Innovative Projects Realized

Explore thousands of successful projects resulting from collaboration between organizations and post-secondary talent.

31914 Completed Projects

3006
AB
5256
BC
878
MB
703
NL
913
SK
9488
ON
9949
QC
98
PE
629
NB
1215
NS

Projects by Category

Using qualitative and longitudinal methods to understand dairy farmer stress and mental health as they relate to farm management, barn design, automation, and animal welfare

In a world where animal health and welfare are receiving increasing attention, it is crucial that we understand and support livestock farmers who are under an incredible amount of stress. This research is designed to start a supportive discussion and to collect information on the topic of farmer mental health in the beef and dairy industry, including factors affecting mental health and connections with animal health. We will survey beef and dairy farmers to gain a better understanding of how they are doing and which factors are related to their mental health. This research may help farmers to think and talk more about their mental health. It will improve our understanding and ability to manage farm stress, enhancing the well-being of both farmers and animals, their productivity, efficiency, and profitability.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Meagan King

Student:

Partner:

Dairy Farmers of Ontario

Discipline:

Physics

Sector:

Agriculture

University:

University of Manitoba

Program:

Accelerate

Development of 3D culture reagents and scoring systems for assays of normal andmalignant epithelial stem cells Year Two

The overarching objective of this proposal is to develop and validate a new, robust and reproducible 3D culture system that supports the clonal growth of primary sources of normal and malignant human epithelial cells and that is suitable for commercialization by STEMCELL Technologies who will partner in its development. The work will systematically address 3 Specific Aims. These will be designed to test, optimize and validate the culture components required to generate clonal structures that mimic in vivo outputs of freshly isolated human epithelial cells at high efficiency, reproducibly, and with a described scoring method that may be adapted to automation for future use for screening molecules that promote or inhibit growth. This project will use cells isolated from normal human mammary tissue and samples of human breast cancer as a prototype, but we expect that the general approach will be transferable to other types of epithelial cells with minimal modification.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Samuel Aparicio

Student:

Partner:

STEMCELL Technologies Canada Inc

Discipline:

Life Sciences

Sector:

Biotechnology

University:

The University of British Columbia

Program:

Elevate

Accelerating ESG Related Innnovation and Strengthening Canada’s Financial Sector: Understanding Investment Thesis’ and Alternative Investments to Promote ESG

This innovation project aims to strengthen and accelerate ESG integration within Canada’s financial sector by analyzing key risks, mitigations, and financial processes for effective return on ESG investments. Through empirical research, industry expert focus groups, state/national policy due diligence, and field research, the project will conclude with a robust and industry-agnostic investment strategy for a more sustainable Canadian economy.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Lisa Henderson

Student:

Partner:

Cansbridge Fellowship

Discipline:

Business

Sector:

Sustainability & the Environment; Social Innovation; Finance and Insurance

University:

The University of Western Ontario

Program:

Business Strategy Internship

Improving dynamic range by using rich sensing and gain-scheduled control for improved haptic feedback

For the past several years Haply Robotics has been developing high-performance, inexpensive, haptic devices that can be used in a variety of applications, such as medical simulation for the purposes of training. Haply is currently interested in the use of commercial off-the-shelf manipulandums, such as the Valve Index (Valve Index, 2022), that measures the user’s applied grip force to characterize the user’s grip as gentle or forceful. The research problem to be addressed is how to effectively use the applied force information from the manipulandum, which indicates the user’s expectation of the haptic device, for control. The overall objective is to improve the user experience by realizing better stability and dynamic behaviour, colloquially referred to as the “feel” of the robot. To reach the objective and solve the research problem, a rich sensor suite and different gain-scheduled control architectures will be explored.

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Faculty Supervisor:

James Richard Forbes

Student:

Partner:

Haply

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Manufacturing; Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

McGill University

Program:

Accelerate

Simulating the Compounding Effect of Freeze-Thaw Cycles on the Durability and Seismic Performance of Masonry Buildings

The frost deterioration caused by freeze-thaw cycles (FTC) is of great concern in masonry buildings due to its detrimental effect on durability and long-term seismic performance. Recent findings reveal a substantial reduction in mechanical properties of masonry (e.g., compressive strength) when exposed to
FTC. This material damage weakens the seismic capacity of masonry walls, increasing the vulnerability of existing masonry buildings and cultural heritage. Therefore, the proposed research program aims to simulate the seismic behavior of masonry buildings considering the deterioration and aging caused by
FTC using a novel computational approach based on the finite-discrete element method (FDEM). The outcomes of this project will fill the knowledge gap in the literature regarding the influence of frost deterioration on seismic structural performance and capacity. Furthermore, better preservation plans will
be implemented for existing buildings susceptible to changing climate conditions and seismic actions.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Bora Pulatsu

Student:

Partner:

Geomechanica Inc

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

Carleton University

Program:

Accelerate

System-level Transmission Capability Optimization

The power system transfers power from electricity producers to consumers in real time. The demand, generation, and system characteristics dictate how power flows across different transmission lines. Sometimes, the power flow can exceed the capacity of the transmission lines. This would be especially true if a new generator connects at a location within insufficient transmission capacity. This project will innovate a method to determine both the optimal size and optimal location of generators across a region of the transmission system such that the power flows do not exceed the capacity of any transmission line. This information would be used to help plan and optimize the use of the transmission system equipment.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Yuriy Zinchenko

Student:

Partner:

Alberta Electric System Operator

Discipline:

Mathematics

Sector:

Utilities

University:

University of Calgary

Program:

Accelerate

Thin Film Thermal Conductivity Sensor

Advancement of a thin film sensors for the characterization of heat transfer of solids, liquids, powders and pastes. Thin film deposition technologies to be applied.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Pandurang Ashrit

Student:

Partner:

Discipline:

Physics

Sector:

Manufacturing

University:

Université de Moncton

Program:

Accelerate

Kiln Drying Optimization of Subalpine Fir and Yellow Spruce

For decades, drying sub-alpine fir and yellow spruce is known as an unmanageable task mainly due to the high moisture variation and the presence of wet-wood that result in a broad spread of moisture in kiln-dried timbers. For this reason, a considerable portion of under-dried and over-dried wood can be observed in kiln-dried subalpine fir and yellow spruce. In this research, I will examine whether the final moisture variation could be alleviated by optimizing sorting methods and drying schedules. I will explore the combination of different kiln drying methods and timber sorting strategies to find out the optimum approach for drying hard-to-dry species. The outcome of the proposed research can contribute to improving drying rate, minimizing drying defects, and reducing energy consumption in sawmills. The wood drying section of FPInnovations has collaborated with sawmills to solve drying problems and, therefore, this project is expected to improve the collaboration between FPInnovations and Canadian wood manufacturing companies.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Stavros Avramidis

Student:

Partner:

FPInnovations (Vancouver, BC)

Discipline:

Physics

Sector:

Agriculture; Construction and infrastructure; Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

The University of British Columbia

Program:

Accelerate

Compatible Sewer pipe defect detection and estimation of its key characteristic with two different imaging system

There is recently a trend of applying computer vision for interpreting the inspection images or videos of pips automatically. In recent years, deep learning has obtained promising performance in various computer vision tasks such as image classification and object detection. Compared with conventional computer vision techniques, approaches based on deep learning are capable of extracting image features automatically and there is not much requirement of image pre-processing, which improves the accuracy and efficiency. We attack this problem by formulating it as anomaly detection method. There are several techniques for anomaly detection, our goal is to improve the state-of-the-art technique like CFLOW-AD and tailored them to satisfy our client’s need. Using an unsupervised technique for detecting anomaly enable the system to detect any kind of anomaly without expecting providing ground truth by our client. In addition, using unsupervised technique enable the system to easily apply in different imaging system since it is not relying on the labeled data.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Chi-Guhn Lee;Chul Min Yeum

Student:

Partner:

JACOBB

Discipline:

Computer science

Sector:

Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

University of Toronto; University of Waterloo

Program:

Accelerate

Neutron storage and detection experiments

Measurements of the fundamental properties of neutrons may yield insight into unsolved problems in particle physics and astrophysics. Intense sources of ultracold neutrons, and efficient neutron storage and detection, are needed to make these measurements possible. A new neutron storage vessel, designed and built in Canada, will be tested at the Japan Proton Accelerator Research Complex (J-PARC), and has been approved and scheduled to run in June 2022. Neutron detectors built in Canada will be tested in a separate measurement, conducted in either May or June. The student will assist in preparing, conducting, and analyzing the data from the tests, during summer 2022. The tests in Japan are direly needed to ensure the future success of a fully assembled neutron electric dipole moment experiment, to commence in Canada in 2023.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Jeffery Martin

Student:

Partner:

High Energy Accelerator Research Organization

Discipline:

Physics

Sector:

Education; Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

University of Winnipeg

Program:

Globalink Research Award

New cathode materials for advanced batteries as a cost-effective energy storage for the electric grid

Advanced energy storage plays a critical role in addressing climate change and increasing the high penetration of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar. Among energy storage systems, lithium-ion batteries are the most electrifying and sustainable. These technologies’ functional constraints, prices, and safety all have an impact on the acceptability of large-scale battery storage systems.
Lithium-ion batteries have surpassed all other battery storage options, accounting for more than 90% of the global grid battery storage market. However, the rising need for energy storage technologies with high energy density and prolonged cycle life has shifted focus to the development of next-generation batteries such as lithium-sulfur batteries. In the present project, the new materials as a cathode of lithium-sulfur batteries will be designed to overcome the limitations of lithium-sulfur batteries.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Afshin Rezaei-Zare

Student:

Partner:

SpinorX Inc.

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

York University

Program:

Accelerate

Assessing Regional Extrathoracic Drug Deposition for Pressurized Metered-Dose Inhalers

Pressurized metered-dose inhalers (pMDIs) are widely used to deliver drugs to the lungs for treatment of respiratory diseases. However, targeting delivery of inhaled drugs to the lungs is not straightforward. The airways of the mouth and throat present a barrier through which inhaled particles must penetrate in order to reach their target sites in the lungs. Indeed, deposition of drug-containing particles emitted from inhalers in the mouth and throat is limits the lung dose that can be achieved from inhalers in current use, and in some cases can lead to undesirable side effects, including sore throat, altered voice quality, and oral infections.
The proposed work will investigate regional patterns of deposition in the mouth and throat for particles delivered from pMDIs. Physical models of adult and child mouth and throat airways will be used for this purpose. Use of airway models helps to avoid early testing of new drug and device combination products in animals or humans, and allows drug developers to gain valuable feedback on innovative technologies. The influence of device and formulation parameters on regional mouth-throat deposition will be evaluated over a range of inhalation flow rates for both the adult and child airway geometries.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Andrew Martin

Student:

Partner:

1232176 B.C. Ltd.

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

University of Alberta

Program:

Accelerate

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Mitacs — Return on Innovation

Mitacs is funded by the Government of Canada, the Government of Alberta, the Government of British Columbia, Research Manitoba, the Government of New Brunswick, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, the Government of Nova Scotia, the Government of Ontario, Innovation PEI, the Government of Quebec, the Government of Saskatchewan, and the Government of Yukon.