About me

Hi! I’m a tenure-track Assistant Professor in Intelligent Transportation Systems at Saint Louis University (SLU). My research interests span Transportation-Cyber-Physical Systems (T-CPS), machine learning with transportation priors, traffic modeling and control, sustainable urban mobility, and transportation-related safety. By leveraging data and computational methods, my research aims to develop and apply advanced technologies to address traditional transportation engineering challenges and enhance the understanding of traffic information for future city design. If you have any ideas or projects you’d like to collaborate on, feel free to reach out to me at tianyili.ai At gmail.com.

Before joining Saint Louis University (SLU), I completed my PhD at the University of Minnesota (UMN), working under the guidance of Professor Raphael Stern. I earned my bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from Iowa State University (ISU), where I was advised by Professor Sri Sritharan and Professor Kejin Wang for my undergraduate thesis. Additionally, I hold one master’s degree from the University of Washington (UW), where I was advised by Professor Yinhai Wang.

Research Interests

  • Transportation-Cyber-Physical Systems (T-CPS)
  • Automated and connected vehicles
  • Traffic modeling and control
  • AI in Transportation
  • Urban mobility solutions
  • Traffic safety and sustainable transportation

I have interned and conducted research at Futurewei Technologies Research Lab, the Washington State Department of Transportation, and China Railway First Group. These experiences have provided me with valuable insights into the transportation industry and its challenges.

I am actively looking for PhD students. Master’s and undergraduate students already at SLU can contact me directly for a chat.

Quotes:
“All models are wrong, but some are useful.”

“If equal affection cannot be, Let the more loving one be me.”

“Do not disfigure the soul.”