ECE Student Highlight: Benjamin Rehorka
Content
Benjamin Rehorka is a senior Computer Engineering major and the President of the UMass Amherst Chapter of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). He is also a member of Commonwealth Honors College, and for his honors thesis he is developing a novel technological system called FRNexus (FirstResponderNexus).
FRNexus is a digital incident command and communication system intended for use by first responders, such as firefighters, in environments where communication has been disrupted, which can occur in remote areas and during natural disasters.
The FRNexus system is based on a technology known as LoRa. Though LoRa cannot send as much data as quickly as cellular technology can, it uses significantly less power, is more compact, and is still capable of maintaining communication capability as long as direct-line-of-sight (DLOS) is maintained between LoRa nodes.
In the case of FRNexus, DLOS is maintained through a “mesh” network, wherein a series of in-between nodes can be used as relays to communicate messages, even between two locations that are not directly in sight of each other. This mesh network is created by the first responders and their equipment; each first responder is provided with a node, and the nodes can also be placed on drones, planes, helicopters, vehicles, buildings, or even mountaintops—due to their small size and low power requirements, they can be deployed quickly. This mesh network allows first responders to receive and transmit basic messages during emergency situations.
Rehorka is working on this project with Michael Zink, professor of ECE and co-director of the Paros Center for Atmospheric Research, and Jeremy Gummeson, assistant professor of ECE. He will be presenting his findings at the ECE Honors Exhibition as well as the Massachusetts Undergraduate Research Conference this spring.
In addition to his innovative research, Rehorka has completed multiple prestigious internships during his time at UMass Amherst, including a Radar Hardware Engineering Internship at the MIT Lincoln Laboratory.
Finally, Rehorka works as a student staff member for the College of Engineering Career Development and Experiential Learning Center, where he uses the experience he has gained to help his fellow students progress along their own academic and professional journeys.