Richard Ruhala

Welcome to my homepage!

I am a Professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department, part of the Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering and Engineering Technology at Kennesaw State University.  I joined the engineering program at Southern Polytechnic State University in 2010, before they merged with KSU.  

I enjoy teaching college engineering students at all levels, especially in the area of vibration/dynamics/controls/acoustics. 

Fall semester 2022 I am teaching 4 sections of ME 4501 - Vibrations & Controls Lab.  I am also serving as the departmental Coordinator for our ABET accreditation and Continuous Improvement process.  I am advising undergraduate research students under ME 4400 -Direted Study.

I have developed a new technical elective course for MEs (and possibly for other engineering majors): ME 4520 Acoustics and Noise Control.  This is offered every year.

Other courses i have taught during the past 12 years include ME 4201 - Senior Design I, ME 4202 Senior Design II, ME 3501 Dynamic Systems & Control Theory, ENGR 3125 - Machine Dynamics & Vibrations, and ENGR 3122 - Dynamics, ENGR 3131/32 Strength of  Material (+lab), and ENGR 2214 Statics.  

My research areas include vuvuzela noise, environmental noise, building and classroom noise, and tire/pavement interaction noise.  In addition I collaborate with my wife and colleage, Dr. Laura Ruhala.  We have worked together on medical devices and the mechanics of football related injuries.

I am a member of the Institute for Noise Control Engineering (INCE), Acoustical Society of America (ASA), and American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE).

For information about our bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering (BSME), click here.   We also have a MSME program that you can take either on campus or online.

Feel free to contact me at rruhala@kennesaw.edu or 470-578-2748 if you have consulting or research needs in noise measurement & control, mechanics in general, or have a real-world mechanical engineering design project that might be appropriate for our senior engineering students.

Select from the links above for more information about me.