Mechanical EngineerExploring the possibilities of curiosity.
Nicolas Coleman
- Focus
- Rapid prototyping and testing
- Education
- Stanford University, B.S. ’26
- Latest
- R&D Engineering Intern, Walt Disney Imagineering
I love making things come to life
Projects seen on:
- YouTube
- Prime Video
- Disney+
Selected work (13)
Things I’ve built and tested.
Hydrofoil Animatronic
A self-balancing hydrofoil animatronic from the Imagineering R&D team. My part: test equipment, and how the mast, foil and motor connect.
Power Armor Exo
A Fallout-inspired pneumatic power-armor exoskeleton, built to lift 200 lb and deadlift roughly 2,000.
Sky Chess
A physical chessboard you play against a machine. A camera reads the board, and a repurposed laser engraver moves the pieces.
Material Recovery System
A polishing screen with tailored augers that sorts recycling by size without plastic bags wrapping around it.
Wolverine Claws
Pneumatic claws modeled on Deadpool & Wolverine. I went from idea to working prototype in one week.
Edison Lamp
A geared lamp built around an Edison bulb for Stanford’s ME 103.
Perpetual Motion Car
Not quite perpetual: a car that runs on energy stored in a spinning wheel, built for Stanford’s ME 102.
Manta Ray Lift
A speed-rail crane that lifts the autonomous manta ray in and out of its test water.
War Machine Turret
A shoulder-mounted pan-tilt turret that aims wherever your wrist points.
Ping Pong Trophy
A light-up paddle trophy for Imagineering’s R&D vs. Ride ping pong tournament, designed and built in 24 hours.
Cap’s Shield
An electromagnetic gauntlet that holds a Captain America shield, inspired by a Hacksmith Industries video.
E-Board
An electric skateboard I put together after scouring hobbyist websites.
Pulley Finger
A biomimetic robotic finger driven by Dyneema tendons, TPU ligaments and servos.
About
I’m a mechanical engineer who builds things out of curiosity.
In November 2016, a Hacksmith Industries video made me curious enough to build an electromagnetic Captain America shield. Almost eight years later I was working at Hacksmith as an R&D engineering intern, helping develop a pneumatic power-armor exoskeleton.
Along the way I’ve been a robotics intern at Kind Humanoid, where I designed a biomimetic, tendon-driven robotic finger, and an R&D intern at Walt Disney Imagineering, contributing to the next generation of aqueous animatronics. I did all of that while studying mechanical engineering at Stanford.
I like building things that wouldn’t exist otherwise, especially ones that make people feel super.
Experience
- June to September 2025, and June 2026 to presentWalt Disney ImagineeringResearch & Development Engineering InternGlendale, CANext-generation aqueous animatronics. On the team’s hydrofoil character, I’ve developed test equipment and the connection between its mast, foil and motor.
- 2024Hacksmith IndustriesResearch & Development Engineering InternCambridge, ONContributed to the pneumatic design of a power-armor exoskeleton and interfaced it with the state machine that controls its movements.
- 2023 to 2024Kind HumanoidRobotics Engineering InternPalo Alto, CADesigned my first biomimetic robotic finger, working through multiple versions in three weeks.
- Class of 2026Stanford UniversityB.S. Mechanical EngineeringStanford, CA
Capabilities
Design & analysis
- SolidWorks
- Fusion 360
- Finite element analysis
- XFLR5
- Mechanism design
- Pneumatic systems
Fabrication
- Machine shop
- 3D printing
- Laser cutting
- Sheet-metal forming
- Rapid prototyping
Electronics
- PCB design (KiCad)
- Arduino / C++
- IMUs & sensors
- Servo & stepper control
Software
- Python
- OpenCV
- scikit-learn
- MATLAB
- G-code
- API development