The successful applicant will develop a device for the experimental study of the interaction of a high speed spray with a high speed moving surface. The device will require the mechanical modification of an existing rig that has been used for propeller testing. This work will be undertaken in collaboration with Kelsan Technologies, a local company.

$2500 top-up to award (award is $4500)

Learning how to use CNC machine tools, force and vibration sensors, measurement methods and software

Send applications to above contact

The Multi-scale Design Laboratory works at the intersection of engineering, physics, and biology to develop enabling technologies for medicine. We are currently working on a new microfluidic mechanisms to separate cells by their mechanical properties. In collaboration with researchers in medicine, we are applying these mechanisms to isolate circulating cancer cells from the blood of cancer patients. Recently, we have received funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to apply this technology to develop a low-cost device to detect malaria infection in low-resource regions.

We are looking for motivated and hands-on students to join our group for co-op work terms. Previous experience in microfabrication, electronics design, and fluid mechanics, as well as hands-on research experience would be an asset. Biology students with strong laboratory skills will also be considered. Please inquire directly by email. Applicants are expected to apply for the NSERC USRA program. Group website: http://www.mech.ubc.ca/~mdl/

Potential student responsibilities include:

-Fabrication of microfluidics devices
-Design and build electrical and mechanical instrumentation
-Perform cell sorting experiments
-Write matlab code for data analysis
-Maintain lab facilities

Experiences in the following areas would be an asset:

-Interest in research in microfluidics, biophysics, and medical devices
-Hands-on research experience
-Cleanroom fabrication
-Solidworks, AutoCAD, and Matlab
-Machine shop training
-Electronic circuits
-Microprocessor programming
-Cell culture

Dynamics of Lattice Materials

See the lab website for a description of research on this topic. The student is expected to work closely with a graduate research students in experimental and simulation work. Familiarity with MATLAB/ANSYS is an advantage.

Applicants should have an average of about 85%

Mechanics of Soft Materials

The objective of this project is to understand the mechanical response of soft materials coated with polymer brushes though modeling, and experiments at Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine. The student is expected to be familiar with elementary solid mechanics, actuators, and a strong desire to couple theory with experiment. Familiarity with MATLAB/ANSYS is desirable, but not essential.

Applicants should have an average of about 85%

Mixing and displacement in pipe flows

We seek a motivated individual to help in modifying an existing experimental apparatus in order to be able to conduct experiments involving two-fluid displacement flows in an inclined pipe. The applicant will need to understand the flow experiments to be run, help in design of new components and other modifications, undertake bits of machining and/or manufacturing, and implement the changes to the apparatus, all under supervision. Once modified, the person will assist in various operations associated with the flow loop: mixing and fluid preparation, operating the flow loop, running careful experiment, image processing of the data. Experience with machining and instrumentation, data acquisition etc.. is an advantage.

Displacement of one fluid by another is a common process in industrial applications, where the fluids are not always Newtonian and where a range of fluid properties and densities are used. Here we focus on pipe flow displacements in near-vertical pipes, where there is also a significant density difference. Depending on the fluid properties and flow rates the fluids either mix, or displace with a clean interface, or stratify during the displacement. We seek to understand these flows.

The student(s) will work on one or more of the following projects:

Implementation and testing of improved FORESTWall designs
Design and testing of a planar sound source
Measurement of the impedance of room-type surfaces
Spherical-decoupling method in reverberant environments
Auralization demonstrations
Development of room DL2 criteria
Effect of angularly-varying room-surface properties on room sound fields
Sound-source localization using a beam-forming antenna

Students should have completed at least third year of an engineering or physics program, and an acoustics course.

Fabrication and Characterization of a Microfluidic Pump

Micro pumps are one of the essential building blocks of microfluidic
systems and have applications in micro chemical analysis systems such
as a lab-on-a-chip as well as integrated medical devices. This project
will use our recently developed microvalve technology to construct a
peristaltic pump consisting of a set of three valves. Each valve is
driven by a set of 2 electric heaters that control the behavior of a
thermally responsive polymer solution. Typical microchannels are less
than 100 µm wide.

The student working on this project will learn how to use
microfabrication equipment in UBC's Nanofabrication cleanroom in
AMPEL. The student will design the pump and then fabricate prototypes.
These prototypes will then be tested and characterized using available
microfluidics characterization equipment including pressure sources
and temperature control equipment epifluorescence microscopes with
imaging and image processing hardware and software. The student will
plan experimental procedures, analyze his measurement data and
optimize the pump performance.

The undergraduate student will work closely with Dr. Stoeber's
graduate student Vahid Bazargan, who has extensive experience in
microfluidic experimentation and has developed the microvalve that
this project is based on.

Three positions are availalable:
1.    Haptic-Affect Interaction Project
2.    Human-Robot Interaction Project
3.    Kinodynamic Head & Whole body motion modeling and control Project
All applicants must be eligible for the NSERC USRA program. 

Deadline for Applications, February 17.

Applications should include a cover letter indication the position of interest and reporting your GPA, resume, transcripts  - copies or download from SIS is fine)  Applications should be submitted by email to: caris.ubc@gmail.com with the subject line CARIS Lab USRA.  PDF format for attachment is preferred.  Please, no compressed files or executables and no total attachment size over 1 MB. 
Interviews for selected applicants will be scheduled for week of Feb 22.
 
Backgrounder:
The Collaborative Advanced Robotics and Intelligent Systems Laboratory is an undertaking by researchers at the University of British Columbia interested in Human-Robot interaction and intelligent robotics.  Our research theme is the study and implementation of safe, comfortable, and useful interactions between people and robots

Ongoing research involves the application of various robot platforms including two 6-axis human-scale robotic arms, a 6 axis motion platform, mobile robots, vision systems, and physiological sensor systems.   

Our lab is located in the Institute for Computing, Information and Cognitive Systems (ICICS) at the University of British Columbia, in Vancouver, BC Canada.   For more information please visit www.caris. mech.ubc.ca


1. Haptic-Affect Interaction Project
Appropriate for MECH/MECHA, EECE, ENPH, CS students, any year. 

A summer undergraduate research assistant is sought for the Collaborative Advanced Robotics and Intelligent Systems Laboratory and the Sensory Perception and Interaction Research Group to assist with the development and testing of hand held and wearable devices for acquiring affective state data, touch and contact information, and controlling the haptic (touch sensed) output of the device. 

The prospective candidate will have a background and strong interest in instrumentation, mechanical systems, actuators and controls, and interface programming. C/C++ programming and Matlab/Simulink programming are an asset, as well as an interest in psychology and physiology.  Duties will include assisting graduate students with running experiments with the existing sensor suite, prototyping and testing wearable and hand held platforms for affect and touch sensing and haptic output, developing an integration board and computer programming to read, display and process the input and output data.  Documentation and website development for the project will also be required.

2. Human Robot Interaction Project
Appropriate for MECH/MECHA, EECE, ENPH, CS, COGS students, any year. 

A summer undergraduate research assistant is sought for the Collaborative Advanced Robotics and Intelligent Systems Laboratory to assist with the development and running of robotics experiments for our human-robot interaction project.

The prospective candidate will have a background and interest in C/C++ programming, statistics, and psychology/physiology.  Experience with human factors, instrumentation, signal processing, and robot trajectory planning, are important assets. 

Duties will include assisting a graduate student with setting up and implementing a series of experiments for evaluation of interactions between users and a table top robotic platform. Preparation of documentation, including technical reports, posters and journal publications will be required.  Development of demonstration system for a human robot interaction based on algorithms developed in the lab.  Documentation and website development for the project will also be required.

3. Kinodynamic Head & Whole Body Motion Modeling and Control Project
Appropriate for MECH/MECHA, EECE, ENPH students, any year. 

A summer undergraduate research assistant is sought for the Collaborative Advanced Robotics and Intelligent Systems Laboratory to develop a kinodyamic model of the head and whole-body system suitable for modeling the effects of a pure vestibular (human balance system) disturbance on the head and whole-body movements. We intend to model two distincts parts of the vestibular apparatus that are responsible respectively for the detection of head linear and angular acceleration in three-dimensions.

This model will allow the prediction of body disturbance and walking trajectories (navigation) when a vestibular error is applied while the body is in different body postures. The obtained data will be used for controlling the motion of robot designed to guide the head and neck motion of a subject in human balance research.

The prospective candidate will have a background and strong interest in instrumentation, mechanical systems, actuators and controls, and interface programming. C/C++ programming, Matlab and labview programming are an asset. Mechanical shop skills are an asset. Duties will include researching, developing and implementing a suitable kinodynamic model of the head and whole-body; developing motion trajectories for a robot used to guide head and spine motion, and integration of the motion system into the robot and controller being developed by a commercial contractor.  Documentation and website development for the project will also be required.