Scaling Up Satellite Communications for the Internet of Things. The Internet of Things (IoT) is a revolution in sensing and automation that is becoming vital for industries including farming and mining. However, in remote areas, it is especially challenging to connect the large numbers of devices needed. This project will develop novel signal processing and communications approaches to deliver high quality data services to vast numbers of remote IoT devices, distributed over continental scales c ....Scaling Up Satellite Communications for the Internet of Things. The Internet of Things (IoT) is a revolution in sensing and automation that is becoming vital for industries including farming and mining. However, in remote areas, it is especially challenging to connect the large numbers of devices needed. This project will develop novel signal processing and communications approaches to deliver high quality data services to vast numbers of remote IoT devices, distributed over continental scales connected via low earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellations. It will provide the tools for LEO satellite service providers to dimension their networks and assist IoT providers to scale their remote sensor networks and IoT deployments, with ever increasing demand on the limited satellite bandwidth.Read moreRead less
Robust, valid and interpretable deep learning for quantitative imaging. One of the biggest challenges in employing artificial intelligence is the “black-box” nature of the models used. This project aims to improve the effectiveness and trustworthiness of deep learning within quantitative magnetic resonance imaging. Deep learning has great promise in speeding-up complex image processing tasks, but currently suffers from variable data inputs, predictions are not guaranteed to be plausible and it i ....Robust, valid and interpretable deep learning for quantitative imaging. One of the biggest challenges in employing artificial intelligence is the “black-box” nature of the models used. This project aims to improve the effectiveness and trustworthiness of deep learning within quantitative magnetic resonance imaging. Deep learning has great promise in speeding-up complex image processing tasks, but currently suffers from variable data inputs, predictions are not guaranteed to be plausible and it is not clear to the end user how reliable the results are. The outcomes intend to deliver advanced knowledge and capability in artificial intelligence and machine learning that Australia urgently needs to capitalise on bringing deep learning into practical applications delivering economic, commercial and social impact.Read moreRead less
Multi-Modal Dictionary Learning for Smart City Operation and Management. This Project aims to provide new digital asset management tools for city councils to improve city services by utilising new sensing and automated learning technologies for recognising, tracking and auditing of assets. Currently, there are no digital tools available to handle these services. This project proposes new multi-modal sensing and mapping of city asset techniques by building new multi-modal dictionary learning proc ....Multi-Modal Dictionary Learning for Smart City Operation and Management. This Project aims to provide new digital asset management tools for city councils to improve city services by utilising new sensing and automated learning technologies for recognising, tracking and auditing of assets. Currently, there are no digital tools available to handle these services. This project proposes new multi-modal sensing and mapping of city asset techniques by building new multi-modal dictionary learning procedures. The new framework will recognise different conditions of city assets in real-time to make decisions. Expected outcomes of this Project include integration and easy access of assets with unique digital identities to help city councils, governments, and navigation services for real-time asset monitoring.Read moreRead less
Collision Avoidance in Shipping Lanes via Intelligent Sensor Data Fusion . This project aims to develop an online maritime traffic monitoring system for reliable collision/contact avoidance that exploits complementary data from high-resolution airborne sensors and surface vessel sensors. Our approach is based on optimal scheduling and fusion of the sensor data and possibly other sources of data to construct a comprehensive dynamic picture of maritime traffic, in real-time. Moreover, the proposed ....Collision Avoidance in Shipping Lanes via Intelligent Sensor Data Fusion . This project aims to develop an online maritime traffic monitoring system for reliable collision/contact avoidance that exploits complementary data from high-resolution airborne sensors and surface vessel sensors. Our approach is based on optimal scheduling and fusion of the sensor data and possibly other sources of data to construct a comprehensive dynamic picture of maritime traffic, in real-time. Moreover, the proposed methodology enables quantification of confidence in the predictions. This will provide ship owners, directly to their vessels and/or at the fleet management centres, information such as weather reports, reliable collision/no-collision warnings and avoidance strategies, on-the-fly. Read moreRead less
Reliable bi-directional machine-type communications for smart agriculture. This project aims to develop innovative solutions for agricultural machine-type communications to provide robust and bi-directional coverage for remote agriculture areas with difficult terrain, by leveraging smart-sensor-enabled, energy-efficient uplink transmissions and ultra-reliable downlink transmissions. Machine-type communications have been recognised as a key enabler for the future smart agriculture and smart farms ....Reliable bi-directional machine-type communications for smart agriculture. This project aims to develop innovative solutions for agricultural machine-type communications to provide robust and bi-directional coverage for remote agriculture areas with difficult terrain, by leveraging smart-sensor-enabled, energy-efficient uplink transmissions and ultra-reliable downlink transmissions. Machine-type communications have been recognised as a key enabler for the future smart agriculture and smart farms. The project will use novel agricultural machine-type communication theories and develop test-beds to enable the smart agricultural applications. This is expected to contribute to the crucial communication infrastructures for smart farms, which will lead to higher agricultural productivity and national economy.Read moreRead less
Integrated optical phased arrays for light detection and ranging (LIDAR). This project aims to resolve challenging problems in light detection and ranging (LIDAR) to enable realisation of LIDAR sensors with low-power consumption, small size, high resolution and low cost. It proposes new techniques for integrated silicon photonic beam-steering to reduce the Size, Weight, and Power (SWaP), and achieve high-resolution beams with hardware reduction. Outcomes herald disruptive, compact on-chip LIDAR ....Integrated optical phased arrays for light detection and ranging (LIDAR). This project aims to resolve challenging problems in light detection and ranging (LIDAR) to enable realisation of LIDAR sensors with low-power consumption, small size, high resolution and low cost. It proposes new techniques for integrated silicon photonic beam-steering to reduce the Size, Weight, and Power (SWaP), and achieve high-resolution beams with hardware reduction. Outcomes herald disruptive, compact on-chip LIDAR technology for various applications including secure communications, miniaturized sensing, tracking systems, and autonomous vehicles. Significant benefits include industry growth, safeguarding Australia, and major economic benefits underpinning a huge market encompassing autonomous vehicles and robotics.
Read moreRead less
Control systems for irrigation networks in storage critical operations. The aim of the project is to further develop automatic control technologies for irrigation channels, with particular focus on supply mode operations for channels with critical limits on storage and inflow. The significance relates to the role of irrigation channels in food and fibre production. New knowledge generated will help Rubicon Water expand its Total Channel Control product, already used extensively in Australia, to ....Control systems for irrigation networks in storage critical operations. The aim of the project is to further develop automatic control technologies for irrigation channels, with particular focus on supply mode operations for channels with critical limits on storage and inflow. The significance relates to the role of irrigation channels in food and fibre production. New knowledge generated will help Rubicon Water expand its Total Channel Control product, already used extensively in Australia, to suit emerging markets with significant export potential. Beyond the commercial impact, expected benefits include improved service, reduced environmental footprint, the safeguarding of assets in extreme events, and the training of engineers in the important areas of modelling and control for infrastructure management.
Read moreRead less
A Novel Inline High-Efficiency Motor/Pump System. Around 19% of the world’s and 30% of the Australia’s electric energy is consumed by pump technologies. Significant energy savings are possible if the major components of pump systems, including inverter, motor and pump, operate at their maximum possible efficiency under varying loads. A novel pump design in this project accommodates integrated electronics in a submersible housing. A seal-less design helps mitigate several aspects of pump failure ....A Novel Inline High-Efficiency Motor/Pump System. Around 19% of the world’s and 30% of the Australia’s electric energy is consumed by pump technologies. Significant energy savings are possible if the major components of pump systems, including inverter, motor and pump, operate at their maximum possible efficiency under varying loads. A novel pump design in this project accommodates integrated electronics in a submersible housing. A seal-less design helps mitigate several aspects of pump failure and its in-line structure reduces assembly cost. Accurately measured efficiency maps will be utilised to demonstrate the non-linear relationship between motor and pump quantities as well as developing models for indirectly estimating feedback quantities and achieving the highest system efficiency.Read moreRead less
Developing key vision technology for automation of aquaculture factory. This project aims to investigate structural, coloured textural, and hyperspectral analysis approaches to achieve automated lobster molt-cycle staging and classification to the level required for commercial production. High labour cost, water contamination, and disease transmission are major barriers in Australian bay lobster aquaculture inhibiting its large scale production. Automation of the production process and reducing ....Developing key vision technology for automation of aquaculture factory. This project aims to investigate structural, coloured textural, and hyperspectral analysis approaches to achieve automated lobster molt-cycle staging and classification to the level required for commercial production. High labour cost, water contamination, and disease transmission are major barriers in Australian bay lobster aquaculture inhibiting its large scale production. Automation of the production process and reducing the human contact with animals are of high priority in the development of this Australian-led emerging industry. The project aims to develop technology to bring this world- first aquaculture factory to large scale production, and create new export opportunities for lobsters and production systems.Read moreRead less
Biochemical text mining for advancing chemical and pharmaceutical knowledge. The project aims to develop novel natural language processing methods to find, extract and structure complex chemical reaction information in scientific literature. The project addresses a recognised bottleneck to efficiency in the drug discovery process, by enabling biochemical research results to be turned into actionable information. This has the potential to inform and accelerate development of effective drug treatm ....Biochemical text mining for advancing chemical and pharmaceutical knowledge. The project aims to develop novel natural language processing methods to find, extract and structure complex chemical reaction information in scientific literature. The project addresses a recognised bottleneck to efficiency in the drug discovery process, by enabling biochemical research results to be turned into actionable information. This has the potential to inform and accelerate development of effective drug treatments through the linking of relevant biochemical information. By delivering new methods that improve the compilation of knowledge about chemicals and drugs from textual information resources, the project hopes to enable faster drug discovery.Read moreRead less