April 2023

Young Scholar TechTalk – High-throughput Cell Mechanics Characterization with Microfluidics

Innovation Wing Two, TechTalk / By

Cells can sense mechanical stimuli and convert them to biochemical signals for various specific cellular responses, such as stem cells differentiation, initiation of transcriptional programs, and cell migration. Cell mechanics focuses on the mechanical properties and behaviours of living cells and how cell mechanics relates to various cell functions. Currently, traditional cell mechanics measurement methods are cumbersome, low-throughput, and expensive to deploy. By exploiting microfluidic technology, Dr. Johnson Cui is investigating the cancer cell mechanics and developing an accurate, easy-to-use cell mechanics measurement platform for cell mechanics research and also for cancer diagnosis and therapeutics in the future.

TechTalk – Robotics and AI for Real-world Challenges

Innovation Wing Two, TechTalk / By

Current AI cannot provide a complete solution for robotics, although AI is a useful tool for real-world challenges that cannot be solved by traditional methods. We will discuss how AI can be applied to solve real-world problems using robotic systems developed by our team so far. Inspired by a dance partner robot developed for the Aichi Expo in 2005, a co-worker robot “PaDY” was developed for the automotive assembly process. Intention estimation was a key to these collaborative robots. AI has also led to the development of robotic applications in manufacturing, such as computer vision for bin picking, grasp planning, robot motion planning, and assembly of textureless industrial parts using visual servoing. Recent advances in AI are making it possible to tackle the manipulation of soft materials. The JC STEM Lab of Robotics for Soft Materials funded by the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust covers this new field.