Impact Projects 2020-21
Principal Investigator: Professor Chuyang Y. Tang (Department of Civil Engineering)
Telephone: 2859-1976
Email: tangc@hku.hk
Project Objectives:
- To design a multifunctional filter for sustainable water/air filtration;
- To evaluate the filter efficiency and develop a regeneration method;
- To deliver prototypes of filter products; and
- To participate in international/regional exhibition/competition and organise workshop.
Project Description:
Removal of contaminants from air and water are critical for the protection of public health. This project aims to employ a nanofiber-based multifunctional and reusable filter to remove pathogens and heavy metals from contaminated water and respiratory droplets from air. Efficient water filters and face masks will be developed and prototyped, which can serve people and communities that lack essential protection. The project has the potential to bring major public benefits, particularly amid the global outbreak of COVID-19.
Target Deliverables in 2020/21:
- Multifunctional filter design. At least 2 different versions of the filter will be designed of which one will cover the basic filtration functions (e.g., physical retention of pollutants and bacteria) and the rest will have upgraded functions for enhanced filtration performance (e.g., physicochemical retention for pollutants and bacteria);
- Optimized filter efficiency. The developed filter is expected to have higher filtration efficiency compared to the currently available technology. Comprehensive analysis of water/air production rate, pollutants and bacterial removal, and reusability will be performed;
- Delivery of prototypes. 2-3 prototypes of filter products will be designed and manufactured depending on the application purposes; and
- Participation of exhibition/competition and organization of workshop. The team will participate at least 1 international/regional exhibition or competition to promote the novel filter technology. At least 1 workshop (or news release/media interview) will be organized to introduce the technology to the public.
Principal Investigator: Dr H.F. Ting (Department of Computer Science)
Telephone: 2859-8944
Email: hfting@cs.hku.hk
Project Objectives:
- To cultivate students’ and public interest in cloud and weather observations through cross-disciplinary learning activities;
- To enhance students’ abilities to integrate and apply knowledge and skills in engineering and meteorology to solve scientific and engineering tasks;
- To showcase their creativity and enhance communication skills through a public project exhibition, hence facilitating knowledge exchange;
- To enhance students’ appreciation of the nature through creating time-lapse sky videos; and
- To raise public awareness and preparedness on weather and climate change.
Project Description:
Through organizing a “Total Sky Imager Design Competition”, the project aims at (1) strengthening students’ ability to integrate and apply knowledge and skills in engineering and meteorology; (2) nurturing their creativity, problem solving and communication skills, and sparking their interest in engineering; (3) facilitating knowledge exchange through a public project exhibition; (4) increasing the public awareness and preparedness on weather and climate impact through visible sky monitoring and cloud and weather observations; and (5) enhancing young generations’ appreciation of the nature through creating time-lapse total sky videos.
Target Deliverables in 2020/21:
- An online platform for exchanging and sharing the knowledge of science and engineering about total sky imaging, cloud and weather observations;
- Links of the online platform from HKU Engineering Knowledge Exchange Portal;
- Links of the online platform from HKO and HKMetS;
- Links of the online platform from CoWIN, HKEdCity and HKACE;
- Facebook page and group for communication with participants and general public;
- Instagram page for sharing sky image photos and time-lapse video with participants and general public;
- Online sharing of participants’ “Weather Diary”;
- Lecture materials on cloud and weather observations, climate change, weather phenomena and hazards;
- Lecture materials and program codes on sky/cloud classification, and image/video/data analysis and machine learning;
- Lecture materials on total sky imaging;
- Circuit schematics, component list, and program code, of a DIY total sky imager;
- Learning resources and hints on small scale STEAM activities related to cloud and weather observations;
- An out-of-the-classroom setting for student interaction and discussion;
- Organization of Presentation Sessions / Exhibition of “Total Sky Imager” (To showcase participants’ submissions);
- Organization of Total Sky Time-lapse Video Showcase Sessions (To showcase participants’ submissions);
- Organization of a “Award Presentation Ceremony” (To recognize and acknowledge students’ effort and achievement); and
- Media coverage of the competition and the Knowledge Exchange outcomes
Principal Investigator: Dr Vincent W.L. Tam (Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering)
Telephone: 3917-2697
Email: vtam@eee.hku.hk
Project Objectives:
The key objectives of this project is to build a more harmonious society for the elderly with care and respect to enhance their health, quality of living and social life in Hong Kong as one of the smart cities through intelligent algorithms and smart sensing technologies.
Project Description:
Most elderly people always find it difficult to recall specific person(s) come into contact probably due to their poor memories, prolonged sickness or other factors, thus making them more susceptible to pandemic attacks even for the common flu. In April of 2020, the Apple and Google announced to work together to enable Bluetooth-based contact tracing technologies. In this project, our team will make the best use of such contact tracing technologies to develop an intelligent mobile application to trace and analyze the (potentially) risky contacts for the elderly in elderly homes or day care centers.
Target Deliverables in 2020/21:
An intelligent mobile application for contact tracing of the elderly will be delivered in the funding year (i.e. 2020 – 2021) concerned.
Principal Investigator: Dr Wilton Fok (Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering)
Telephone: 3917-8490
Email: wtfok@eee.hku.hk
Project Objectives:
- To develop a mobile application (App) for stroke patients which incorporates posture analysis and artificial intelligence with the aim of facilitating home and community rehabilitation for stroke patients;
- To promote the use of artificial intelligence and IT technology for coaching and supervision of rehabilitation exercise;
- To obtain feedback from stroke patients, therapists and clinicians about the usability, acceptability and usefulness of such an App in facilitating community rehabilitation;
- To test the feasibility of deploying such an App to stroke patients in the community setting; and
- To prove the effectiveness of using mobile technology to facilitate stroke rehabilitation in the community setting and pave the way for a larger scale external grant such as the Innovation Technology Fund.
Project Description:
Stroke rehabilitation is crucial to minimize impairment in stroke survivors. However, community rehabilitation services in Hong Kong are limited, and have been severely affected during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, potentially jeopardizing the recovery potential of stroke survivors. This interdisciplinary collaborative project aims to develop a mobile application incorporating artificial intelligence to facilitate community rehabilitation in stroke patients. The application will be integrated into services of the HK Society of Rehabilitation to assist physicians and therapists and enable patients to continue with rehabilitation exercises at home or in elderly centres, hence providing a timely solution during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Target Deliverables in 2020/21:
- An AI mobile App to facilitate community rehabilitation in stroke patients;
- A video for promoting the use of this mobile App for stroke rehabilitation;
- A pilot study involving stroke survivors and therapists to collect feedback on the user interface, usability, acceptability and usefulness in facilitating stroke rehabilitation;
- Feedback from all users and therapists of the App within the HK Society for Rehabilitation;
- Publish the trial result in the public domain, such as a newspaper; and
- A project website.