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NEWSLETTER OF THE FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND DESIGN Spring 2011 Student Success NEW program Award Winning Faculty Building a new future Building a new future

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Page 1: s Building a pring 2011 new future - Carleton University · Cert no. XXX-XXX-XXX Cert no. XXX-XXX-XXX FSC_MS_1_PPC.EPS FSC_MS_1_PPC.JPG FSC_MS_1_PPC.TIF XX% ... when the Mars exploration

Newsletter OF the Faculty OF eNgiNeeriNg aNd desigN

spring

2011

student success New program award winning Faculty

Building a new futureBuilding a new future

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editorial advisory Boarddean: rafik goubran, Phd/87, P.engassociate dean (research): Fred afagh, P.engsenior development associate: corrie hobin, Ba/02editor: elisabeth larivière

Newsletter Mission statement Ingenious is published for the alumni, faculty, staff, friends and partners of the Faculty of engineering and design. the newsletter is intended to communicate the Faculty’s goals, strategic direction and activities in order to connect alumni to each other and the university.

Newsletter OF the Faculty OF eNgiNeeriNg aNd desigN

carleton university’s Faculty of engineering and design has an international, long-standing reputation for excellence in both education and research. Our engineering, architecture, industrial design, and information technology programs engage our students to ensure they obtain the best possible education and prepare themselves for a successful and satisfying career.

this fall, we are pleased to introduce our new Bachelor of engineering (Beng) in architectural conservation and sustainability. it provides a unique, innovative focus in a multidisciplinary program that blends both engineering and architectural studies. this is in addition to two recently launched programs that reflect the most recent developments in science and technology: sustainable and renewable energy engineering and the Biomedical and Mechanical engineering programs.

in this issue, we would like to invite you to see our new canal building, one of the smartest buildings in North america, which we officially opened January 20th, 2011. it includes brand new labs and facilities, which will engage students in our new and exist-ing programs across the faculty such as Biomedical and electrical engineering, Biomedi-cal and Mechanical engineering, sustainable and renewable energy engineering and the new architectural conservation and sustainability engineering. the 100,000 square foot building also earned 5 out of 5 green globes for green building design, operation and management.

the engineering and design professions have become the main engines of economic growth through the introduction of new products and technological innovations necessary to continue to improve our standard of living. Our new programs and facilities will fill the need to educate and create these innovations to better our society, and we invite you to join us.

rafik goubran, Phd/87, Pengdean, Faculty of engineering and design

Message from the dean

On the covercarleton’s brand new canal building which will largely house the Biomedical and electrical engineering, the Biomedical and Mechanical engineering, sustainable and renewable energy engineering and the new architectural conservation and sustainability engineering programs on campus.

the department of university advancement protects your personal information. it is used by the university to inform you about programming, events and offers from our affinity partners, to communicate carleton news, and for fundrais-ing purposes. to update your name or address or stop mail, please contact advancement services at 1-800-461-8972.

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when the Mars exploration rover mission landed twin robots on the red Planet in 2004, the challenges of navigating robots on another planet became immediately evident: an airbag that didn’t fully retract prevented spirit from simply driving forward off the lander. engineers told spirit to turn in place and exit from a side ramp—a command that, due to the distance and line of sight between earth and Mars, took more than a week to be realized.

today, space systems engineers continue to design and improve navigation systems to enable rovers to make decisions and avoid hazards on their own—and eliminate the lengthy delays in data transmission.

“the goal is to remove human input from small decisions. an autonomous navigation algorithm makes the robot aware of its position in the environment so that it may determine the best route to a destination,” says Jesse hiemstra, an undergraduate student working with carleton researchers on the mobility system for the Kapvik microrover prototype for the canadian space agency.

a student in the space systems design stream of the aerospace engineering program, he’ll soon have access to a state-of-the-art lab dedicated to projects like the rover that enable the exploration of space.

the Jo yung wong laboratory for terrestrial and extraterrestrial Mobility, guidance and control, is the result of a generous $100,000-gift from Jo yung wong. he retired from the department of Mechanical and aerospace engineering in 1999 after three decades at carleton. wong has dedicated his career to research and teaching in terrestrial vehicle mobility and is a former president of the international society for terrain-Vehicle systems. in the last few years, his research has extended to extraterrestrial mobility in collaboration with Nasa’s glenn research center. Mobility is of critical importance to planetary exploration, which is exemplified by the immobilization spirit in sandy soil on Mars, where its wheels had become embedded.

wong hopes that the research to be conducted at the new laboratory will make carleton a leader in mobility, guidance and control of earth-bound off-road vehicles and extraterrestrial rovers.

“this lab will be unique and it is believed that no other university has established a similar facility,” says wong. “hopefully, it will become a centre of excellence in the field, nationally and internationally.”

this type of research comes at an important time for space exploration, when scientists and engineers are looking for ways to extend human missions to the moon and beyond, wong says.

when he heard about the idea of establishing this specialized laboratory, he thought that it was a great idea and a worthwhile project to fund.

“the laboratory will link various groups together and eventually could build up significant research activities and teaching in these areas,” he says. “when we group together different faculty members, it can make a much greater impact.”

Part of the new engineering building, the laboratory will be open to faculty members, as well as graduate and undergraduate students like hiemstra. the mobility, automation and robotics components of the current rover lab will be incorporated into the Jo yung wong laboratory.

“Our current space was designed for teaching students to work with small satellites, which have to be kept in a clean environment. we need room to deploy robotic arms and mobile robots, which are dirtier and require open space to explore,” says hiemstra. “Beyond extra room, the new lab will provide collaborative space and resources. we’ll be able to generate new ideas just by working in the same place.”

“Most of the time, spacecraft are intended to do what’s never been done before. undertaking a new mission or refining a technology that’s never been used in space is a real motivation,” says hiemstra. “we have the chance to create things that go on great adventures.”

New Space for Exploration

“I taught here for 31 years, so I have a very close relationship with Carleton. I like to contribute whatever I can to further the advancement of research and teaching in this field,” says Jo Yung Wong of his gift to establish a laboratory for robotics, more specifically, terrestrial and extraterrestrial mobility, guidance and control. The Jo Yung Wong Laboratory will be housed in the engineering building currently under construction.

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winter 2011

What’s (not) That Smell?

interested in hiring a co-op student? discover how the co-op advantage can benefit your company by visiting carleton.ca/co-op.

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Mark Cuss Memorial Scholarship Winnercarleton student christopher Polowick has won the Mark

cuss Memorial scholarship from unmanned systems canada.Mark cuss, in whose name the scholarship is awarded,

was a young, gifted engineer who worked on uaVs for cdl systems of calgary. he died in 2007 after a courageous 22-month battle with cancer.

the $2,500 scholarship is awarded annually at the unmanned systems canada conference to students with a strong academic record, demonstrated interest and knowledge of the unmanned systems field, along with a solid recommendation from a supervisor.

“chris is an excellent choice for this award as he is highly motivated, hard-working and has excellent problem-solving skills,” says engineering Prof. Jeremy laliberté.

Polowick is a fourth-year student in the department of Mechanical and aerospace engineering. he recently returned from a 16-month internship at defence research and development canada (drdc) where he worked on some of their cutting-edge unmanned aerial vehicle (uaV) projects.

“we are very proud of chris,” says his former superviser at drdc. “he has demonstrated innovative and unique thinking and his most lasting and influential contribution to our organization will be his ‘never, never give up’ attitude.”

unmanned systems canada – systémes télécommandes canada is a canadian-registered, not-for-profit association representing the interests of the unmanned vehicle systems community.

carleton architecture student steph Bolduc (bolducdesign.com) has won first prize in the student design category of the 2010 Ontario wood works awards Program sponsored by the canadian wood council. he beat out 50 other entries from seven competing schools.

at the gala awards presentation in toronto, he was presented with a cheque for $7,000 for his innovative product called Metric wave that uses computer-based design and computer numerical control (cNc) manufacturing to create a highly adaptive, multi-purpose bench. the bench can be easily modified to suit any location, such as commercial waiting areas at airports, malls and hospitals, bars and restaurants, convention centres and even residential installations.

“i designed it so that the customer has control over the final product, including aesthetics, size and ability to fit with the intended setting,” says Bolduc. “it’s comfortable, strong, multi-purpose, easy to assemble, can be designed centrally and cut locally and uses little glue, making it an environmentally-friendly product.”

Bolduc originally submitted his design as part of sheryl Boyle’s third-year Materials application workshop that asked

students to redesign the student lounge in the architecture building.

“steph’s bench is an incredibly functional and sustainable piece of furniture that demonstrates the kind of outside-the-box thinking that we teach in the azrieli school of architecture and urbanism at carleton university,”said Boyle.

New this year is a $10,000 institutional award that recognizes the school and department that supported the winning submission. the azrieli school will use the prize to purchase capital equipment to benefit future students. “this prize acknowledges the critical role that faculty engagement plays in encouraging and facilitating student participation in this challenging program,” says sarah hicks from Ontario wood works and the canadian wood council.

the four-year-old competition is a real-life problem-solving exercise where students are asked to create products that have the potential to expand markets for Ontario wood products. Participants are challenged to examine consumption trends, barriers and opportunities that relate to the forest products sector and to use this information to create a viable product that overcomes existing challenges or takes advantage of new, emerging, or previously untapped markets and opportunities.

Many of us have little tricks for trying to disguise shoe odour, whether it be powders, air freshners or fabric softner sheets, but industrial design student rahim Bhimani, 23, thought why mask the odour when you can actually get rid of it? he recently developed the ultraviolet sports Pack (uVsP) — “the product that severs the link between sport and smell.”

the uVsP uses ultraviolet light to kill athletes’ shoe bacteria and the resulting odour. his initial idea was to create a shoe dryer but found that shoe wetness wasn’t a major concern of athletes – smell was.

“it didn’t kill the bacteria, it just masked the smell temporarily,” he said. his idea then shifted to to uV-c light because it is often used to kill germs.

he faced a few design obstacles that ultimately resulted in the creation of the uVsP.

the uVsP is a small trendy gym bag with two uV hubs. the hubs are placed inside the shoes and, once the bag is closed and the zippertag is buttoned,

the uV lights are activated. since uV lights can be harmful to your eyes, the trendy sports bag and zippertag security ensure safe usage. the uVsP requires aa batteries and each cleansing cycle lasts about three hours.

Not only does the uVsP eliminate shoe odour, it will also extend the life of the shoes and the technology can be transferred to other sports equipment such as hockey skates or gloves.

it was also one of 20 finalists for the 2010 James dyson award, worth about $31,900, aimed at encouraging and inspiring young design engineers. there are about 500 entries from 18 countries in the design contest.

“it would be really awesome to see the project hit the market; that would be a dream come true for me,” he said.

Meet the Metric Wave

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NEW Bachelor of Engineering in Architectural Conservation and Sustainability

carleton is launching a new Bachelor of engineering in architectural conservation and sustainability.

the program, which begins in september 2011, will focus on the restoration of heritage structures, the reuse and retrofit of existing buildings and the design of new energy-efficient and environmentally-friendly buildings, for which the knowledge has been increasingly sought after in the field.

“as the design and construction of sustainable buildings requires close co-operation among the team of architects and engineers, this new interdisciplinary program will meet this need by producing graduates who will follow green principles and practices,” says dr. rafik goubran, dean of the Faculty of engineering and design.

students will be able to choose one of two specializations. the structural stream will concentrate on conservation and sustainability in the design of new structures

and the assessment and retrofit of existing structures.

the environmental stream will focus on sustainable building practices with an emphasis on water quality and conservation, air quality, life cycle analysis and disposal of materials and waste streams.

in their final year, the students will complete a specialized design project requiring them to solve real-world problems in their respective areas. the program also includes possible co-op placements.

this new program has been designed to meet the strict professional and academic requirements of the canadian engineering accreditation Board.

“this degree will give our students an opportunity to incorporate cutting-edge research and technologies into the design of buildings that work with our environment,” says engineering Professor Paul Van geel, who helped design the new program. “For example, students will learn how to use natural light more effectively to reduce energy demands for heating and cooling while also using the sun’s energy to produce solar power. and students will learn how to use our water resources with rainwater and grey water recycling through to the design of green roofs that control and filter storm water runoff.”

Civil and Environmental Engineering Chair Professor Paul Van Geel

Ontario Research Fund-Research Infrastructure Programthrough the Ontario research Fund-research infrastructure

Program (OrF-ri) , dr. Jeremy laliberté has received $39,250 to research advanced materials that could make airplanes safer and more fuel efficient. in his new lab at carleton, dr. laliberté is helping develop these materials by measuring their resistance to low velocity impact damage.

the grant, which matches cFi-lOF funding received in 2009 to establish the facility, will be used to purchase an instrumented drop weight impact test system that is used to test the response of materials to low velocity impact events. the lab will be used to study the impact damage tolerance of advanced composite materials when they are subjected to various types of impactors at different energy levels.

“this will let us screen new materials and manufacturing processes to make sure they have sufficient impact damage resistance for aircraft applications. since the drop tower is instrumented, i will be able to measure the load history during the impact event so i can determine the amount of energy absorbed and also figure out at what energy levels failure occurs in different materials”, said dr. laliberté.

this will allow dr. laliberté to measure the post-impact tensile and compressive strength of the panels to determine how much residual strength they have after being impacted, especially for new materials such as advanced carbon fibre composites as part of the aircraft certification process.

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Sustainable Growth for Engineeringcarleton’s dynamic Faculty of engineering and design is

expanding—into both a new building and a new area of study.in order to accommodate the growth of the faculty, a new

100,000 sq. ft building has been erected alongside the rideau canal on carleton’s campus. it officially opened at the end of January.

Professor rafik goubran, the dean of the Faculty of engineering and design, says that the new facility will be “one of the smartest buildings in North america.” its ‘smart’ features include the extensive use of sensors to monitor the state of the building, as well as a vegetation-laden ‘green roof’ that incorporates technology used to analyze rainfall and snowfall in order to determine their usefulness as elements of sustainable systems.

large sections of the building are devoted to biomedical engineering, including the undergraduate engineering programs in Biomedical and electrical engineering and Biomedical and Mechanical engineering. the biomedical engineering programs are geared towards innovation in the field of health in such areas as medical instrumentation, patient monitoring, electronic health records, biomechanics (including the creation of artificial limbs and organs) and medical imaging.

the building will also house the Bachelor of engineering program in sustainable and renewable energy engineering and a new program in architectural conservation and

sustainability engineering, which is admitting students for september 2011. the new program fuses the disciplines of engineering and architecture, and is closely linked to the Bachelor of architectural studies concentration in conservation and sustainability, which is housed at the azrieli school of architecture and urbanism. engineering and architecture students studying conservation and sustainability share a number of core courses, which creates a learning atmosphere that is not just interdisciplinary but also functions as preparation for the collaborative work between engineers and architects that often occurs in real-world projects in sustainable building design.

students in the architectural conservation and sustainability engineering program may choose from one of two streams or areas of study: the structural stream or the environmental stream. students in the structural stream will learn how to use the principles of conservation and sustainability in both the design of new, sustainable structures and the retrofitting of existing structures. students in the environmental stream will learn how to incorporate conservation and sustainability into building practices, with emphasis on life cycle analysis, water and air quality management, and waste disposal.

the new building and programs amount to great news for students interested in some of the most burgeoning, cutting-edge fields in engineering.

the 100,000-square-foot canal building received five out of five globes on the Green Globes rating scale

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Award Winning Facultydistinguished Professor Monique Frize had another accomplishment

to add to her achievements this past November – the gold Medal in engineering Management from the Professional engineers of Ontario.

spanning her 40 year career, she has been awarded 5 honourary doctorates from canadian universities, is a Fellow of the canadian academy of engineering and of engineers canada and holds the title of Officer of the Order of canada. dr. Frize was also the first holder of the Northern telecom – Natural sciences and engineering research council (Nserc) chair for the promotion of women in engineering in canada in 1989. By 1995, the number of women graduating from engineering had risen to nearly 19 per cent. dr. Frize is largely credited as the pre-eminent advocate for the advancement of women in the profession. Just last year she published her first book: The Bold and the Brave: A history of women in science and engineering.

dr. Frize was nominated by fellow carleton Professor Moyra Mcdill. “Monique has been the pre-eminent woman in canada for the

advancement of women in engineering over the last 20 or more years. as you will see, in recent years she has extended that reach to the international community and the support of women in countries where there is very little, if any, other support,” she wrote.

“i was shocked. i was really surprised because there have been so few women i never thought my name would go up there,” she says in response to the honour. “it means a lot.”

although she retired from teaching this past June, dr. Frize is a distinguished Professor at carleton, continues to supervise 12 graduate students and research her second book.

Over the past 35 years, Professor Jim wight has had a continuous stream of graduate students pursuing their thesis research in the fields of microwave circuits, phase locked circuits, antenna structures, and signal processing for wireless communications and radar. On January 24, 2011, Mr. denis Kutman became Prof. wight’s 75th Masc student to defend his thesis. including the 25 Phd students who have already graduated under Prof. wight’s supervision, denis has the honor of becoming number 100!!

denis’ thesis topic was on “solutions for radar Pulse deinterleaving”, and was undertaken in collaboration with the defence research and development canada-Ottawa.

Prof. wight’s students typically undertake their research in conjunction with government research labs (such as the communications research center and the defence research and development canada-Ottawa) or industry research labs (such as ericsson canada, eMs satcom, d-ta systems, and s-5 systems). this collaboration provides the students with a “real world” component to their research, and allows the collaborating research teams to undertake “high risk” projects without jeopardizing research schedules and product development.

Celebrating Number 100!

Professor Jim Wight (centre) with his first graduate student, Scott Harris (left) and his 100th graduate student, Denis Kutman (right).

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Professor Matida is one of 10 recipients of this year’s carleton research achievement awards, worth $15,000, that honour faculty for innovative research that helps solve real-world problems.

his research concentrates on how medications dispensed by inhalers reach the lungs, or how well they don’t.

“anyone who relies on medical inhalers to help them breathe when they are gasping for breath knows how crucial they are,” says carleton engineering Professor edgar Matida. “they can save lives. we think there is even greater potential for these inhalers to help people coping with lung and non-lung diseases as, right now, a lot of the medication isn’t reaching the lungs.”

Matida has received funding from the Natural sciences and research council of canada (Nserc) and the canada Foundation for innovation (cFi) to purchase the necessary equipment and build the infrastructure to conduct the research.

the research team includes carleton’s Junjie gu, Matthew Johnson, Fred Nitzsche and cythia cruickshank, as well as researchers from umea university in sweden, the university of erlangen-Nuremberg in germany, university of waterloo and the university of alberta.

Matida and cruickshank are also working with 5 students on a new fuel cell by performance testing flowing electrolyte – direct methanol fuel cells.

“Potential applications include golf carts and forklift trucks, but this cell could eventually be used to power portable devices such as blackberries, i-Pods or cellphones,” notes Matida. “they would be competitive against batteries and hydrogen fuel cells because of their high power and energy densities, and viable infrastructure requirements.”

Research Acheivement Awardseveryone is seeking more cost-effective and sustainable

initiatives to heat their homes and other buildings. One of the ways to do that is through the use of low-temperature geothermal heat pumps that can provide supplemental heating.

carleton Professor Paul simms will use the $15,000 honorarium from his carleton university 2011 research achievement award to undertake a new study to look at ways of improving this kind of heating system.

“ground heat can be easily captured through pumps and pipes and it stays warm longer because of the protection it receives from soil and water,” says simms. “But a lot more can be done to optimize these systems from the point of view of the type of soils and their thermal properties.”

simms will explore the feasibility of soil layering, using a climate-controlled test pit that was built for his research on mine waste management.

“this research could eventually lead to real-world solutions for homeowners, industry and government by cutting costs and generating investment while reducing our environmental footprint,” he says.

simms, an associate professor with the department of civil and environmental engineering, has been test-driving innovative ways of containing and disposing of mine tailings under controlled climatic conditions. he has been using an environmental test pit funded by the canada Foundation for innovation (cFi). in canada, mine tailings are produced at a rate 20 times greater than municipal waste. there have been many catastrophic failures of tailings impoundments, with devastating ecological and economic consequences and sometimes loss of life. simm’s research is helping develop safer tailings management practices.

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staying ahead of the Fizzle

Zakaria El-Ramly describes himself as a “practical academic.” His company ZE PowerGroup Inc. reflects his zeal for tackling problems in the energy industry by looking ahead of the curve and identifying what’s next.

with energy prices in Ontario expected to rise by 46 per cent over the next five years, energy-saving tips are becoming a frequent feature in local media. if debates over time-of-use rates, the impact of the hst, and large investments in green-energy projects and infrastructure didn’t catch your attention, the spike in your bill with the onset of winter would have.

to help provide relief, the provincial government is introducing the Ontario clean energy Benefit, which takes effect in 2011. the benefit should reduce Ontarians’ hydro bills by 10 per cent.

the brouhaha over the cost of energy doesn’t surprise Zakaria el-ramly, Meng/71, Phd/75. he’s worked in the energy industry for 45 years, spending a large portion of his career at Bc hydro before founding his own company.

“as a society, we haven’t been able to establish a balance between a free market and control in the energy sector. canada is a long way from a stable business environment,” he says.

el-ramly, president and ceO of Ze Powergroup inc., has a diverse energy background spanning engineering, energy management, rates and regulation, policy and business development, and energy trading. he brings all his experience to Ze Powergroup, providing strategic consulting and software development focused on the needs of the energy industry.

“Over my career, the biggest change in the industry has been the degree to which energy is regulated. there have been attempts to deregulate price and allow an open market,” he says. “Now we see policy—guiding principles rather than regulation—guide aspects beyond price, such as renewable energy sources and carbon emissions.”

carleton’s latest program in energy, a new master’s degree in sustainable energy offered jointly by the faculties of Public affairs and engineering and design, addresses the industry in a way that appeals to el-ramly.

when the first students begin the program in september 2011, they will receive advanced training in sustainable energy across two distinct disciplines: engineering and public policy. with a choice of studying sustainable energy policy, mechanical energy conversion or efficient electrical energy systems, students in all streams will be exposed to issues surrounding the policy and engineering possibilities that will improve energy production and delivery systems.

“carleton’s approach is a good one. it will help the industry,” says el-ramly. “carleton adopts social and academic problems, has an industry focus and provides a practical education.”

el-ramly’s own education at carleton was in mechanical and aeronautical engineering—his doctorate was on how large aircraft wings affected smaller aircraft behind them. when the energy sector found him after graduation, he realized his academic background allowed him to think clearly about the issues and he rose through the ranks at Bc hydro, working

in business lines as diverse as marketing, rates and forecasting, and business development. when he saw deregulation coming, el-ramly left his executive vice-president position at Powerex (a subsidiary of Bc hydro) to start Ze Powergroup in 1995.

“i realized one had to stay ahead of the curve or fizzle,” he says. “i had seen small ideas grow into big ones at carleton, and the power of new ideas has stayed with me.”

recalling transformative projects he saw at carleton—the wired city Project, a revolutionary experiment in telecommunications in the 1970s, and work on integrated circuits that lead to microchips—el-ramly embarked on his own “small idea”.

Ze Powergroup marries policy and software, a testament to el-ramly’s flexible thinking. the strategic consulting and software development firm serves the emerging needs of energy markets. its ZeMa software is on its way to becoming the global industry standard for data management and analysis. the company was named data Management house of the year in 2009 and 2010 by energyrisk, the magazine for commodity traders and risk managers.

“i’m a practical academic,” says el-ramly. “i wanted to do something that would serve society.”

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The Faculty of Engineering and Design welcomes its newest teachers and researchers who share our commitment to an outstanding experience of learning, discovery and innovation for students.

Meet the teachers

Jie Liu, assistant professor, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineeringdr. Jie liu conducts interdisciplinary research in intelligent sensing, machine fault diagnostics and failure prognostics, mechatronics, vibration and system control. he received his B.eng. in precision engineering from tianjin university (china) in 1998, his M.sc. in control engineering from lakehead university in 2005, and his Ph.d. in mechanical engineering from the university of waterloo in 2008. after his doctoral study, he worked as an Nserc Postdoctoral Fellow in the department of Mechanical engineering at uc Berkeley for approximately two years.

Roger Connah, Associate Professor, Azrieli School of Architecture & Urbanismroger connah is currently the associate director of graduate studies, azrieli school of architecture & urbanism. he is the founder of the dysinternet and has travelled for over 4 decades. his latest architectural publications include: Pulp architecture (2009), architecture degree Zero (2008). he just translated the first volume of lost poetry by sisyphus Montale (trieste 2010) and is at work on the biography of Montale, and a book: ‘generosity and the australian architect gregory Burgess. his other forthcoming publications include: aalto-ego (Vertigo Press 2011); a volume on the murdered Pakistani artist Zahoor ul akhlaq called the rest is silence (OuP, Karachi 2011) and Being: an architect (with ian ritchie) recently appeared as ifti ali Kahn in the hit black comedy “little Professor on the Prairie”.

Shelagh McCartney, assistant professor, Azrieli School of Architecture & UrbanismProfessor shelagh Mccartney’s expertise in design and development focuses on urbanization and housing. her current research is on informal housing in rapidly growing urban agglomerations and the effect this has on growth patterns of the broader city and development practices. during her masters and doctoral work at harvard as a Fulbright scholar, Professor Mccartney examined land policies and its effect on housing of aboriginal peoples in canada and the united states; and growth of rapidly growing cities around the world and the effect of development policies on the growth of informal housing morphology respectively. Prior to coming to carleton, Professor Mccartney taught at harvard and the universities of toronto and waterloo. her eight years of professional practice encompasses both lead design, technical and management roles.

Karim Ismail, assistant professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineeringdr. Karim ismail conducts research on the safety of non-motorized modes of transportation using advanced computer vision techniques. during his Phd at the university of British columbia, he developed novel techniques for road safety analysis by tracking road users, vehicles and pedestrians as they appear in video sequences and by analyzing their interactions. this research helps to solve an existing paradox in road safety analysis according to which road collisions, the events that ought to be eliminated, must be observed and recorded for the methodological correctness of road safety analysis techniques.

Lorenzo Imbesi, associate professor, School of Industrial Designdr. lorenzo imbesi’s area of expertise is design theories and culture, focusing on the narrative, social and ethical impact of new technologies and artifacts. his current research looks at new expressions and critical roles of the design industry in contemporary societies. Before coming to carleton, he taught and researched at sapienza university in rome. he has been an avid critic and essayist for many years and is co-director of the magazine diid – disegno industriale. he is author of interaction by design, 09 youngdesign, ethics & design and d_generation. he is a new associate professor with the school of industrial design, has a Phd in environmental design and is an architect.

Qi Zhu, assistant professor, Azrieli School of Architecture & UrbanismProfessor Qi Zhu has a remarkable record in her professional practice especially in the area of lighting and museum design. she has been working at one of the most important firms in lighting design in washington, dc and now joins the school of architecture and urbanism. her expertise ranges from digital representation to the cultural interaction between asia and western cultures.

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Aerospace Roundtable Event

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carleton university, alenia North america inc. and the italian embassy brought together prominent leaders in the aerospace field to discuss future research collaborations and innovative projects on september 27th, 2010 in a roundtable event held on Parliament hill.

“carleton created the first B.eng. in aerospace engineering in canada and continues to offer leading-edge programs in this field, which made us a natural co-organizer for this

event,” says dr. Metin yaras, chair of the department of Mechanical and aerospace engineering at carleton. “we’re excited to share ideas that will help lead the way in aerospace innovation in canada and around the world.”

with a turnover over seven billion euros a year, the italian aerospace industry is in seventh place in the world and contributes one per cent of the national gdP. italy has a renowned position in the world in the helicopter

sector and in the production of radar and air traffic control systems. italy is also well-known worldwide for flight training, aeronautical motors, surveillance systems and electronic defense. in particular, what distinguishes the italian aerospace sector is its expertise at the regional level, such as the technological districts in the regions of apulia, campania, lazio, Piedmont and lombardy.

Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering: professors Metin Yaras, Dean Rafik Goubran, Daniel Feszty, Jeremy Laliberté, Henry Saari, Associate Dean Fred Afagh and Rob Langlois at Parliament Hill.

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