Innovative Projects Realized

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

13270 Completed Projects

1072
AB
2795
BC
430
MB
106
NF
348
SK
4184
ON
2671
QC
43
PE
209
NB
474
NS

Projects by Category

10%
Computer science
9%
Engineering
1%
Engineering - biomedical
4%
Engineering - chemical / biological

Life at Risk Evaluation for the Spinal Cord Injury Solutions Network

The Centre for Operations Excellence (COE) at the Sauder School of Business,University of British Columbia (UBC) was asked by the Spinal Cord Injury Solutions Network (SCISN) and The Rick Hansen Foundation to carry out an evaluation of a forecasting model. SCISN and The Rick Hansen Foundation commissioned the development of the model to a third party consulting firm. The resulting model builds on previous work simulating disease progression to provide forecasts of traumatic spinal cord injuries over the next 30 years, with the associated impacts on life expectancy and on the economy (both through health care costs and through secondary costs such as lost tax revenue). Although the model has the potential to be a powerful tool for policy makers, it has not been evaluated by an external agency. Such an evaluation is necessary if its results are to be used on a large scale. The model evaluation project aims to provide an objective independent evaluation of the forecasting model platform, as it applies to spinal cord injuries in Canada, with respect to the model’s utility for modeling the life and economic impacts of spinal cord injury medical/surgical intervention protocols.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Dr. Derek Atkins

Student:

Rachel Lewis

Partner:

Spinal Cord Injury Solutions Network

Discipline:

Economics

Sector:

Life sciences

University:

University of British Columbia

Program:

Accelerate

Enhancement of the FVTD Electromagnetics Solver for the Design and Optimization of MRI RF]Coils

This research will develop numerical modeling and optimization techniques for the design of radio-frequency (RF) coils used in Magntetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). These techniques will aid in the design of specific RF coils for interventional MRI procedures which impose unique and challenging demands on the RF coils's performance. The first step will be to enhance the current electromagnetic software that has been developed at the University of Manitoba (UofM) to allow the modeling of specialized circuitry found on MR RF coils. These enhancements will be validated on a standard RF body]coil that is currently being constructed at the UofM imaging laboratory in conjunction with the partner organization. The algorithms will be modified to run on a 264]node computing cluster and thereby allow the use of newly developed optimization algorithms that will be used to optimize the RF coil's performance. This will be done by automatically varying specific user]defined design parameters in the RF coil, such as circuit component vlaues as well as some of the coil's geometrical features. The validity of the optimization algorithms will be validated by using the software to design a novel RF coil for an interventional MRI application and comparing the performance against experimental measurements made on a coil built according to that same design.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Dr. Joe LoVetri

Student:

Ian Jeffrey, Gabriel Faucher, Puyan Mojabi

Partner:

Element Life Science

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Life sciences

University:

University of Manitoba

Program:

Accelerate

Development of a CNC Machine Tool Performance Simulation System: “The VCNC System”

Industry uses computer numerical controlled (CNC) machine tools to manufacture parts efficiently at high speed. Before batch manutfacturing is performed confidently, a trial]and]error cutting test is required to validate if part tolerances are violated, which is a costly and time]consuming procedure. The objective of this research project is to develop a Virtual CNC System, which can simulate the CNC motion in virtual environment. Hence, the feed motion of general multi]axis machine tools will be modeled by considering the machine's kinematics structure and the dynamics of the servo system, namely the ball]screw and linear drives. The effect of cutting process will be integrated through the servo loop as disturbance to simulate the interaction between machine and process. Thus, packaging the complete engineering design, analysis and simulation system, namely the Virtual CNC System, has significant potential to be used both in the industry as well as in engineering school as an advanced design and teaching tool for multi]axis motion control systems.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Dr. Yusuf Altintas

Student:

Burak Sencer| Chinedum Okwurdire | KeithDunwoody

Partner:

Manufacturing Automation Laboratories Inc.

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Manufacturing

University:

University of British Columbia

Program:

Accelerate

Biologic Therapies in Rheumatoid Arthritis

This project will profile the use of new drugs of rheumatoid arthritis, in a population-based sample. Potential differences in the use of these agents will be examined to identify discrepancies in drug use patterns across demographics, which could be addressed through targeted strategies. Our proposal is timely in terms of increasing attention on the part of policy-makers regarding "better, more coordinated evaluation of drug safety and effectiveness" and targeted intitiatives to increase knowledge about the safety and effectiveness of drugs in population-based samples. The methods and approaches that we develop will be broadly applicable to observational assessments of patterns of drug use, especially in the case of newer and/or more expensive agents. This will be important in terms of interactions dealing with regulatory affairs, drug use management within provinces and regional health authorities, national, provincial, and regional surveillance initiatives, and other evaluation of marketed health products.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Dr. Elham Rahme

Student:

Ryan Ng

Partner:

Pfizer Canada Inc.

Discipline:

Pharmacy / Pharmacology

Sector:

Life sciences

University:

McGill University

Program:

Accelerate

Application of collaborative online knowledge strategies in public service broadcasting

This project will ensure the success and long]term viability of the Canadian music wiki in development at CBC Radio 3. The usergenerated,participatory online resource focuses exclusively on Canadian music and Canadian musicians, using wiki software that empowers citizens to become creators of content. This project would examine issues of quality assurance and usability, develop and implement a communication and marketing plan, and examine and develop best practice guidelines for community management. The research will contribute to an understanding of the value of user]generated content within the context of a public service broadcaster. It will enable the CBC, and specifically CBC Radio 3, to take a leadership role in the provision of innovative and distinctive Canadian content on the Internet, consistent with its mission to promote national culture by using emerging technologies to reach Canadians, particularly younger audiences. The goal is to reflect the richness and diversity of the countryfs musical scene through a collaborative wiki produced by Canadians for Canadians.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Alfred Hermida

Student:

Amanda Ash

Partner:

CBC

Discipline:

Journalism / Media studies and communication

Sector:

Information and communications technologies

University:

University of British Columbia

Program:

Accelerate

A Generative Model of Impulsive Sound Production and Propagation

The overall objective is to design a learning system that takes a training set of acoustic signals and produces a classifier that can identify the category of the acoustic signal, out of a small number of categories. We have already found that it is important to consider the factors of variation that can influence the signal, and the proposed project aims at exploiting physical modeling knowledge to structure a generative model of the acoustic production of the observed signals. We propose is to develop a probabilistic generative model that will detail the effect of sound propagation through the atmosphere, including in particular the effect of interaction between the source signal and the ground. We plan on leveraging knowledge of the physics of atmospheric sound propagation as well as our knowledge of the structure of the target sound sources to improve classification accuracy. A very important aspect of this project is the development of accurate and computationally efficient inference schemes. Since it is likely that the resulting model will not be amenable to exact inference, we will require effective approximate inference schemes that permit the joint estimation of various factors contributing to the observed data, including the source class, the ground type, the distance from the source to the microphone array and the orientation of the microphone array. The approach we will adopt will be to perform exact inference over those aspects of the model where this is possible, for example, the source generation model will consist of a mixture of Gaussians that is amenable to exact inference. However, over more inferentially intractable aspects of the model, such as the propagation transfer function, we intend to explore both sampling (via MCMC) schemes and deterministic variational approximations.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Dr. Douglas Eck

Student:

Aaron C. Courville

Partner:

ApSTAT Technologies Inc.

Discipline:

Computer science

Sector:

Information and communications technologies

University:

Université de Montréal

Program:

Accelerate

Self-Powered, maintenance-free wireless sensor network with location tracking and health monitoring sensor interface

Monitoring of remotely deployed installations is an expensive and challenging task involving potential risk for unsupervised personnel working in inaccessible locations. To this end, Adigy Canada Inc. is developing an innovative wireless network that is characterized by completely maintenance-free operation, provision of interface for health monitoring wireless wearable sensors, localization of subjects, and an intrusion sensor interface. Deployment of such system in any location will be inexpensive and will permit to cut not only the operational cost of monitoring, but also will reduce the risk linked with management of medical problems in unsupervised and remotely deployed personnel. Up to now, no such system exists due to its interdisciplinary nature and technical challenges. Expertise from networking, energy harvesting and health monitoring has to be put together to design an effective system. The team composed of Adigy employees and MITACS interns will work on building a robust wireless mesh network that can be dynamically reconfigured to accommodate possible failures or extreme weather conditions with no user interaction. Furthermore, the team will explore different environmental powering options leading to eliminating the necessity of battery replacement. A novel localization method using radio signal strength will be implemented within the network as well. Finally, the project aims at creation of Internet interface for sensor data display and remote system maintenance including monitoring of energy resources, over-the-air (OTA) firmware update and selective node activation.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Dr. Bozena Kaminska

Student:

Marcin Marzencki, Camille Jaggernauth, Yang Ding, BennyHung, Philip Lin

Partner:

Adigy Inc.

Discipline:

Statistics / Actuarial sciences

Sector:

Information and communications technologies

University:

Simon Fraser University

Program:

Accelerate

Use Experience Design and Interactive Interfaces to Support Energy Conservation

This multiple]internship project aims at three applications: BCHydro's continuing efforts to encourage energy conserving actions by its clients and customers through its PowerSmart program, the City of Vancouverfs sustainability program and Team Northfs entry to the 2009 Solar Decathlon competition. Each internship will produce a prototype and/or presentation with the intent to use these results, directly or as strategic insight, in PowerSmart public exhibitions and in the Solar Decathlon house. Several later internships will explore lessons learned from the Solar Decathlon design within the specific context of the BC Hydro/LiveSmartBC Smart Meter Initiative and Energy conservation programs. The City of Vancouver intern will explore how technology demonstration and outreach can increase public uptake of energy conservation and assist researchers and City staff in defining future research collaboration

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Faculty Supervisor:

Dr. Robert Woodbury

Student:

Milena Droumeva, Yin He, Kevin Muise, Johnny Rodgers, Evan Dickinson

Partner:

Power Smart Marketing Manager

Discipline:

Interactive arts and technology

Sector:

Energy

University:

Simon Fraser University

Program:

Accelerate

Weight Management in Morbidly Obese Patients

Our objective is to examine the physical and behavioral characteristics of severely obese patients at the Wharton weight management clinic. We will utilize the patient records at enrollment to characterize this cohort, and administer additional questionnaires that are not routinely given by the clinic that will be completed by patients on a voluntary basis. During the internship, the students will be trained to conduct some of the baseline assessments at the first patient visit. The other time will be spent in management and analysis of the clinical data so that it is in a useable database for statistical analyses. Specifically, the three students funded under this proposal will each conduct a study using the aforementioned data that will be part of their MSc thesis dissertation.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Dr. Jennifer Kuk

Student:

Saaqshi Sharma, Erika Yates, Jacinta Reddigan

Partner:

Wharton Medical Clinic & Weight Management Centre

Discipline:

Medicine

Sector:

Life sciences

University:

York University

Program:

Accelerate

Multidimensional visualization of galaxy characteristics

We aim to use 3D stereo display to visualize a data bank of characteristics common to spiral galaxies. We plan to use an immersive environment at the Industrial Technology Centre's Virtual Reality Centre (VRC), i.e. a "half]cave" in which the user walks around and interacts with the data. Our approach will use advanced computer algorithms, supplied by nQube, working in combination with the human vision system to select colours which will be optimized for emphasizing relatinoships between galaxy characteristics. For example, a position in 3D space can be used to pinpoint how fast a galaxy is rotating and effects of dark matter. Colour can represent other characteristics (e.g. amount of gas), and intensity can represent galaxy brightness. We aim to expose relationships between galaxy characteristics and connect these with a classification scheme. Our partners, ITC/VRC and nQube, will benefit by establishing an interaction and by acquiring new visualization algorithms, psychological and behavioural data, and cementing relationships between University of Manitoba and Swinburne University of Technology, suppliers of the plotting software.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Dr. Jayanne English

Student:

Theresa van Vliet Wiegert

Partner:

Industrial Technology Centre

Discipline:

Physics / Astronomy

Sector:

Aerospace and defense

University:

University of Manitoba

Program:

Accelerate

Multi-Camera Image Calibration and Processing

This project will be used to develop a method of calibrating multiple camera together. In other words for example in a two camera scenario each camera will be looking at the shape of a single laser line. Once the cameras and laser are passed over a target object each camera has collected its’ own image. It is desired to analyze only one image from both cameras. Therefore it is required to merge/calibrate the data together. The second focus of this project is develop an embedded device within the imaging sensor to compile the collected data prior to the single image being sent to a processing device for further analysis.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Dr. Xiang Chen

Student:

Aaron Mavrinac

Partner:

Vista Solutions Inc.

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Information and communications technologies

University:

University of Windsor

Program:

Accelerate

Modeling transpiration deficits after disturbances and evaluating the sensitivity of southwest Yukon forest ecosystems to climate change

Climate models project that summers in the southwest Yukon will become increasingly warmer and drier, leading to more forest fires, a longer fire season and slower tree growth. This raises the question of how to manage forest resources sustainably so that they will continue to provide long-term benefits to local communities. There is a current lack of understanding of the relationship between climate change and forest disturbance in the southwest Yukon and more research is needed to understand how forest ecosystems in the southwest Yukon may respond to droughts, particularly if they become more frequent and/or more severe in the future as projected. One possible approach is employing a forest hydrology model to simulate the effects of forest water dynamics on forest growth and development, and to aid managers in decision making. Successfully applying a model developed by a BC-based company in the southwest Yukon will increase the credibility and applicability of projected climate change scenarios in BC and Canada and increase the marketability of the product.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Dr. Suzanne Simard

Student:

Julia Dordel

Partner:

FORRx Consulting Inc.

Discipline:

Forestry

Sector:

Forestry

University:

University of British Columbia

Program:

Accelerate

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