Biography

Dr. Patten received his B.S. in mechanical engineering at Washington State University and Ph.D. in mechanical engineering at UC Berkeley. For his research, he worked with the Medical Polymer Group under Dr. Lisa Pruitt and converted a CNC milling machine into a multi-directional tribo-testing system to better study the wear of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene as used in joint replacements and qualify how well different measures of cross-shear correspond to wear volume. At Berkeley, he was a graduate student instructor for five different courses over nine semesters, covering various topics, styles, sizes, and class levels, and his dedication to the students was recognized by the university with an award for Outstanding Graduate Student Instructor. After completing his PhD, he joined Makani Power, a start-up developing a new wind energy technology: a 600-kW, 26-meter-wingspan energy kite. Dr. Patten led the design and development of the electromechanical tether - the surprisingly complex yet vital 400-m-long “kite-string” that literally holds down the entire operation (100s of kN of tension). He later joined the systems team to focus on analyzing flight data and optimizing system-level designs to improve performance and develop the next generation kite. Dr. Patten is an inventor on over a dozen patents.

Education

• Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, 2012
• M.S. in Mechanical Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, 2008
• B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Washington State University, 2006

Previous appointments

• Staff Mechanical Engineer - Tether lead and Systems & Products team at Makani Technologies, LLC

Select publications

1. Patten EW, Van Citters D, Ries MD, Pruitt LA. Quantifying Cross-shear under Sliding, Rolling, and Rotation, and its Effect on UHMWPE Wear. Wear 2014;313:125-34.
2. Patten EW, Van Citters D, Ries MD, Pruitt LA. Wear of UHMWPE from sliding, rolling, and rotation in a multidirectional tribo-system. Wear 2013;304:60–6.
3. Shelby R, Ansari F, Patten EW, Pruitt L, Walker G, Wang J. Implementation of Leadership and Service Learning in a First-Year Engineering Course Enhances Professional Skills. International Journal of Engineering Education 2013;29:85–98.
4. Patten EW, Atwood SA, Van Citters DW, et al. Delamination of a highly cross-linked polyethylene liner associated with titanium deposits on the cobalt-chromium modular femoral head following dislocation. The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, British volume. 2010;92(9):1306-11.
5. Shelby R, Ansari F, Patten EW, Pruitt LA, Walker G, Wang J. Leadership and Service Learning Improves Confidence of Engineering Skills in Women. Oral presentation and paper, Proceedings of the 2012 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition. San Antonio, TX, USA; June 2012.
6. Patten E. W., Atwood S. A., Pruitt L. A. Use of Learning Styles for Teamwork and Professional Development in a Multidisciplinary Course. Oral presentation and paper, Proceedings of the 2010 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition. Louisville, KT, USA; June 2010: AC 2010-20.
7. Pruitt L. A., Patten E. W., Atwood S. A. Body by Design: A model for K-12 outreach in engineering education. Oral presentation and paper, Proceedings of the 2010 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition. Louisville, KT, USA; June 2010: AC 2010-19.
8. Atwood S. A., Patten E. W., Pruitt L. A. Outreach Teaching, Communication, and Interpersonal Skills Encourage Women and may Facilitate their Recruitment and Retention in the Engineering Curriculum. Oral presentation and paper, Proceedings of the 2010 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition. Louisville, KT, USA; June 2010: AC 2010-21.

Honors & awards

• Best Paper Award, Women in engineering division, ASEE Annual Conf. & Expo, 2012
• Outstanding Graduate Student Instructor Award, UC Berkeley, 2012
• Best Paper Award, Multi-disciplinary division, ASEE Annual Annual Conf. & Expo., 2010

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