Research

Principal Investigator: Vincent Chan
 EPH-133

The Advanced Manufacturing Lab conducts research in the areas of advanced manufacturing, metrology and automation. Researchers also apply artificial intelligence to 3D printing.

Principal Investigator: Krishnan Venkatakrishnan
 KHE-27

The BioNanointerface Facility is a Class-2 tissue culture laboratory. The facility is equipped to culture mammalian cells, cancer cells and stem cells. The equipment includes a state-of-the-art centrifuge, a Class-2 biosafety cabinet, a CO2 incubator for the maintenance of cells, a fluorescence microscope and an inverted microscope for monitoring cell growth and tracking cell viability.

Principal Investigator: Alan Fung
 EPH-428

Research facilities include more than 20 computer workstations with specialized software located at EPH-428, and a set of two semi-detached fully instrumented (with National Instrument Compact Fieldpoint/Labview DAQ system with more than 400 sensors) research houses (called Archetype Sustainable House - ASH) located at the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority’s Kortright Centre. The ASH includes many advanced mechanical and renewable energy systems such as solar PV, PV/T, flat plate and evacuated tube solar thermals, micro wind turbines, heat pump water heater, variable capacity cold climate ASHP, GSHP with both vertical borehole and horizontal loop, GAHP, co/tri-generation, drain water heat recovery, HRV, ERV, infloor radiant heating, multi-zone AHU, and hybrid HVAC systems of ASHP and natural gas furnace/boiler with cloud based smart control.

Principal Investigator: Ayse Bener
 CUI

Data Science Laboratory (DSL) is engaged in research and training programs. Research in DSL involves design of intelligent algorithms and development of decision-making models using machine learning and AI techniques to form risk management systems, personalized diagnosis and patient treatment systems, and process modelling systems. Training programs include degrees and short courses in business intelligence and smart analytics.

Principal Investigator: Kourosh Zareinia
 EPH-313B

In HapTel, research is conducted on state-of-the-art technologies in haptics and teleoperation of robotic manipulators. The focus is on design and development of human-robot interfaces that provide the sense of touch for operators, with applications such as robot-assisted surgery. These robotic technologies will make medical interventions more efficient and less traumatic. The lab is equipped with advanced haptic devices including PHANToM OMNI and Desktop, robotic manipulators, microcontrollers, actuators and sensors, and a mechatronics workstation.

Principal Investigator: Patrick Neumann
 EPH-313C

The focus of the Human Factors Engineering (HFE) Lab is understanding how sustainable working conditions at all levels lead to improved performance, increased profit and the greater well-being of the people who make it happen.

Visit the Human Factors Engineering Lab website.

Principal Investigator: Habiba Bougherara
 EPH-109 / EPH-428B

The Laboratory of Biomaterials and Biomechanics (LBB) is a state-of-the-art facility for the fabrication and characterization of biocomposites for various engineering applications. The lab has 3D printers, a Carver press compression moulding machine, a lock-in infrared thermography (IR) system and a digital imaging correlation (DIC) system. The LLB team has worked on national and international collaborations, including LEM3, ENSAM Paris-Metz and Clément Ader in Toulouse, France.

Principal Investigator: Hua Lu
 EPH-109

This lab is a centre for the research of advanced methodology, as well as the application of experimental mechanics.

Principal Investigator: Siyuan He
 EPH-133

Research in the Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS) and Mechatronics Laboratory is focused on MEMS micromirrors and oscillation mirrors, with applications to scanning LIDAR for autonomous vehicles, autonomous guided vehicles, and robot navigation and obstacle avoidance; micro actuator and sensors; power harvesting; and piezoelectric actuators. The equipment in the lab includes a 3D optical profiler, microscopes, various lasers, a field-programmable gate array, and high precision electronic instruments.

Principal Investigator: Ziad Saghir
 EPH-323

The Microgravity Science Lab is a thermofluid laboratory. Our equipment includes a Mach-Zehnder interferometer mounted on a vibration isolation table to allow users to measure the physical properties of any fluid, as well as an Anton Paar Abbemat MW multiwavelength refractometer to measure the index of refraction of any noncorrosive fluid. Our experiments have included measuring heat enhancement in porous media using nanofluid and hybrid fluid.

Principal Investigator: Ahmad Varvani-Farahani
 KHE-20

Multiaxial Fatigue Research Facilities has been established to experimentally study fatigue and ratcheting response of materials under different loading spectra, to assess materials damage and measure crack growth. Multiaxial fatigue research equipment was funded by NSERC in 2000 and further developed by Dr. Varvani-Farahani to conduct loading on engineering components through the use of two independently controlled load-cells. The system is capable to further test material characterization as well as life cycles to failure and measure progressive plastic strain values over asymmetric loading cycles.

Principal Investigator: Sharareh Taghipour
 EPH-232

At the Reliability, Risk and Maintenance Research Laboratory (RRMR Lab), we aim to develop advanced descriptive, predictive and prescriptive analytics-based solutions for physical asset management. Our goal is to close the gap between optimal and actual practices in maintenance and other novel applications such as sustainable assets management and medical screening. This goal will be achieved by using available data, formulating models which best describe the data and recommending evidence-based policies built on the outcomes of the models.

Visit the RRMR website.

Principal Investigator: Farrokh Janabi-Sharifi
 EPH-335

Founded in 1997, the Robotics, Mechatronics and Automation Laboratory (RMAL) has become the home for both fundamental and applied research, and development projects in robotics and automation. The lab collaborates with industrial partners on fundamental and collaborative research, as well as development projects. RMAL is equipped with state-of-the-art equipment, including several desktop robots (from Denso and CRS), an industrial-grade manipulator (IBM 7575), medical robots (custom-built Althea and LBR Med from KUKA), micromanipulators with adaptive microscope, electromagnetic and optical tracking systems (Aurora and Optotrak Certus from NDI), mono and stereo vision systems, and high-end PCs with Nvidia GPUs for deep learning.

Visit the Robotics, Mechatronics and Automation Laboratory (RMAL) website.

Principal Investigator: Marcello Papini
 EPH-136 / EPH-313D

In these laboratories, the fundamental material removal mechanisms associated with the high-speed impact of jets of small particles are studied. The applications include optimization of abrasive jet micromachining processes, development of new erosion-resistant coatings, and prevention of erosion-related wear in a wide variety of industries. The laboratories house equipment to create, image and analyze the jets, computers and software to model the material removal processes, as well as noncontact profilometers to characterize the damaged surfaces.

Principal Investigator: Wey Leong
 EPH-440

This laboratory provides a controlled environment to study heat transfer phenomena in various thermal systems, such as fenestration systems and ground thermal energy storages. The lab features a Mach-Zehnder interferometer for measuring convective heat transfer and thermal conductivity of nanofluids, and a soil-cell apparatus equipped with thermo-time domain reflectometer for measuring heat and moisture transfer in soils and thermal properties of granular materials or soils. Research work carried out in this lab is supplemented by high-speed camera and advanced analytical techniques for post-processing interferograms, and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) for numerical simulations of thermofluids systems.

Principal Investigator: Krishnan Venkatakrishnan
 EPH-339

This lab features an ultrafast laser of megahertz pulse frequency and an atomic force microscope. The laser is used to synthesize functionalized nano and quantum materials for biomedical applications, and the unique high-pulse frequency enables the generation of quantum-size nanomaterials. Current research in this lab is focused on exploring the potential of these nano and quantum materials for biomedical applications, including surface-enhanced Raman scattering for biochemistry detection and chemical trace detection, cancer diagnosis and therapy.

Principal Investigator: Liping Fang
 EPH-307A

As an engineering researcher, Fang develops models that enable as many participants as possible to benefit from a decision-making process. For example, he worked on a case study involving a prairie river basin, helping a diverse group of stakeholders decide how to allocate scarce water resources while navigating legal, regulatory and customary constraints. “Our models search for solutions in which everybody wins,” he says.

Principal Investigator: Saeed Zolfahari
 EPH-313A

This Industrial Engineering research laboratory studies various research areas from sustainable supply chain to loyalty programs that businesses offer to customers. Our approach to sustainable supply chain management will help companies to provide clear and accurate information to consumers on their sustainability initiatives so that they can market their products and drive sales in a responsible way and promote social responsibility throughout their supply chains.

As for the loyalty programs, customer loyalty is something that can be modelled mathematically and analyzed in order to assess the impact of various loyalty program strategies and how they impact profitability or sustainability for a business. By isolating critical decisions related to the design of a loyalty program businesses can numerically determine the effect of these different strategies prior to implementing a redemption policy that may or may not be restrictive.

Principal Investigator: Sajad Saeedi
 EPH-134

Here one learns about recent advancements in robotics. For a robot to work autonomously, in addition to the mechanical and electrical components, various algorithmic and software components should be designed. Examples include control, path planning, and simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM), a technique that enables robots to map their surroundings while accurately pinpointing their own location in real-time. As the space is navigated, expect to discover not only the latest breakthroughs about these robotics components but also insights into the existing challenges.

Principal Investigator: Sajad Saeedi
 EPH-133

This laboratory houses a 6m x 7m multicamera Vicon motion capture system. Using image capture techniques with exceptional resolution and depth perception, the system is used for 3D tracking of aerial/ground robots and human motion.

Principal Investigator: Kourosh Zareinia
 EPH-223

This laboratory is focused on designing and developing robotic systems for a variety of medical applications, such as brain surgery, physical rehabilitation, and industrial application such as agriculture. Motivated by the economic reality of an aging population drawing more and more on our health care system, robotics can both reduce health-care costs and improve the quality of care by standardizing medical methods and treatments. This research aims to bring surgical technology and methods up to date with a goal to improve lives now and in the future. The focus of the lab is on the following research themes: haptic-enabled teleoperation of medical robotic systems, haptic hand controllers, instrumented surgical tools, surgical performance evaluation, surgical training and simulation, mobile robots, and emerging industrial applications. The lab has industrial and international collaborations and fosters EDI principles. The lab is equipped with state-of-the-art haptic devices and industrial robotic manipulators.

Principal Investigator: David Naylor
 EPH-440

Naylor is improving energy conservation through numerical simulations that combine heat-transfer measurements with flow visualization. In this laboratory is a large scale laser interferometer that enables optical measurements of conductive and convective heat transfer. A custom built apparatus that is truly remarkable. “It’s one of only a few in Canada that can visualize heat transfer,” he says. “There are many models of fluid dynamics for heat transfer but very few instruments that provide such detailed measurements.”

Principal Investigator: Habiba Bougherara
 KHW-75

A laboratory that is redesigning vertical growing technology for soft fruit production. The iGrow Platform is a pesticide-free, microclimate controlled, multilayer growing platform that helps plants control their own environment to increase productivity and extend the growing season to 12 months. This increase in productivity would be life changing for farm families across the country.