Innovative Projects Realized

Investigation of the surface characteristics of fingers and impacts of PUR adhesive chemistry and application on joints performance

The research project has the objective to evaluate how tool wear, adhesive type and adhesive application impact the manufacturability and bonding performance of finger-jointed (FJ) Douglas-fir lamellas. These will be assessed by measuring the mechanical properties, characterizing the surface quality and determining the initial friction. The experimental design will be conducted in both industrial (FJ process) and laboratory (measurement of dependent variables) settings to maximize technological transfer to the partner. The partner will benefit by noticing an expected reduction in the occurrence of rejects (i.e., FJ lamellas not meeting the required standard) and an increase in the performance of their products, which will foster an optimized use of their products and minimize forest resources.

Performances Diélectriques des Matériaux Biosourcés

Le projet de recherche entrepris par l’étudiant durant son déplacement au Canada visera à produire des nanocomposites cellulosiques pour le champ d’application diélectrique par impression 3D sur une durée prévue de 4 mois. Ce projet vise à répondre à trois questions scientifiques :

1-Évaluer l’imprimabilité 3D de nanocomposites à base de nanocellulose dans une matrice polymérique.
2-Évaluer l’impact du processus d’impression 3D sur la performance diélectrique des nanocomposites
3-Comment l’incorporation de la nanocellulose modifiera-t-elle les performances multiphysiques des nanocomposites ?

Pour mener à bien le projet, une première étape de mise en œuvre par successivement un procédé d’extrusion bivis et de bobinage aura lieu (~3 semaines prévues). Ensuite, les bobines de filaments seront utilisées pour produire des éprouvettes avec une imprimante 3D (~2 semaines prévues). Ces éprouvettes seront finalement majoritairement caractérisées mécaniquement et diélectriquement (~2 mois prévus). Ces résultats permettront de répondre aux questionnements scientifiques soulevées et amèneront à une publication scientifique.

Design of a Multichannel DBS Targeting Electrode and System

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a complicated electrotherapeutic medical procedure which provides irreplaceable therapies and treatments for several nervous system disorders, such as Parkinson’s disease. Advancements in the electrodes designs will improve the delivered therapy and enhance the efficacy of the DBS system. The objective of this project is to begin preliminary designs for deep brain stimulation and targeting electrodes capable of providing enhanced functionalities and improved biocompatibility to address the limitations in conventional electrode technologies. The project will be carried out in collaboration with Medtrode Inc.; they have developed proprietary neuromodulation technologies and acquired patents which allow them to pioneer in the development of neuromodulation and DBS therapies. During this placement, the intern will gain valuable knowledge and experience in medical device design, while the industrial partner will benefit from the resulting prototype which sets the stage to significantly enhance DBS and improve the treatment of nervous system disorders.

Local Rivers, Global Currents: Climate, Water and History in Chile and British Columbia

My project is a comparative history of water development in Chile and British Columbia during the twentieth century. It explores how different societies conceptualized and responded to climatic uncertainty by comparing how Chilean and Canadian engineers involved in water infrastructure projects – namely, hydroelectric and irrigation development schemes – anticipated and dealt with extreme floods and droughts. It also explores how scientific knowledge and practices, especially within the discipline of hydrology, intersected with local, national and international politics. By exploring the parallels and contrasts of water development in North and South America, I hope to reveal 1) significant patterns in the place and role of science in water planning, particularly under climate change, and 2) unexpected convergences in the environmental histories of two regions usually treated in isolation

Smart tooling via additive manufacturing

Thermal fatigue is a problem that can happen when making metal products using a certain tool. The tool gets extremely hot when the metal is poured in, and then it cools down quickly when the metal hardens. This can happen over and over again, and it can make the tool break or not work as well. This can cause problems for the product being made, and can waste time and money. But, using 3D printing technology can help make the tool stronger and better, and can make it possible to create new shapes and designs that were difficult to make before. This helps make the process faster and more accurate, and can save money and reduce waste. This research can help companies make better products and grow their business. In addition, interns who work on this research project will learn valuable skills in materials, processing simulation, and characterization. These skills can be helpful for their future careers

Développement de logiciel prédictif pour la gestion énergétique

Dans le cadre du développement des sources de production d’énergie renouvelable comme le photovoltaique et l’éolien, il est primordial de développer un réseau électrique plus flexible que celui reposant typiquement sur des sources conventionnelles. Un réseau flexible et intelligent (smart grid) permet en effet de s’adapter au mieux aux profils de production et demande. Un des éléments essentiels d’un tel réseau est un algorithme prédictif de la production/consommation qui permettra une planification optimale des ressources du réseau à développer.

Le but de ce projet est développer un tel algorithme.

Detection of potential interactions of gold nanoclusters/nanoparticles in various biological environments with NanoSIMS (nanoscale secondary ion mass spectrometry)

At Western university, I have done lots of research for different sizes of gold nanoparticles/nanoclusters using different instruments (TOF-SIMS etc.) for characterizations of these gold nanomaterials.
Dr. Per Malmberg group at Chalmers University of Technology, is an expert of TOF-SIMS (surface characterization method) and in addition NanoSIMS. Dr. Malmberg’s NanoSIMS (a better surface characterization method specifically for Nanomaterials) would allow me to image my nanoparticles and even the nanoclusters I want to study next even better than what I can do with the equipment here, as it has higher resolution (down to 50 nm), as well as far better collection efficiency which is combined with sufficient mass resolution. I will then be able to make a scientific comparison between different nanomaterials that can be used for increasing radiation therapy for cancer treatment without being toxic for healthy cells in the body.

Towards a Foundation Model for Scene Understanding in Autonomous Driving

Autonomous vehicles operating at Level 4 autonomy require a comprehensive understanding of their current driving situation and context. While current systems rely mainly on perceptual information such as video, lidar, and radar, they often lack the necessary understanding of the vehicle’s concrete situation. To address this gap, this research project aims to develop a foundational model for scene understanding in the context of autonomous driving. The goal is to use this trained model as an additional input for downstream tasks, which require a nuanced understanding of the vehicle’s current driving scene, such as motion prediction and planning. We will leverage an existing Knowledge Graph, based on the public nuScenes dataset, which represents individual driving scenes, including the agents and objects present, as well as the relationships among them and information from map data. The main task is to train and evaluate foundational models based on a suitable deep learning architecture, such as a Transformer with multi-headed self-attention, and different scene representations as input. We plan to publish the results in a well-regarded conference in the field to contribute to the growing body of knowledge in autonomous driving research.

La productivité en tourisme, hôtellerie et restauration au Québec

Le concept de productivité est un concept relativement simple à comprendre dans un contexte industriel c.-à-d. le nombre d’unités produites par employé. Dans un contexte touristique (tourisme, hôtellerie, restauration, attrait), la notion de productivité et de sa mesure est plus difficile à faire compte tenu de l’aspect intangible, de cocréation avec les visiteurs des expériences offertes.
La mesure classique de la productivité manufacturière diffère de la productivité mesurée pour des services. Plusieurs auteurs (Grönroos & Ojasalo, 2004; Joppe & Li, 2014) ont déjà émis les idées fondamentales à propos du concept de la productivité en service.
Le tourisme étant un aggloméra d’industrie de service, la productivité générale comprend une quantité de variables importante pour pouvoir commencer à comprendre l’efficacité relative de l’industrie. Par exemple, dans le but d’isoler la performance de l’industrie touristique, la performance du secteur hôtelier pourrait être considérée comme étant le seul indicateur.

Predictive Maintenance with AI : anomaly detection

During this internship, the student will participate in the AI model development of the anomaly detection
engine for predictive maintenance.

Développement de méthodes avancées en optimisation non-linéaire sous contraintes appliquées pour la prévision de la demande en électricité

Le projet vise à moderniser et améliorer les outils numériques utilisés par Hydro-Québec pour prévoir la demande en électricité au Québec et mettre en oeuvre des stratégies d’autocorrection. Les développements attendus per-mettront d’augmenter la capacité de maintenance et d’amélioration de ces outils par Hydro-Québec, et de les rendre plus efficaces. Hydro-Québec sera ainsi plus à même de faire face aux changements dans la consomma-tion d’électricité au Québec et à ses frontières, dus aux changements climatiques, économiques, et d’habitudes de vie. De plus, le projet permettra de contribuer aux méthodes de calibration de modèles sous contraintes, de plus en plus présents en optimisation.

Psychoeducation for family members of individuals experiencing psychosis

The project aims to analyze the existing psychoeducational materials that exist for individuals who have experienced psychosis and their families. A focus group will be developed to explore what skills or knowledge might support family members of individuals who are experiencing or have experienced psychosis. Using this focus group, we will develop educational materials with information that is identified as necessary for family members to know to support individuals with psychosis. These materials will serve the dual purpose of educating family members about the condition and, in so doing, reduce stigma. Stigma reduction and increased social support are expected to improve experiences and outcomes of individuals with psychosis. These materials could be further used to develop materials for other conditions, such as personality disorders, or to educate other groups, such as employers.