitoring: An Intelligent Machine Learning-Based Framework for Early Detection and Diagnosis of Cardiovascular Diseases
4. Breaking the Barriers of Remote FPGA Access: A Secure and Scalable Multi-User Framework
5. High-Precision Indoor Localization using Machine Learning: A Data-Driven Approach to Accurate Positioning and Tracking in Complex Indoor Environments

• S. Makhsous, J. M. Segovia, J. He, D. Chan, L. Lee, I. V. Novosselov, Igor V. A. V. Mamishev,. 2021. "Methodology for Addressing Infectious Aerosol Persistence in Real-Time Using Sensor Network" Sensors 21, no. 11: 3928. 
• S. Makhsous, M. Bharadwaj, B.E. Atkinson, I.V. Novosselov, A.V. Mamishev. DietSensor: Automatic Dietary Intake Measurement Using Mobile 3D Scanning Sensor for Diabetic Patients. Sensors 2020, 20, 3380.
• S. Makhsous, H. M. Mohammad, J. M. Schenk, A. V. Mamishev, and A. R. Kristal, "A novel mobile structured light system in food 3D reconstruction and volume estimation," Sensors, vol. 19, no. 3, p. 564, 2019.
• S. Makhsous, A. Zielinski, and A. V. Mamishev, "Post-Operative Stoma Management Based on 3D Image Reconstruction and Pattern Recognition.," FSDM, vol. 309, pp. 794–801, 2018, doi: 10.3233/978-1-61499-927-0-794.
• S. Makhsous, J. Gentsch, J. Rollins, Z. Feingold, and A. Mamishev, "DietSkan: Food Volume Estimation for Dietary Intake Analysis Using 3D Mesh Scanning," International Journal of Engineering & Technology, vol. 7, no. 4.38, pp. 1368–1371, 2018.