Innovative Projects Realized

Battery pack thermal prediction and fault detection using machine learning

This project aims to use machine learning to determine the thermal state of a battery pack used in electrical vehicles. In fact, battery pack are made of numerous individual cells, and it is essential to monitor their respective state to ensure the battery pack operates in ideal conditions. By doing so, the autonomy of the electrical vehicle can be increased, and the duration of the battery pack useful life can be extended. With this project, we would like to infer the thermal distribution in the whole battery pack by monitoring as few cells as possible to reduce hardware cost.

Evaluation des couts socio-economiques relies aux bris des infrastructures souterraines au Quebec

Au Quebec, en 2011 , on ne recense pas moins de 5 bris d’infrastructure souterraine par jour. Ces
accidents mettent en danger la sante et la securite des travailleurs et sont tres couteux. Cependant, si
les couts de reparation d’un reseau (couts directs) sont relativement faciles a identifier et a imputer a
un evenement, les couts sociaux et environnementaux (couts indirects) sont quant a eux difficilement
quantifiables et de surcroit rarement pris en compte dans les decisions en matiere de travaux ou de
prevention. Les bris peuvent en effet occasionner des couts relies au deploiement des services
d’urgence, aux perturbations de la circulation, aux interruptions de service, a I’evacuation des
residents etc …
L’evaluation des couts socio-economiques relies aux bris des infrastructures souterraines que nous
nous proposons de realiser en collaboration avec l’Aliiance pour la Protection des Infrastructures
Souterraines du Quebec, (dont les partenaires sont Gaz Metro, Bell et Hydro-Quebec entre autre)
estune etape incontournable qui va permettre, en fournissant…TOBECONT’D

Virtual Energy Analysts & Transitioning Commercial Buildings to Net Zero

Owners of large commercial and institutional buildings are looking for ways to cut operating costs, reduce emissions, and green their operations. To make this process quicker, more responsive, and lower-cost, Edge Energy Technologies is developing a Virtual Energy Analyst Service. The goal of the service is to use real-time data to inform analysis of building energy consumption patterns by a remote analyst, to support building owners in reaching a net zero energy position for their buildings. The research question we are addressing in this project is the question of virtual service delivery: How can we provide real-time, valuable and actionable advice to building owners and managers about their energy consumption in an entirely virtual model, without requiring a staff member or consultant to visit the properties? Moving services to a virtual mode was already a goal for Edge Energy prior to the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, which has served to emphasize the value of offering a virtual service. To accomplish this, Edge Energy and NSCC will engage Mitacs interns to research, develop, and test virtual energy services with the guidance of an experienced energy manager and in collaboration with real building managers and owners who will test the service in operation.

Identifiability of latent factors through multiple self-supervision

Human perception has developed the ability to decompose scenes into fine grained elements. This lays the foundation for strong generalization to new situations where the base concepts can be recomposed to interpret objects never seen before. While it has been shown that, in the general case, proper decomposition is not possible, new paradigms provide provable decomposition in constrained environments. We hypothesize that the multiple sensory systems of human perception offer a strong signal for decomposing scenes in a proper way. While the 2-view approach has been explored in various forms in the machine learning community, we believe that the granularity of the decomposition depends on the number of views integrated.

An electrochemical microfluidic sensor for cannabinoid detection

Cannabis legalization creates a pressing need to improve existing screening methods. Currently, the two devices approved by the office other the attorney general of Canada (i.e. the Drager 5000 and SoToxa) have not been embraced by the vast majority of police forces who deemed both options unaffordable, difficult to use and inaccurate. The present project aims to create a next generation cannabis detection device capable of accurately assessing the blood concentration of THC. This will be accomplished by harnessing recent advances in the fields of analytical chemistry and micro engineering to create a portable, accurate, affordable and easy-to-use detection kit.

Architectural and Design Modelling for Blockchain-Intensive Systems

Blockchain technologies are increasingly becoming integral parts of information systems in domains that exhibit an increased need for resilience and can make no assumption of trust between parties. However, properly adopting blockchain in an information system design remains difficult, unsystematic and requires thorough understanding of the technology. In this project we explore ways by which traditional model-driven architecting and design techniques can be augmented to support incorporation of blockchain components. We do so by iteratively devising designs for a real world case in the crop supply chain domain and focus on the aspects of the process and the artifacts that are most affected by the inclusion of a blockchain component. This way we hope to acquire knowledge that can form the basis for the development of design patterns, language extensions and architectural decision support tools useful for systematic incorporation of blockchain technologies to information systems.

Comparison of “Maxwell” Plate Electromagnetic Modelling and General, Full-Physics Modelling for Thin, Conductive Mineral Exploration Targets

This proposal outlines research work that will compare the capabilities and accuracy of
a common, fast but approximate approach to computer modelling of geophysical electromagnetic (EM) data with an approach that considers a much more complete description of the modelling problem. The primary goal is to determine
for what situations the plate-based modelling is adequate and for which it is not, with the
secondary goals of improving our understanding of the physics involved in geophysical EM
surveys for mineral exploration targets, and to try to identify tell-tale signs that might
indicate when plate-based modelling is starting to fail. The research will be carried out
in partnership with Crone Geophysics & Exploration Ltd.

Marketing and Business Development Intern

Our software product has enabled homeowners and contractors to plan their renovation projects remotely, causing a spike in growth during the COVID-19 outbreak. To help us effectively communicate with our prospective customers and solidify our brand, we are looking for interns that can work with us to develop and implement a marketing strategy.

The primary role of an intern would be to work closely with our marketing director to create a strategy, develop campaigns for each channel, and implement the strategy using modern digital marketing tactics. Some key responsibilities may be:
– working with the director to plan and strategize for each campaign
– creating original social media content
– writing or procuring original blog content
– direct outreach to influencers in our industry to source interviews, guest blog posts, etc.
– working with the marketing director to create a sales funnel that leverages email marketing, and developing an effective email marketing campaign
– building relationships with industry leaders and publications to create and publish press releases
– Search engine optimization, including keyword research, article planning, backlink procurement, etc.

Accelerated and sensitive detection of (bio)chemical analytes through active capture on Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) chips

Surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is emerging as a promising technique for rapid, ultrasensitive and highly specific (bio)chemical detection. SERS has been successfully used for the detection of minute quantities of illicit drugs, food contaminants, environmental pollutants, even bacteria and viruses. Unfortunately, like most other surface-based detection methods, SERS also suffers from the same bottleneck, namely the slow transport of the target analyte from the bulk of the sample to the detection surface (also known as sampling). The purpose of this Mitacs internship is to develop a SERS-based methodology that overcomes the limitations imposed by a slow sampling process. Using our patent-pending technology for making “smart’ SERS substrates, and working closely with Spectra Plasmonics, the intern will develop experimental testing protocols for accelerated sampling and detection of target molecules from liquid samples. An ultrasensitive SERS substrate that can rapidly and selectively capture and identify a unknown molecules from a complex sample will be an enormous advancement to the state-of-the-art of analytical detection methods.

Summer Investment Analyst (MBSI)

The COVID-19 pandemic has (1) heavily impacted some our liquid investments, (2) put some of our advisory mandates on hold as capital markets dried up, (3) stalled the deployment of our senior housing strategy as those were consequently under severe pressure and (4) made it very difficult to find and recruit summer interns. An intern could definitely help us demystify and understand the new, post-COVID normal in the senior housing space by helping us understand its new complexities. Plus, with the help of UBC and Mitacs, our organization would be able to fill an intern role for the summer, allowing us (a) to keep up with our projects and (b) to better deal with the difficulties of the pandemic.

An intern would provide us with strategic analysis (through extensive research of the senior housing real estate sector, specifically in relation to new complexities brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic) that will help our organization adapt its strategy and operations in this space after it was deeply disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Market Analyst

This Market Analyst/ Business Analyst position will work with 4M BioTech’s staffs to identify research facilities in Canada and abroad that may be suitable for performing R&D, and gain an understanding of the potential collaboration or outsourcing protocols and strategies. The intern will be working on the business aspects of this strategy while our R&D will work on the lab related protocols. In addition, and as time permits, the intern will perform market analysis related to the research activities that will be performed through such relationships and collaborations.

Business Development Coordinator

Murl & Company is a small accounting, bookkeeping, and consulting firm focused on helping small businesses adopt the latest remote software and technology and best practices. This internship will focus on determining the best practices, software tools, marketing, and business development strategy to allow Murl & Company to build its client base and help more businesses succeed. The intern will have a significant impact on the organization by providing a clear path to growth. This will utilize the spare capacity of our current staff and allow our team to grow. By reaching more small business clients, and providing our services we will allow them to do what they do best, while we take care of the rest.