About Me
I am currently a Postdoctoral Researcher at Purdue University’s Institute for Physical Artificial Intelligence (IPAI), working with Prof. Karthik Ramani at the Convergence Design Lab and Dr. Sooyeon Jeong at the HAI Lab.
I completed my PhD in 2024 at the University of Sydney, where my research focused on the “Computational Design and Fabrication of Customizable Interactive Soft Devices”, supervised by A/Prof. Anusha Withana and Prof. Judy Kay. I also hold a Master of Data Science from the University of Sydney and a Bachelor’s in Electrical and Computer Systems Engineering from Monash University.
My current research interests lie at the intersection of soft sensors, epidermal sensing technologies, and smart textiles. My goal is to create interfaces that seamlessly integrate with the human body and improve user-centric interactions.
Recent News
- [11/2025]: Gave an invited talk at the IPAI. Thanks to Prof. Ananth Grama for hosting!
- [10/2025]: Excited to share that two papers were accepted this month: one in the IEEE Sensors Journal and the other at the TEI 2026 conference!
- [05/2025]: Excited to join the Convergence Design Lab and work with Prof. Karthik Ramani!
- [12/2024]: Excited to share that I have accepted a Postdoctoral position at Purdue University. Starting Spring of 2025, I will be working with Dr. Liang He and Dr. Sooyeon Jeong!
- [10/2024]: Presented IrOnTex at UbiComp 2024!
- [09/2024]: Officially awarded my PhD from the University of Sydney!
- [07/2024]: The IrOnTex submission to UbiComp/IMWUT was accepted!
- [04/2024]: Gave an invited talk at the Lifestyle Computing Lab, Keio University. Thanks to Prof. Yuta Sugiura for hosting!
- [03/2024]: Joined Keio University as a Visiting Researcher for two months!
- [01/2024]: Submitted my Ph.D. thesis to the University of Sydney!
- [01/2024]: The Infill Sensor submission to the IEEE Sensor Journal was accepted!
Recent Research Highlights
- AgentCoach: LLM-Based Adaptive Coaching Feedback for Motor Skill Learning
Dizhi Ma*, Jiakun Yu*, Xinyi Wang, Xiyun Hu, Liang He, Sooyeon Jeong, Karthik Ramani. In Proceedings of the 2026 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. 2026. - FluxLab: Creating 3D Printable Shape-Changing Devices with Integrated Deformation Sensing
Hsuanling Lee, Jiakun Yu, Shurui Zheng, Te-Yan Wu, Liang He. In Proceedings of the Twentieth International Conference on Tangible, Embedded, and Embodied Interaction. 2026. - Designing Multi-DoF Epidermal Bend Sensors Using Flexible Resistive Traces
Jiakun Yu, Hasindu Kariyawasam, Shuying Wu, Sriram Subramanian, Anusha Withana. In IEEE Sensors Journal. 2025. - IrOnTex: Using Ironable 3D Printed Objects to Fabricate and Prototype Customizable Interactive Textiles
Jiakun Yu, Supun Kuruppu, Biyon Fernando, Praneeth Bimsara Perera, Yuta Sugiura, Sriram Subramanian, Anusha Withana. In Proceedings of the ACM on Interactive, Mobile, Wearable and Ubiquitous Technologies. 2024. - Fabricating Customizable 3D Printed Pressure Sensors by Tuning Infill Characteristics
Jiakun Yu, Praneeth Bimsara Perera, Rahal Viddusha Perera, Mohammad Mirkhalaf, Anusha Withana. In IEEE Sensors Journal. 2024. - Composite Line Designs and Accuracy Measurements for Tactile Line Tracing on Touch Surfaces
Edwin Chau, Jiakun Yu, Cagatay Goncu, Anusha Withana. In Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction. 2021.