Scalable high-density hydrogen storage by nano-bubbles in layered materials. Stable and low-cost hydrogen storage and transportation are cornerstones of a global hydrogen economy. This project aims to advance a novel hydrogen storage technology based on highly pressurised nano-bubbles in layered materials. The project expects to expand our fundamental knowledge of the interactions between hydrogen and layered materials. Expected outcomes include a hydrogen storage technology that exhibits a rema ....Scalable high-density hydrogen storage by nano-bubbles in layered materials. Stable and low-cost hydrogen storage and transportation are cornerstones of a global hydrogen economy. This project aims to advance a novel hydrogen storage technology based on highly pressurised nano-bubbles in layered materials. The project expects to expand our fundamental knowledge of the interactions between hydrogen and layered materials. Expected outcomes include a hydrogen storage technology that exhibits a remarkable energy density, high stability and low cost. This should provide significant benefits, such as improving the capacity and robustness of low-cost hydrogen storage and transportation, reducing energy costs and making hydrogen energy a more accessible and sustainable clean energy source for Australia.Read moreRead less
Microcantilevers for multifrequency atomic force microscopy. This project aims to design a microcantilever with high-performing sensors more sensitive and with better noise performance than the typical optical system used in commercial Atomic Force Microscopes (AFMs). The AFM, a nanotechnology instrument, uses a microcantilever (with an extremely shape probe) to interrogate a sample surface. It has made important discoveries in nanotechnology, life sciences, nanomachining, material science and d ....Microcantilevers for multifrequency atomic force microscopy. This project aims to design a microcantilever with high-performing sensors more sensitive and with better noise performance than the typical optical system used in commercial Atomic Force Microscopes (AFMs). The AFM, a nanotechnology instrument, uses a microcantilever (with an extremely shape probe) to interrogate a sample surface. It has made important discoveries in nanotechnology, life sciences, nanomachining, material science and data storage systems. Despite its success, the technique’s spatial resolution and quantitative measurements are limited. This project could lead to breakthrough technologies such as atomic force spectroscopy to study elastic modulus of nanostructures, and establish Australia's prominence in this emerging field.Read moreRead less
System identification of microstructure in the brain using magnetic resonance. Magnetic Resonance Imaging technologies will be exploited to probe the microstructure of the brain, using powerful Bayesian optimisation techniques and innovative uses of magnetic resonance. The project will in particular develop non-invasive imaging methods to quantify iron content in the brain, important for research on dementia and Alzheimer's disease.
Improving transient performance for systems with multiple inputs/outputs. This project aims to develop and test new mathematical techniques for the improvement of transient performance in tracking control systems. The fundamental problem to be addressed will be the design of controllers to rapidly track constant and time varying target reference signals without overshooting or undershooting for multiple-input multiple-output systems/plants. These new methods aim to offer improved accuracy and sp ....Improving transient performance for systems with multiple inputs/outputs. This project aims to develop and test new mathematical techniques for the improvement of transient performance in tracking control systems. The fundamental problem to be addressed will be the design of controllers to rapidly track constant and time varying target reference signals without overshooting or undershooting for multiple-input multiple-output systems/plants. These new methods aim to offer improved accuracy and speed in many engineering applications.Read moreRead less
Nano optoelectronic coupling: towards an ultrasensitive sensing technology. This project aims to elucidate ultrasensitive mechanical and thermal sensing effects that are tens of thousands of times better than conventional sensing technologies. This is achieved through controlling interactions between photons and electrons at the interface of two semiconductors. Outcomes of this project include scientific breakthroughs that are expected to revolutionise and disrupt the established sensing technol ....Nano optoelectronic coupling: towards an ultrasensitive sensing technology. This project aims to elucidate ultrasensitive mechanical and thermal sensing effects that are tens of thousands of times better than conventional sensing technologies. This is achieved through controlling interactions between photons and electrons at the interface of two semiconductors. Outcomes of this project include scientific breakthroughs that are expected to revolutionise and disrupt the established sensing technologies. Microscopic low power mechanical and thermal sensors with ultra-high sensitivity have great value to enhance safety, security, and productivity of industry and society. The project is expected to generate new knowledge and place Australia as the world leader in physical sensing and create a new industry.Read moreRead less
Reliable and efficient algorithms for modelling dynamical systems from data. Mathematical and computational models are increasingly important in diverse areas of science and engineering including aircraft and automotive design, robotics, medical sensing, and biology. However, finding an accurate model remains a difficult task. This project will develop new methods to reliably find highly accurate models from recorded data.
A New Approach to High-Performance Control of Nonlinear Systems. The coming generation of robots are highly mobile and will interact significantly with their environment, each other, and human collaborators. However, this leads to highly coupled nonlinear dynamical behaviour, and achieving accurate and reliable control of these systems is pushing current control theory to breaking point. This project aims to develop a new approach to control of nonlinear systems based on contraction theory and c ....A New Approach to High-Performance Control of Nonlinear Systems. The coming generation of robots are highly mobile and will interact significantly with their environment, each other, and human collaborators. However, this leads to highly coupled nonlinear dynamical behaviour, and achieving accurate and reliable control of these systems is pushing current control theory to breaking point. This project aims to develop a new approach to control of nonlinear systems based on contraction theory and convex optimisation, extending the power of optimisation-based control from linear to non-linear systems. The project is expected to lead to new theoretical developments, constructive algorithms and software, and experimental demonstrations on a range of platforms including bipedal walking robots and underwater robots.Read moreRead less
Advanced coverage control techniques for mobile networked systems. This project aims to efficiently control individual mobile sensors and actuators to achieve network-wide coverage quality for monitoring and control of industrial and environmental processes. Coverage control of mobile networked systems is important in control engineering due to the growing use of mobile robots and mobile wireless networks for sensing coverage and monitoring. The project will develop techniques for coverage contr ....Advanced coverage control techniques for mobile networked systems. This project aims to efficiently control individual mobile sensors and actuators to achieve network-wide coverage quality for monitoring and control of industrial and environmental processes. Coverage control of mobile networked systems is important in control engineering due to the growing use of mobile robots and mobile wireless networks for sensing coverage and monitoring. The project will develop techniques for coverage control of mobile networks which are expected to solve industrial control problems in the defence, communications and robotics industries and manage the environment.Read moreRead less
Human-Machine Teaming:Designing synergistic learning of humans and machines. This proposal investigates the design of systems in which humans and machines use their different abilities to learn together for mutual benefit. Machine learning has been commoditised, applied in areas such as medical image reading and autonomous vehicles, however it typically operates separately from humans, supplanting human skills and leading to deskilling. Using human-computer interaction research techniques, co-de ....Human-Machine Teaming:Designing synergistic learning of humans and machines. This proposal investigates the design of systems in which humans and machines use their different abilities to learn together for mutual benefit. Machine learning has been commoditised, applied in areas such as medical image reading and autonomous vehicles, however it typically operates separately from humans, supplanting human skills and leading to deskilling. Using human-computer interaction research techniques, co-design and iterative prototyping in the domains of radiology training and environmental learning, we will devise and evaluate exemplar systems that support humans to interactively frame problems, explore and learn, while utilising and improving machine models, leading to a guiding framework for designing human-machine teaming.Read moreRead less
Control and state estimation in the next-generation interconnected systems. This project aims to develop a systematic and efficient approach to address fundamental challenges in control and secure state estimation in the next-generation interconnected systems. Control and state estimation in high-tech systems is an emerging area of control engineering. The importance of this area is quickly increasing due to the growing use of the next-generation interconnected systems, in which physical and hig ....Control and state estimation in the next-generation interconnected systems. This project aims to develop a systematic and efficient approach to address fundamental challenges in control and secure state estimation in the next-generation interconnected systems. Control and state estimation in high-tech systems is an emerging area of control engineering. The importance of this area is quickly increasing due to the growing use of the next-generation interconnected systems, in which physical and high-tech components are interacting in complex networks. The project is expected to have direct applications in the management of energy networks, and in industrial control and secure state estimation problems in the defence, communications, and automobile industries.Read moreRead less