Research

Robotics

Robots usually mean the machines integrating sensors, intelligence, and actuation to perform tasks autonomously. They have been successfully applied to perform tasks that human wouldn’t like and/or have difficulties or danger to do such as heavy lifting and handling radioactive material. Current research and development effort in robotics have been focused on new mechanical structures, actuation methods, and intelligent sensing and control to enable robots to perform tasks that are impossible for humans including working in remote or nano environments, for instance sensing and manipulating inside of human body. In telemedicine, robots are exemplified to deliver medical service such as diagnostics or therapies to a remote location via communication networks. Therefore, robotic technology will not only change the industries, but also society and people’s life. It will help us to overcome the difficulties in distance, scale as well as environment to develop new manufacturing processes, medical diagnostics, and therapeutic treatments, as well as assistant devices to meet the challenges such as sustainability, aging society, and economic disparity.

Selected on-going projects:

Nano and Bio Systems

The development of nanotechnology and biomedical sciences and engineering over the past two decades has paved the way for further integrating biomedicine and engineering by syncretizing the two disciplines. In addition to enabling instruments and algorithms, engineering can provide a new paradigm for modeling, analyzing, designing, and synthesizing methods and tools for biomedicine. For example, in bioinformatics, omics data can be used to model and analyze biological behaviors from a dynamic system perspective. As such, biomedical problems can be investigated by using advanced methodology to analyze dynamic systems in engineering. This paradigm of “systems thinking” is unique compared with traditional reductionism in biology. Considering the complexity of a biological system, this “system thinking” has been playing an increasingly important role in drug discovery and the development of new diagnostics and therapeutics.

Selected on-going projects:

Automations

The research direction concentrates on developing new technologies to help the Hong Kong industry regain technological superiority and competitive advantage in the world market. This initiative will be two-fold. First, the research will be focused on taking advantage of the developments in cyber infrastructure such as robotics, computer networking and communication, which seamlessly integrates the local industry with the global economy so that local technological talents may be combined with the world’s skilled and non-skilled labor resources to boost the competitiveness of the products. The second aspect is to enhance the spectrum automation from traditional machinery and processes to new horizons such as nano manufacturing and the biomedical industry in order to enhance the high added-value industries in Hong Kong/PRD Region, such as pharmaceutical and health care industries.