Innovative Projects Realized

The Response of Small Mammal Populations to Riparian Treatment Practices on Lyell Island

Intensive harvesting practices in British Columbia coastal rain forest, particularly adjacent to
streams, result to ecological simplifications that alter the structure, composition and function of
ecosystems and may provide limited habitat quality for many vertebrate species. Small mammals
are known to respond to these disturbances depending on the harvesting intensity and how often
their home range is being disturbed. Stream restoration and their associated floodplain can
increase habitat for a variety of plants and wildlife species. Increased light and coarse woody
debris through single tree selection can enhance forest structural diversity and provide habitat
conditions for populations to thrive again. This study will investigate the general association of
the deer mice response to restorative treatments along stream zones in Powrivco and Sandy
watersheds in Lyell Island (Haida Gwaii) by analyzing population response of deer mice
following management practices in young second growth stands along stream habitats.

WiFi-based Driving Activity Recognition in Vehicles

With the increasing requirements for smart vehicles in recent years, driving activity recognition in vehicles becomes a promising direction given its unique advantages in safe driving and human-car interaction. It can not only alert the driver when there exist distracted driving behaviors but also enable novel human-car interactions with gesture-based control. Most state-of-the-art systems use camera-based approaches for activity recognition, which highly rely on enough visible light and have a high risk of user privacy leakage. We propose that WiFi signals can be leveraged for driving activity recognition in vehicles as WiFi is replacing Bluetooth for in-car deployment. The objective of this research is to develop a WiFi-based driving activity recognition framework using advanced signal processing and deep learning techniques for driving assistance applications. This research is closely related to PANOMOTION TECHNOLOGY INC., a local startup working on intelligent driving sensing and assistance. Our research can greatly benefit the company by applying the research outcomes to its main products.

Continuum, amener de l’hôpital vers la communauté les meilleurs standards de soin.

Jusqu’à 40% des patients hospitalisés pour évènement cardio-vasculaire majeur (infarctus du myocarde, insuffisance cardiaque, chirurgie cardiaque) sont diabétiques. Au décours de cet épisode de soins, de nouveaux objectifs de traitement et de prévention cardio-vasculaire sont fixés généralement au patient en accord avec les recommandations canadiennes en cardiologie et en diabète. Ces objectifs sont malheureusement rarement atteints faute d’accompagnement rapproché, d’encouragement du patient à se prendre en charge lui-même voire tout simplement d’information adaptée. Le défi actuel dans un contexte de ressources humaines limitées est de pouvoir offrir cet encadrement à un nombre toujours croissant de patients.
L’objectif de ce projet est donc de pouvoir développer une application mobile intelligente et adaptative qui, une fois que le patient est progressivement transféré de l’hôpital vers la 1ère ligne, va 1) garantir un suivi et une formation à distance et de qualité de ce patient et 2) proposer des objectifs de soins et un plan de traitement optimisé pour l’atteinte de ces objectifs, dans le respect des recommandations nationales et internationales.

Validation de l’échelle du bien-être développée par inpowr

Le bien-être est un sujet d’actualité dans les entreprises : ce serait le meilleur prédicteur de l’engagement et de la performance au travail. Plusieurs critères servent à l’évaluer, comme la satisfaction au travail. Ces critères ne sont toutefois pas équivalents à la santé au sens de l’Organisation mondiale de la santé : ce n’est pas seulement l’absence de maladie ou de handicap, mais un état complet de bien-être physique, mental et social. L’objectif de ce projet est de valider l’échelle d’inpowr qui évalue le bien-être dans ces trois composantes. Cette échelle se présente sous le format d’une application mobile. Pour la valider, elle sera transposée sur une plateforme web avec d’autres échelles évaluant le bien-être, le sens du travail et l’engagement. Les utilisateurs de l’application seront invités à le remplir deux fois au cours du même mois. L’analyse des données collectées nous permettront d’évaluer les qualités psychométriques de cette échelle.

Extensive post treatment monitoring project: barrier remediation on salmonid streams in British Columbia

Out-dated culverts are the most numerous barriers to fish movement and habitat connectivity in British Columbia, barring juvenile salmonids from thousands of kilometers of freshwater rearing habitat. The Canadian Wildlife Federation (CWF) has untaken an initiative to strategically remediate culverts in B.C. for improved juvenile salmon habitat access. However, the impacts and restoration requirements of culvert remediation for juvenile salmonids in the wild remains unclear. Working directly with CWF, the intern will investigate the effects of culvert remediation on fish movements, habitat use, growth, and survival through a large-scale, post-treatment analysis of previously remediated culverts. This will be done using habitat assessments, fish abundance estimates, and mark-recapture techniques to compare juvenile salmon habitat use above and below previously remediated impediments to fish movement. The intern will provide CWF with an effectiveness monitoring report that will inform future remediation efforts and can be used to acquire funding for further restoration projects.

Advantages of Automation of Communication between Security Platforms

In the technology sector, there are so many different computing systems that they need a way to communicate with each other. When different technologies can share information and work together to solve tasks, the benefits of computing are amplified. For example, smart home devices are much more convenient when they all communicate with one platform that can be accessed by the homeowner. In the field of cybersecurity, there are a variety of monitoring platforms which perform surveillance activities in order to inform cybersecurity analysts of potential threats. Two of such platforms, FireEye Security Orchestrator and McAfee Enterprise Security Manager, are highly useful but are not built to communicate with each other. This project seeks to build a single interface which communicates with both security platforms, so that their results can be easily compared by cybersecurity analysts.

Effects of Coating Pre-treatment on the Filiform Corrosion of Aluminum Finishes

This project will evaluate the filiform corrosion (FFC) resistance of aluminum frame, aluminum panels and aluminum glazing bead (when used) via powder coating from Starline Windows Ltd. Currently before coating, aluminum substrates are pretreated with cleaning and etch processes, where an alkaline bath made of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) with drinking or reverse osmosis (RO) water is used. The cleaning process also prepare the surface for pre-enetrant etch (pre-pen etch), Pre-pen etch primarily removes smeared material to prepare a part for subsequent Fluorescent Penetrant Inspection (FPI) processing. The effects of various pre-treatment procedures, i.e., using RO water and subsequent pre-pen etch on the FFC of Aluminum Finishes will be clarified in this study. The overall outcome will help to advance the operations of aluminum cleaning and aluminum etch processing.

Analysis and optimization of a novel thermal storage system for ground-source heat pumps

Researchers at Ontario Tech University are collaborating with McClymont and Rak geotechnical engineers to develop a new sustainable thermal storage technology that addresses the main challenges that have prevented geothermal heating and cooling systems from being adopted in a meaningful way in Ontario. An innovative storage medium, based on a construction slurry, will be developed and used in the underground thermal storage, and coupled to a geothermal heat pump to provide high-efficiency and clean building heating and cooling. This new, inexpensive technology will be able to be effectively integrated with solar heating, making it more cost competitive with natural gas, and leading to increased adoption and considerable CO2 emissions reduction in the building sector.

Coupling the liquid pool and wellbore hydraulic module of the “Prediction andOptimization Software Package” – Part 4

In the last decade optimization is expanded in many applications from food production to sophisticated applications such as engine fuel efficiency. In the proposed package, it is tried to apply optimization techniques along with physics based analytical and semi-analytical methodologies to create a compelling framework which can help thermal-process based oil industry to reduce their GHG and also better evaluate their CAPEX. Many SAGD projects are overspent on their facilities due to under prediction or overprediction of their oil production expectations. this package will help operators to predict their expectations and improve their predictions as more inputs are provided such 4D seismic, temperature and pressure observation wells, production data, and geological characterization.

Development of a Novel Flow Diverter Design for the Treatment of Cerebral Bifurcation Aneurysm

Cerebral aneurysm (CA) is an abnormal dilation of the cerebral arterial wall and accounts for more than half a million deaths worldwide annually. Flow diverters (FDs) are commonly used to treat CAs but have deficiencies in certain anatomies. In partnership with Evasc Medical System Inc., whose area of expertise is developing treatments for CA, we intend to develop a new design for the Evasc FD (eCLIPs) to address these shortcomings. Through a stepwise design modification process, we aim to improve the performance of eCLIPs in occluding flow into the aneurysm sac in complex anatomies. Results of this research project will serve as a guideline for Evasc to improve outcomes in a larger population of patients with CA. This project also hopes to establish an enduring partnership with Evasc for future collaborations and serve as a template for developing new technologies for cardiovascular medical devices.

Mining sites as incubators for green energy and other value added products

The mining industry is a key economic driver for Northern Ontario, and mine and associated support and

processing facility closures result, therefore, in significant impacts on the local community direct and indirect

employment and economy. Despite each mining operation representing a significant investment in preparation,

transport, infrastructure and technology, much, if not all, is lost to the community after closure. A mine site also

creates and occupies significant tracts of land that are essentially non-productive assets.

To address this issue, this is a multi-disciplinary, multi-company research program that involves both a school of

process engineering and of medicine, and links energy recovery and greenhouse gas accounting with

generation of biofuels and natural microbial sourced heath compounds. It is based around innovative uses of

mine lands for achieving extractable energy value from sources of waste heat generated. In particular use of

these sites as an “incubators” for the production from indigenous microalgae of renewable biofuels and…tobecont’d

The human dimensions of wetlands and waterfowl conservation: Developing measures of stakeholder involvement in conservation activities and nature-based recreation

The North American Waterfowl Management Plan (NAWMP) is an international partnership to conserve abundant and resilient waterfowl populations and sustainable landscapes. Through their work with the four Canadian NAWMP Joint Ventures, Ducks Unlimited Canada collaborate on waterfowl and habitat management issues, including social issues that are relevant to wetland and waterfowl conservation. This project will increase the human dimensions capacity of the Joint Venture community and develop and measure repeatable indicators of conservation and nature-based recreation involvement among wetlands and waterfowl conservation stakeholders in Canada. This project involves three studies that will (1) identify relevant stakeholders with interests in waterfowl and wetlands conservation, (2) identify measures of conservation and nature-based recreation involvement, and (3) test and implement these measures in a national web-based survey of waterfowl and wetlands conservation stakeholders.