Far-sighted R&D centers spur IC and robotics innovation Going for gold 04 IN FOCUS Top star Sarah Lee is among those participating in a cutting-edge sports research initiative with HKUST to boost the Hong Kong cycling team’s performance. She won a gold medal in the women’s sprint at the rst UCI Track Cycling Nations Cup at the Hong Kong Velodrome in May 2021. The two centers are creating an integrated research pipeline from discovery to downstream development. In the News HKUST is now actively recruiting for two major research centers that are seeking to produce breakthroughs and applications focused on integrated circuits to accelerate arti cial intelligence chips and systems, and construction robots, respectively. The large-scale centers, led by the School of Engineering, combine state-of-the-art research conducted together with international partners to drive cutting-edge innovation. In addition to generating publications in top journals, the centers will move beyond this to produce artifacts and demonstrations of technology-transfer readiness for industry, that is, mid-stream to downstream in the research and development process. Led by eminent School faculty, many other engineering faculty are being engaged in the endeavors, with more researchers, innovators, and engineers being sought globally at various levels. “The idea is to take a focused area and build a pipeline from research all the way to downstream,” Dean of Engineering Prof. Tim CHENG said. “So the talents we recruit will have the skill sets covering the entire vertical ecosystem. Although di erent people will focus on di erent stages of the research development, they will be vertically integrated to work together.” The centers thus o er the School a unique opportunity to combine its globally leading research e orts, build a pool of talent in these two highly signi cant areas for future technologies, and deliver social impact, Dean Cheng added. A co-operative endeavor by School of Engineering researchers and the Hong Kong Sports Institute to enhance the performance of Hong Kong’s high-riding international cycling team is gearing up for its most signi cant global showcase to date at the Tokyo Olympics this summer, if the sporting event still goes ahead amid the latest COVID- uncertainties. The two-year A. Kwok Sports Aerodynamics Science Initiative Project, launched in , involves cutting-edge research and technology led by Prof. ZHANG Xin, Swire Professor of Aerospace Engineering and Chair Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, and the Institute’s elite cyclists, including star team member Sarah LEE Wai-Sze. It is supported by the Hong Kong government’s Innovation and Technology Fund and a HK$6 million donation from Sun Hung Kai Properties Executive Director Mr. Adam KWOK Kai-Fai. Prof. Zhang and his team have combined an advanced aerodynamic rig with computational fluid dynamics based on Formula One racing car technology to hone the cyclists’ performance through their posture and clothing, among others. Ms. Lee said it had been exciting to be part of the initiative, which included wind tunnel tests and had helped boost the team’s potential to succeed. Prof. Zhang also said that the researchers would continue to work closely with the Institute and its sports science team in the future to apply further research to competitions and the technology to other sports.
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