Rate My Professor Pavel Ikonomov

Pavel Ikonomov is Professor in the Department of Engineering Design and Manufacturing at Western Michigan University. He earned his Bachelor’s degree and first Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and Manufacturing Technology from the Technical University of Varna in Bulgaria. He received a second Master’s degree from Muroran Institute of Technology in Japan and a Ph.D. in Precision Manufacturing Engineering from Hokkaido University in Japan. His professional career spans multiple countries and roles, including several years as chief engineer in Bulgaria, Assistant Professor at the Technical University of Varna, Chief Technology Officer at the Virtual Reality Center in Yokohama, Japan, and Associate Professor at Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Technology in Japan. He has also served as Visiting Professor at UCLA and NIST. Ikonomov possesses extensive industrial and teaching experience in universities, research centers, and companies, establishing expertise in CAD/CAM, robotics, virtual reality simulation for industry, and nanomanufacturing. He has published more than 100 papers in journals and proceedings, along with a book, several book chapters, and holds patents.

At Western Michigan University, Ikonomov’s teaching interests encompass virtual reality simulation, immersive technologies, tolerance modeling, and inspection with coordinate measuring machines. His research specializations include manufacturing processes, virtual reality applications, production engineering, augmented reality, 3D computer graphics, visualization, 3D modeling, and 3D reconstruction. Key publications feature 'Hybrid 3D Metal Printing Process Optimization using ML and AI' (2025), 'Virtual Reality Assembly Process Simulation' (2023), 'Tolerance Assignment Adequate for Manufacturing and Assembly' (2023), 'Application of 3D Printing for Human Bone Replacement' (2021), 'Optimization of Hybrid Metal Printing Process' (2020), and 'Transforming Undergraduate Engineering Education with 3D Virtual Reality Laboratory' (2013). As primary inventor, he developed the 3D Hybrid Metal Prototyping System, patented by Western Michigan University (US Patent Application Publication 2017/0144242). Earlier innovations include Bulgarian Patent BG No. 40109 for 'Ground Tube' (1985) and equipment for complex sea coast researches. Ikonomov has received funding such as MEDC support for early-stage technology (2017), ADVANCE proof of concept grant (2018), and Google grant for game-design workshop (2013). His work has garnered 79 citations.