Intelligent and objective measurement of wool fibre diameter. More than a half million tones of wool produced in Australia per year are visually evaluated by human woolclassers. This fibre-classing process is subjective and heavily dependent on the experience of the classers. In this project, we will objectively measure wool fibre diameter by extracting features used by human woolclassers and by combining image processing and artificial intelligence. The fractal dimension calculated by fracta ....Intelligent and objective measurement of wool fibre diameter. More than a half million tones of wool produced in Australia per year are visually evaluated by human woolclassers. This fibre-classing process is subjective and heavily dependent on the experience of the classers. In this project, we will objectively measure wool fibre diameter by extracting features used by human woolclassers and by combining image processing and artificial intelligence. The fractal dimension calculated by fractal based texture analysis will be correlated to fibre diameter. This approach will provide an insight into an on farm and/or in shed objective measurement of wool fibre diameter.Read moreRead less
New Optimisation and Control Technologies for Milk Powder Manufacturing Processes. Advanced optimisation and control are considered to be one of the top technologies that help milk powder producers operate their plants more efficiently. However, the successful implementations of these technologies are limited due to poor understanding of the relationship between raw material variations and process disturbances with the target variables. Moreover, uncertainties in process measurements also preven ....New Optimisation and Control Technologies for Milk Powder Manufacturing Processes. Advanced optimisation and control are considered to be one of the top technologies that help milk powder producers operate their plants more efficiently. However, the successful implementations of these technologies are limited due to poor understanding of the relationship between raw material variations and process disturbances with the target variables. Moreover, uncertainties in process measurements also prevent reliable control and effective optimisation. This project aims to address these gaps by developing new optimisation and control methods based on effective model reduction and uncertainty process variable identification, to enable Australian milk powder manufacturers to continuously improve productivity and reduce cost.Read moreRead less
Low-energy electro-photonics: novel materials, devices and systems. This project aims to develop low-power technologies for programming and tuning photonic integrated circuits (PICs). By replacing thermal tuning, the project will reduce power consumption from watts to milliwatts, which also eliminates the thermal crosstalk that limits the complexity of today's PICs. The expected outcome will be the basis for a generic field-programmable photonic chip, which can be used to rapidly prototype desig ....Low-energy electro-photonics: novel materials, devices and systems. This project aims to develop low-power technologies for programming and tuning photonic integrated circuits (PICs). By replacing thermal tuning, the project will reduce power consumption from watts to milliwatts, which also eliminates the thermal crosstalk that limits the complexity of today's PICs. The expected outcome will be the basis for a generic field-programmable photonic chip, which can be used to rapidly prototype designs for production as full custom chips as part of a new Australian industry capability. The expected benefits will be a faster innovation cycle, greater adoption of photonic technologies, and support of research into, for example, neuromorphic optical processing, and advanced communications and sensing systems.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE200100168
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$550,000.00
Summary
Integrated Functional Printing Facility for Advanced Material Technologies. The project aims to develop Australia’s first fully integrated small-scale and agile prototyping facility for printing. This facility will provide critical infrastructure to deposit a wide range of advanced materials with unprecedented precision & process flexibility allowing realistic form, configuration and device-ready formats with minimal usage of functional ink. Using this unique facility, researchers will be able t ....Integrated Functional Printing Facility for Advanced Material Technologies. The project aims to develop Australia’s first fully integrated small-scale and agile prototyping facility for printing. This facility will provide critical infrastructure to deposit a wide range of advanced materials with unprecedented precision & process flexibility allowing realistic form, configuration and device-ready formats with minimal usage of functional ink. Using this unique facility, researchers will be able to assess integration of novel functional materials in a wide range of devices and applications, including critical components of affordable healthcare diagnostic devices, advanced security features in banknotes, integrated RFID tracking systems, high performance solar cells and separation membranes. Read moreRead less
Damage Tolerance Approach in Designing and Maintaining Truck Trailers. This project aims to develop a damage tolerance approach in designing and maintaining truck trailers. Combined with field test and computational simulation, machine learning will be used to generate loading spectrums. Following the damage tolerance philosophy, a mature approach in aerospace industry, the fatigue crack growth and the fatigue life will be predicted. In addition, structural optimisation will be applied in traile ....Damage Tolerance Approach in Designing and Maintaining Truck Trailers. This project aims to develop a damage tolerance approach in designing and maintaining truck trailers. Combined with field test and computational simulation, machine learning will be used to generate loading spectrums. Following the damage tolerance philosophy, a mature approach in aerospace industry, the fatigue crack growth and the fatigue life will be predicted. In addition, structural optimisation will be applied in trailer design. This project expects to revolutionize the design and maintenance practices in Australian truck trailer industry. It should provide significant benefits, such as prolonging the life cycle of truck trailers, reducing the tare weight and increasing operating profit, to both trailer producers and users.Read moreRead less
Electrically conductive elastomeric composites by nanomaterials. Electrically conductive elastomeric composites by nanomaterials. This project aims to develop electrically conductive, mechanically robust, cost-effective elastomeric composites, by exploring new processing methods and studying the synergy between graphene sheets and multi-walled carbon nanotubes. Composites will be design, research and manufactured to suit the fabrication of rolling-resistance sensors that detect early-stage malfu ....Electrically conductive elastomeric composites by nanomaterials. Electrically conductive elastomeric composites by nanomaterials. This project aims to develop electrically conductive, mechanically robust, cost-effective elastomeric composites, by exploring new processing methods and studying the synergy between graphene sheets and multi-walled carbon nanotubes. Composites will be design, research and manufactured to suit the fabrication of rolling-resistance sensors that detect early-stage malfunctioning idler rolls. This technology could prevent the breakage of conveyor belts which are essential to the mining, processing and transportation of loose bulk materials; and improve the design and manufacturing of flexible sensors.Read moreRead less
Development Of Diagnostic Tools To Characterise Predictors Of Therapeutic Outcome In Severe Constipation
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$433,999.00
Summary
This project will use fibre-optic technology to create detailed high resolution maps of colonic motor patterns in both health and in patients with severe constipation. The data will be used in combination with actual patient symptoms to help identify specific markers of disease that can differentiate sub-types of constipation and ultimately guide and improve treatment in constipated patients
Industrial Transformation Training Centres - Grant ID: IC140100003
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,389,935.00
Summary
The ARC Research Training Centre for Naval Design and Manufacturing. ARC Training Centre for Transforming Australia's Naval Manufacturing Industry. The aim of the Training Centre is to transform the Australian naval manufacturing industry by creating a new cohort of industry-focused, high-level and broadly skilled engineers and researchers. The resulting network of engineering researchers will enable the industry to more rapidly innovate and solve key problems concerning the efficient design, co ....The ARC Research Training Centre for Naval Design and Manufacturing. ARC Training Centre for Transforming Australia's Naval Manufacturing Industry. The aim of the Training Centre is to transform the Australian naval manufacturing industry by creating a new cohort of industry-focused, high-level and broadly skilled engineers and researchers. The resulting network of engineering researchers will enable the industry to more rapidly innovate and solve key problems concerning the efficient design, construction and sustainment of naval platforms. This industrial transformation will bring significant benefits to Australia as it commences a very ambitious shipbuilding program comprising the design and manufacture of new fleets of submarines, future frigates and patrol boats. The success of these major projects is reliant on developing this cohort of researchers to solve the key research questions.Read moreRead less
Transmission beyond linear capacity in fibre optics. This project aims to develop the concept and demonstrate the practicality of a new fibre optic communication technology that allows data transmission rates beyond currently accepted fundamental limits. This project aims to design and demonstrate the feasibility and practicality of utilising nonlinear modes of data transmission. This would assist in the management of fibre impairments that fundamentally limit further increase in data rate causi ....Transmission beyond linear capacity in fibre optics. This project aims to develop the concept and demonstrate the practicality of a new fibre optic communication technology that allows data transmission rates beyond currently accepted fundamental limits. This project aims to design and demonstrate the feasibility and practicality of utilising nonlinear modes of data transmission. This would assist in the management of fibre impairments that fundamentally limit further increase in data rate causing the capacity crunch problem. This is expected to present Australia with leading edge technology to compete in the area of high-speed, high-capacity communication, which is the backbone of our economy, heath, education, social participation, and security.Read moreRead less
A universally efficient antibacterial coating with remarkable durability. To prevent the spread of diseases and infections through contaminated surfaces, the project intends to create new ceramic-based coatings that combine mechanical durability with broad-spectrum antibacterial activities. Around 200 000 infections, many fatal, occur in Australian hospitals each year, with contaminated surfaces being a primary source. To combat this challenge, the project aims to develop a new class of ceramic- ....A universally efficient antibacterial coating with remarkable durability. To prevent the spread of diseases and infections through contaminated surfaces, the project intends to create new ceramic-based coatings that combine mechanical durability with broad-spectrum antibacterial activities. Around 200 000 infections, many fatal, occur in Australian hospitals each year, with contaminated surfaces being a primary source. To combat this challenge, the project aims to develop a new class of ceramic-based coatings, which are extremely robust yet highly effective in eliminating common and emerging bacteria, by uniting new antibacterial agents into a self-toughening micro-architecture. By disrupting bacterial transmission through surfaces, this project promises to protect the wellbeing of patients and healthcare professionals, and to help maintain food and water safety standards in Australia.Read moreRead less