Manish Man Shrestha
Embedded Systems & Secure IoT Engineer
Manish Man Shrestha
Embedded Systems & Secure IoT Engineer
Embedded systems engineer and PhD researcher focused on low-power, secure, real-time IoT platforms for agricultural and structural monitoring. I bring 15+ years of experience across C/C++ firmware development, FreeRTOS-based real-time architectures, custom hardware/PCB design, and end-to-end telemetry pipelines. My PhD work at South Dakota State University integrates modern security for resource-constrained devices, including TLS, AES, post-quantum cryptography (Kyber, Dilithium), and authenticated encryption (ChaCha20-Poly1305), with secure data transmission using MQTT over TLS. I also develop C#/.NET and ASP.NET applications for secure data retrieval, cryptographic verification, decryption, and real-time visualization.
Work Experience
-
Graduate Research Assistant
Jan 2023 – Present
South Dakota State University (SDSU)
Brookings, South Dakota, USA- Designed and deployed low-power secure IoT monitoring systems for agriculture (hydroponics and greenhouse sensing).
- Developed FreeRTOS firmware on ESP32-class MCUs integrating MQTT over TLS, adaptive backoff, and secure telemetry pipelines.
- Integrated modern cryptography for resource-constrained devices: Kyber, Dilithium, and ChaCha20-Poly1305 (plus AES/TLS where applicable).
- Built C#/.NET + ASP.NET tooling for data retrieval, verification, decryption, and real-time visualization.
- Contributed to peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations.
-
Teaching Assistant
Jan 2023 – Present
South Dakota State University (SDSU)
Assist: Engineering Properties of Biological Materials Lab (Dr. Lin Wei) -
Assistant Professor
Aug 2017 – Dec 2022
Cosmos College of Management and Technology
Lalitpur, Nepal
http://cosmoscollege.edu.np/- Taught Embedded Systems, Control Systems, Digital Communication, Industrial Electronics and Drives, and RTOS.
- Founding member of Cosmos Research Management Cell (Cosmos-RMC).
- Co-PI: Multi-channel intelligent ultrasonic device (PURC, Apr 2018 – Jan 2020).
- PI: IoT-based multichannel low-cost ultrasonic device for SHM (UGC Nepal, SRDIG-76/77-Engg-1).
- PI: Mayor’s Research Fellowship (2020–2021) work leading to a government-published research chapter on STEAM education for KMC.
- Reviewer/Editor: Advances in Engineering and Technology: An International Journal.
-
CTO, Electronics Department
Sep 2019 – Dec 2022
Samadhan Engineering Pvt. Ltd.
Kathmandu, Nepal- Led firmware and hardware R&D for STEAM education and agriculture/hydroponics systems.
- Implemented RTOS-based solutions and field protocols (MQTT/MQTTS, SNTP, MODBUS-RTU).
- Developed product prototypes, documentation, and training materials; supported cross-functional teams.
-
Research Engineer
Sep 2017 – Jul 2019
Real Time Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
Lalitpur, Nepal
http://www.rts.com.np- Developed embedded firmware for early warning systems in landslide-prone areas, including filtering and GSM telemetry.
-
Research Scientist
Mar 2016 – Mar 2017
Opto-electro-structural Laboratory, KAIST
Daejeon, Republic of Korea
http://oerl.kaist.ac.kr/- Developed firmware and hardware for aircraft structural monitoring using wireless communication and embedded DSP.
- Contributed to peer-reviewed publication(s) in structural health monitoring.
-
Research Assistant
Aug 2013 – Feb 2016
Chonbuk National University
Jeonju, Republic of Korea- Built wireless ultrasonic SHM systems (hardware + firmware + software) for aircraft structures.
- Implemented signal processing (IIR/FFT) and Wi-Fi communication using TCP/IP (LWIP).
-
Firmware Engineer
Mar 2011 – Aug 2013
Real Time Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
Lalitpur, Nepal
http://www.rts.com.np- Developed firmware across ARM Cortex-M0/M4, 8051, PIC; built MODBUS/RTU from scratch and RTOS scheduling modules.
Education
-
Ph.D. in Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering
Expected May 2026
South Dakota State University, Brookings, South Dakota, USA -
Graduate Certificate in Data Science
2025
South Dakota State University, Brookings, South Dakota, USA -
M.E. in Mechatronics Engineering
2016
Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju, Republic of Korea -
B.E. in Electronics and Communication Engineering
2010
Cosmos College of Management and Technology, Nepal
Journal Articles
- Choi, M., Shrestha, M. M., Lee, J.-R., & Park, C.-Y. (2017). Development of laser-powered wireless ultrasonic device for aircraft structure. Structural Health Monitoring. SAGE Publications.
- Shrestha, M. M., Ropakheti, B., Bhattarai, U., Adhikari, A., & Thakur, S. (2021). Intelligent wireless ultrasonic device for damage detection of metallic structures. Scientific World, 14(14), 31–36.
- Shrestha, M. M., Ropakheti, B., Bhattarai, U., Adhikari, A., & Thakur, S. (2021). Digital ultrasonic sensing device with programmable frequency: Development and analysis. Advances in Engineering and Technology: An International Journal, 1(1), 33–45.
- Shrestha, M. M., & Wei, L. (2024). Perspectives on the roles of real-time nitrogen sensing and IoT integration in smart agriculture. Journal of The Electrochemical Society.
Government-Published Research Chapter
- Shrestha, M. M. (2022). The Urgency of STEAM Education for Driving KMC as an Innovation Hub. In MRF Research 2020/21 (pp. 107–133). City Planning Commission, Kathmandu Metropolitan City. (ISBN: 978-9937-1-1305-2)
Conference Presentations
- Shrestha, M. M., & Wei, L. (2025). Integrating IoT and secure data transmission in a crop monitoring system (Paper No. 2500564). ASABE Annual International Meeting, Toronto, ON, Canada.
- Shrestha, M. M., & Wei, L. (2024). Integrating IoT and secure data transmission in greenhouse monitoring: Effects on radish growth in controlled environments. ASABE Annual International Meeting. (Oral)
- Shrestha, M. M., Ropakheti, B., Bhattarai, U., Adhikari, A., & Thakur, S. (2019). Development of intelligent ultrasonic device for damage detection of metallic structure. Resilient Infrastructures for a Better Tomorrow (SCAEF). (Oral)
- Shrestha, M. M., Ropakheti, B., Bhattarai, U., & Adhikari, A. (2019). Development of actuator interface circuit for portable device for health monitoring of metallic structure. Fourth International IT Conference on ICT with Smart Computing, Kathmandu, Nepal. (Oral)
- Shrestha, M. M., & Lee, J.-R. (2016). Development of Wi-Fi based wireless ultrasonic device for structural health monitoring for aircraft structure. Advances in Structural Health Management and Composite Structures, Jeonju, Republic of Korea. (Oral)
- Shrestha, M. M., Chong, C. Y., & Lee, J.-R. (2015). Development of wireless ultrasonic propagation imaging system. 10th International Workshop on Structural Health Monitoring, Stanford University, USA. (Oral)
- Shrestha, M. M., & Lee, J.-R. (2014). Multiple-channel PZT-excited active sensing based on a wireless ultrasonic device for damage detection. Advances in Structural Health Management and Composite Structures, Jeonju, Republic of Korea. (Oral)
- Shrestha, M. M., & Lee, J.-R. (2015). Development of wireless ultrasonic device. KSAS Fall Conference, Jeju, Republic of Korea. (Oral)