Innovative Projects Realized

Collecting and Analyzing Data to Inform Future Convention Planning

SUMA is now offering a unique and engaging opportunity in event planning and marketing for the intern and also for collecting and analyzing data to improve Convention planning. SUMA is a member-driven not-for-profit organization that runs an annual Convention for its member municipalities. The annual Convention involves education sessions, networking opportunities, question and answer periods with SUMA and with provincial politicians, opportunities to identify new and pressing advocacy issues, opportunities to learn about the services and programs SUMA offers, and more. SUMA has planned and run over 100 Conventions in the past and has various ideas (mostly around data collection, organization, and analysis) on how Conventions can be improved upon, both in the planning and running of the Conventions. Unfortunately, there has never been the time or resources available to explore these ideas, and hiring an intern will provide an opportunity to pursue these different avenues which will hopefully lead to increased efficiency and effectiveness of the Convention. In addition to improving upon events/sessions from years past, data will also be collected and analyzed to predict useful and relevant new events/sessions for upcoming Conventions for the first time (these would be brand new events/sessions, rather than improving on existing events/sessions).

Technical validation and optimization of a pediatric robotic exoskeleton

This research project entails a comprehensive series of tasks aimed at enhancing the functionality and effectiveness of a pediatric ankle exoskeleton, specifically designed to provide gait assistance to children with locomotor disabilities. The project encompasses crucial elements such as technical validation, design validation, and the refinement of the control strategy. Throughout these endeavors, our primary objective is to achieve positive outcomes in terms of the device’s impact on various kinematic and kinetic parameters of gait. We anticipate that the exoskeleton’s influence will improve gait performance such as range of motion, torque, cadence, step length, and metabolic cost. By rigorously validating the technical aspects, design, and control mechanisms, we aim to contribute valuable insights to the realm of rehabilitation technology, ultimately advancing the well-being and mobility of children facing locomotor challenges.

Global Maritime Innovation – Software Development

Canadian Global Maritime is looking to bring on an intern to assist in the development of multiple internal software tools across a wide area of engineering and data science. These tools cover areas such as hydrodynamic analysis, wind turbine load linearization for frequency domain simulation, optimization algorithms, and development of new software for offshore operations, The intern will assist in both the development of these tools as well as creating an implementing a process to manage revisions and collaboration. Through the internship, the intern will gain an understanding of day to day workings of the business and gain valuable insight into the developing world of marine renewables.

1.1 Project title: Innovation for System Partnerships, Implementation and Evaluation (INSPIRE)

Holland Bloorview, as an academic health sciences centre, is often approached by industry who have a desire to co-develop, test, validate, or sell their health products to the organization or its clients. Industry may choose to approach any of a wide range of Holland Bloorview personnel including executives, leadership, clinicians, and researchers. Outcomes from these pitches by industry may then lead to clinical evaluation, research, and/or procurement of hardware or software health products. However, to thoroughly evaluate the opportunity, and determine value for Holland Bloorview, a co-ordinated, collaborative evaluation and decision process involving leadership, administration, clinicians, researchers, and staff is required.
Currently, there is no single process or person(s) in place to intake and evaluate such opportunities when they are presented to us by industry. This results in an overall lack of a coordinated approach within the organization for the next steps of action with respect to decisions on whether to pursue a particular partnered project opportunity, and for how best to evaluate at Holland Bloorview and then introduce it (if deemed appropriate) within our clinical care as part of solution implementation. Similarly, there is also no organizational-wide view of all opportunities that we have engaged in or declined.
To address the issue of strategic alignment, organization-wide coordination, resource optimization and visibility, we will be establishing the Innovation for System Partnerships, Implementation and Evaluation (INSPIRE) initiative.

Création d’un produit d’inspection numérique pour les entreprises d’enchères automobiles

Création d’un produit d’inspection numérique pour les entreprises d’enchères automobiles

Mxpert Comprehensive Digital Marketing Campaign Plan

The project objective is to hire a business intern who will enhance Mxpert’s digital footprint and customer engagement by contributing to digital marketing efforts, industry and audience analysis, customer onboarding, and internal training. The intern will also utilize analytics tools to provide actionable insights for website and brand optimization.

Centre for Local Innovation & Collaboration

The Centre for Local Innovation & Collaboration (CLIC) is a shared, co-creative partnership between OCAD University, the City of Richmond Hill, and eCampusOntario (the funder). Graduate researchers from OCAD University (graduate researchers and faculty) will work with businesses to scope out innovation projects and together identify key areas of need and optimize opportunities for innovative project development. The businesses will then be onboard onto eCampusOntario’s, Ontario Collaboration & Innovation Platform (OCIP) where their innovation project will be matched with a HEI for specific research/prototyping and/or potential government to develop their innovation.

Intra-arterial therapeutic dissolution of plaques in coronary and peripheral arterial diseases.

Atherosclerosis is a disease characterized by chronic inflammation and LDL deposition in the lumen of the arteries. This process can result in stenosis or thrombosis. More than 33% of Canadian deaths in 2011 were due to cardiovascular events (major chronic diseases surveillance online). Canadians lose an average of 4.5 years of life expectancy due to CVD. In this respect, we strongly believe that development of the stent with a design to local and sustained release of statin and also, in the future, for proliferation of stem cells, can avoid the open heart surgery, which nowadays has elevate costs with the hospital and involves a high risk of a secondary infections during the rehabilitation of the patient. In this project we will develop a polymeric and biodegradable stent for sustained release of statins and also, in the future, for proliferation of stem cells.

Regulatory and Technological Evolution of Decentralized Finance: A Comprehensive Timeline

Our research initiative, titled “Tech-Law Synergy: A Roadmap for Blockchain Regulatory Compliance,” aims to bridge the gap between blockchain technology and Canadian and Ukrainian legal frameworks. Interns on this project will explore the most recent advancements in blockchain while scrutinizing existing laws that apply to this technology. Through interviews with industry professionals and hands-on workshops, the team will pinpoint areas where blockchain innovation is either restricted or inadequately governed by current laws. The ultimate objective is to produce a strategic roadmap that aligns blockchain development with legal compliance. This roadmap will offer actionable recommendations for businesses and policymakers, ensuring that blockchain technology can advance in a legally compliant manner.

Développement d’une procédure technique de contrôle qualité (CQ) des recettes de mélanges de remblai rocheux cimenté (RRC) basée sur la prédiction de leur résistance mécanique

L’industrie minière réutilise les roches stériles dans la fabrication des remblais rocheux cimentés (RRC) afin d’assurer un support secondaire des épontes des excavations minières souterraines. Toutefois, la qualité du durcissement du RRC reste incertaine du fait de la grande hétérogénéité des roches stériles. À ce jour, l’industrie minière ne dispose pas d’une méthode standard de préparation des RRC. L’objectif principal du stage est de proposer une procédure générale de contrôle qualité (CQ) des RRC dans le but d’optimisation les cycles de minage. À l’issue de ce stage, des outils d’aide à la formulation de recettes de RRC et de CQ de la préparation des mélanges de RRC seront développés. De plus, l’industrie minière pourra disposer d’un modèle de prédiction de la performance du RRC seulement à partir d’essais réalisés sur du coulis de ciment et en connaissant plus ou moins la distribution granulométrique des roches stériles par simple analyse d’images.

Cross-sea Wave Analysis and Prediction System (CWAPS)

The main topic of this project is to detect the presence and direction of cross-sea waves on the sea surface using X-band radar images. The cross-sea wave pattern may have significant energy and instantaneous irregularity, making it potentially dangerous. The target customer groups of this project include the shipping companies and shipowners,
fishing industry, and water sports enthusiasts and surfers. The size of the problem is significant, as cross-sea waves can
occur in various oceanic regions and at different times, posing risks to a wide range of customers engaged in marine
activities. Thus, the estimation of the cross-sea wave can effectively enable customers to access timely marine wave
forecast information for activity areas and avoid hazardous areas or take necessary precautions. This could lead to a
reduction in accidents and incidents, boosting customer confidence in marine activities and enhancing overall marine
safety.

Discovery of tumor antigens in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia

The standard chemotherapy treatments for pediatric T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) now achieve high cure rates. However, such aggressive chemotherapy in children has significant consequences on their quality of life. Moreover, the prognosis in case of relapse is very poor, with treatment resistance suggesting that chemotherapy fails to target leukemia stem cells.

The objective of this project, in collaboration with Dr. Perreault’s team, is to identify tumor-specific antigens (TSAs) that can trigger an anti-tumor immune response, being absent in normal cells. To accomplish this project, patient-derived leukemia cell xenograft models (PDX) will be established in immunodeficient mice to perform a proteogenomic analysis of the immunopeptidome, high-throughput transcriptome sequencing, and analysis of drug response in cells derived from PDX.

This project aims to determine whether chemotherapy could influence the abundance of TSAs or induce the emergence of new TSAs, thus enabling a possible combination with immunotherapy.