Biomimetic Design and Fabrication of Smart Dry Adhesives. Gecko footpads have unique structures with amazing features; imitating these fine bio-structures will lead to a multitude of innovations. This project aims to study fundamental principles governing adhesion phenomena for creating entirely new biomimetic nanomaterials with tunable adhesion, self-cleaning and controlled release capabilities. The gecko-mimicking materials and the associated dynamic effects will be characterized quantitativel ....Biomimetic Design and Fabrication of Smart Dry Adhesives. Gecko footpads have unique structures with amazing features; imitating these fine bio-structures will lead to a multitude of innovations. This project aims to study fundamental principles governing adhesion phenomena for creating entirely new biomimetic nanomaterials with tunable adhesion, self-cleaning and controlled release capabilities. The gecko-mimicking materials and the associated dynamic effects will be characterized quantitatively at multiscales and the nanoscale phenomena will be linked to macroscopic performance. The results of this research should provide a fundamental understanding of tunable adhesion mechanisms for the design and development of optimized materials with superb performance of practical significance.
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Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE160100071
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$300,000.00
Summary
Light-bending strategies of next generation scalable plasmonic devices. This project will focus on a goal of engineering novel plasmonic metamaterials for manipulating light at the nanoscale. In particular, it will employ curved anodized alumina templates as well as 3D hybrid structures to explore light bending and strong resonances at the visible spectral range. Plasmonic metamaterials offer a unique ability to control subwavelength light propagation, for achieving unprecedented sensing sensiti ....Light-bending strategies of next generation scalable plasmonic devices. This project will focus on a goal of engineering novel plasmonic metamaterials for manipulating light at the nanoscale. In particular, it will employ curved anodized alumina templates as well as 3D hybrid structures to explore light bending and strong resonances at the visible spectral range. Plasmonic metamaterials offer a unique ability to control subwavelength light propagation, for achieving unprecedented sensing sensitivities and emerging nanophotonics phenomena. However, fabrication challenges and high losses hamper their application in the visible spectral range. Engineering these plasmonic structures in a scalable manner should strengthen Australia’s economy, lead to new industrial companies in the emerging field of plasmonics, attract international investments and create job opportunities.Read moreRead less
Quantum Nanophotonics with Atomically Thin Materials . This project aims to deliver new hardware for scalable integrated quantum photonics based on fluorescent defects in hexagonal boron nitride. The project will generate new knowledge in advanced manufacturing of two-dimensional systems, to pivot towards engineering of new optical qubits. Expected outcomes include a solid-state platform for on-chip quantum technologies and development of sovereign quantum capabilities. The results will constitu ....Quantum Nanophotonics with Atomically Thin Materials . This project aims to deliver new hardware for scalable integrated quantum photonics based on fluorescent defects in hexagonal boron nitride. The project will generate new knowledge in advanced manufacturing of two-dimensional systems, to pivot towards engineering of new optical qubits. Expected outcomes include a solid-state platform for on-chip quantum technologies and development of sovereign quantum capabilities. The results will constitute an important step towards implementation of secure communications and quantum information protocols. Benefits include advances in emerging manufacturing capabilities, training of young Australians, generation of intellectual property and securing major economic benefits to all Australians.Read moreRead less
Cepstral methods of operational modal analysis to separate multiple sources. This project aims to develop new methods of operational modal analysis in situations with multiple complex sources, such as rotating machines. The project will obtain scaled mode shapes as well as separated scaled sources. One of the main applications will be to improve the prognostics of machines by having separated scaled estimates of the forcing functions to make it easier to find fault parameters which trend monoton ....Cepstral methods of operational modal analysis to separate multiple sources. This project aims to develop new methods of operational modal analysis in situations with multiple complex sources, such as rotating machines. The project will obtain scaled mode shapes as well as separated scaled sources. One of the main applications will be to improve the prognostics of machines by having separated scaled estimates of the forcing functions to make it easier to find fault parameters which trend monotonically towards failure, and thus greatly improve the estimates of remaining useful equipment life. An additional benefit of the application will be the ability to predict overall noise radiation from a machine or object if both the sources and modal models are scaled.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE120102873
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
Securing networked control and estimation systems and safeguarding critical infrastructure. The purpose of this project is to reduce the likelihood of success, and the severity of impact, of a cyber-attack against networked control and estimation systems operating within critical infrastructure. The outcome will be a suite of algorithms, tools and design considerations for networked, industrial, control systems that satisfy this purpose.
Spatially distributed complex multiagent systems. This project will develop design methodologies for two related classes of technological systems: wireless sensor networks (in particular mobile sensor networks) and formations of mobile robotic agents. These technologies find application today in defence, and will probably become pervasive in the civilian sector.
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
Biologically-inspired detection, pursuit and interception of moving objects by unmanned aircraft systems. Although it is well known that aggressive honeybees are very effective at detecting, pursuing and intercepting moving targets, this behaviour has never been studied quantitatively. This project will use high-speed video cinematography to investigate this behaviour, to develop visual algorithms for the detection of moving targets, and to create dynamical models of the mechanisms that control ....Biologically-inspired detection, pursuit and interception of moving objects by unmanned aircraft systems. Although it is well known that aggressive honeybees are very effective at detecting, pursuing and intercepting moving targets, this behaviour has never been studied quantitatively. This project will use high-speed video cinematography to investigate this behaviour, to develop visual algorithms for the detection of moving targets, and to create dynamical models of the mechanisms that control pursuit. The resulting algorithms will be incorporated into unmanned aerial vehicles for detecting, monitoring and tracking other objects in the sky, and their performance will be evaluated. The results will provide a better understanding of the biological basis of pursuit behaviour, as well as lead to novel technologies for aerial surveillance and safety.Read moreRead less
Efficient strategies for visually guided flight: from insects to drones. Flying in real environments, that are densely cluttered with obstacles, is a major challenge limiting the proliferation of aerial robotic technology yet flying insects such as honeybees accomplish this task with ease. This project will seek to uncover the salient vision-based flight-control strategies implemented by insects to deal with clutter. These will be used to develop sensory and information processing frameworks for ....Efficient strategies for visually guided flight: from insects to drones. Flying in real environments, that are densely cluttered with obstacles, is a major challenge limiting the proliferation of aerial robotic technology yet flying insects such as honeybees accomplish this task with ease. This project will seek to uncover the salient vision-based flight-control strategies implemented by insects to deal with clutter. These will be used to develop sensory and information processing frameworks for implementation in miniature robotic systems which will allow them to navigate autonomously in complex environments even when GPS positioning is denied. Such capabilities will expand the operational domain and potential applications for small autonomous vehicles while improving our knowledge of insect locomotion.Read moreRead less
Strategies for mid-air collision avoidance in aircraft: lessons from bird flight. Birds seldom collide with each other and other objects, despite the high speeds at which they fly in complex environments. This project will examine how birds sense and avoid impending collisions, and will use these results to design novel strategies for the detection and avoidance of aircraft mid-air collisions.