Javier García de Jalón, a University Professor Devoted to His Students

Javier was born in Zaragoza, Spain, on May 27, 1949, into a large and well-known family in the city. His parents were devout Christians who instilled in their children a deep and sincere faith. His father owned a photography studio, and many living rooms in the capital of Aragón displayed family portraits taken there. The family lived in a country house on the outskirts of the city, where Javier and his four siblings could play freely. He studied at a Jesuit school, achieving excellent grades. Between 1966 and 1971, he pursued his university studies at the School of Industrial Engineering in San Sebastián. During this time, he got in contact with Opus Dei, a Catholic Church institution to which he decided to devote himself, following God’s call to serve Him and to illuminate the paths of the world with his life and work.

After completing his degree in industrial engineering, Javier remained at the San Sebastián School to support the development of the young university center. He immediately began doctoral studies and, from 1973, taught the subjects “Theory of Structures” and “Fortran Programming and Numerical Methods.” These disciplines played a decisive role in his research and helped him discover his great passion for teaching—a passion that would define his entire academic career.

In 1977, he defended his doctoral thesis, titled “Contribution to the Numerical Solution of the Thermoelastic Problem in Solids with Axial Symmetry”, which focused on calculating thermal stresses caused by braking in railway wheels using the finite element method. Like many young engineering professors of that time, Javier did not have the opportunity to pursue a postgraduate degree to consolidate his research training. However, circumstances—or as Javier would say, God’s providential plan—enabled him to acquire this expertise through his teaching, leading him to deepen his knowledge in areas that would soon prove invaluable to his research.

That same year, in 1977, he moved to the School of Industrial Engineering in Bilbao, where he taught “Kinematics and Dynamics of Machines”. It was here that he developed “natural coordinates”, an innovation that emerged from applying Cartesian coordinates, commonly used in matrix structural analysis, to mechanism analysis—a field he was already familiar with from his previous teaching experience in San Sebastián. After earning a professorship in “Kinematics and Dynamics of Machines”, he returned to the School of Engineering in San Sebastián in 1981.

From 1982 to 1992, he taught “Kinematics and Dynamics of Machines” in San Sebastián and served as director of the Department of Applied Mechanics at CEIT, a research center affiliated with the School. This period was the most intense and productive of his research career. Nevertheless, he never lost sight of the primacy of teaching, even within his research activities. This commitment was evident in the educational nature of his publications, his willingness to involve doctoral candidates and students from various courses in his research, and his ability to inspire enthusiasm for participation in these projects.

During these years, natural coordinates were simplified with the introduction of unit vectors and extended to three-dimensional cases. They were also applied to mechanisms with flexible elements, synthesis, and optimization, leading to the development of efficient formulations. From 1987 onwards, the advanced three-dimensional graphics capabilities of the new generation of workstations greatly expanded the usefulness of multibody mechanical system simulations, culminating in the creation of the COMPAMM (COMPuter Analysis of Machines and Mechanisms) program. This research led to groundbreaking applications in the fields of automotive engineering, robotics, biomechanics, and aerospace, fostering collaborations with institutions and companies such as the European Space Agency (ESA), Construcciones Aeronáuticas (CASA), ENASA (Pegaso vehicles), Dornier (German aerospace), Mechanical Dynamics Inc. (ADAMS multibody mechanical systems program), FIAT, PSA, Volvo, Siemens, SDRC (I-DEAS CAD software), as well as projects for the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games and the 1992 Tour de France. The results of this research period were compiled in the book Kinematic and Dynamic Simulation of Multibody Systems: The Real-Time Challenge, co-authored by Javier and Professor Eduardo Bayo and published by Springer in 1994. Shortly before, in 1993, Javier spent time at the CERFACS research center in Toulouse, where he familiarized himself with emerging and promising fields such as personal computing and the internet.

That same year, 1993, marked a shift in his career that would last until 2000. He transitioned from CEIT to the School, where he took on the role of deputy director and was responsible for computer science courses. During this period, his work focused on implementing a new curriculum and integrating new technologies into both teaching and school administration. Although he continued supervising some doctoral theses, his research in multibody mechanical systems took a back seat.

In 2000, he made the last major change in his career, moving to the School of Industrial Engineering at the Polytechnic University of Madrid, where he obtained a professorship in “Applied Mathematics” in 2001. For several years, he dedicated himself primarily to preparing teaching materials for the courses he taught: “Algebra” in the first year and “Numerical Methods in Mechanical Engineering” in the fourth year. Gradually, he resumed his research in multibody mechanical system simulations, focusing on real-time vehicle dynamics simulation after joining INSIA in 2006. At this automotive research institute, he participated in several research projects and supervised six doctoral theses.

In 2011, Javier was honored with two prestigious awards in the field of mechanical engineering, marking the international scientific community’s recognition of his impact on multibody system dynamics: the “IFToMM Award of Merit” and the “ASME D’Alembert Award”.

In early 2016, he began experiencing the first symptoms of ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), a disease that was diagnosed later that year. Nevertheless, he remained active at the School until early May 2017, when another illness, this time affecting his vision, forced him to retire from professional life permanently. In 2019, he received the distinction of “Laureate Engineer” from the Royal Academy of Engineering of Spain, alongside Professors Justo Nieto and Alfonso Fernández Cantelli, in a highly emotional ceremony attended by many mechanical engineering professors from across the country.

Throughout his life, Javier was a man of profound faith. He saw God’s will in all his work, particularly in his dedication to his students, which grew stronger until his retirement. His students were undoubtedly aware of this, as evidenced by the farewell celebration they organized for him on Friday, December 16, 2016, the day of his last lecture. In a packed classroom, Javier was able to experience the affection and admiration of many of his students.

Javier passed away on Friday, January 31, 2025, after more than eight years of illness. Throughout this time, he remained joyful and steadfast in his trust in God, maintaining an active life by communicating with colleagues, former students, and friends through whatever means his increasing limitations allowed. May he rest in peace.

Javier Cuadrado

Professor of Mechanical Engineering, University of La Coruña