Carolina Warneryd and Duncan Lee, both research assistants in the Biomechatronics group, have been recognized at the 2026 MIT Mechanical Engineering De Florez Awards Competition, held as part of MExpo 2026.

Carolina Warneryd won first place in the Graduate Design category for "Cam-eleon: A Cam-Actuated Quasi-Passive Ankle-Foot Prosthetic." She is completing her masters and will be staying on for her PhD.

Duncan Lee won third place for "Design and Evaluation of a Terrain-Adaptive Variable Stiffness Prosthesis." He recently graduated with his PhD.

The MIT Mechanical Engineering De Florez Awards Competition recognizes outstanding innovation and hands-on work by undergraduate and graduate students in Course 2. The Graduate Design category requires students to use Mechanical Engineering principles and practices to synthesize and create an ingenious design — a working, realized design is mandatory.

The awards are named in honor of Luis de Florez (1889–1962), an MIT alumnus and Rear Admiral in the United States Navy who was a pioneer in aeronautical engineering and flight simulation. His career exemplified original thinking, ingenuity, and practical engineering impact — values that continue to define the spirit of the competition.