PolyU to launch three research centres under InnoHK Clusters

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 12 October 2021 – In
support of the Hong Kong government’s new initiative, InnoHK Clusters, which
aims to develop Hong Kong as a hub for global research collaboration, The Hong
Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has joined forces with world-leading
institutions to develop research centres under two newly established research
clusters – [email protected] (focusing on artificial
intelligence and robotics technologies) and [email protected] (focusing on healthcare related technologies), in a
bid to bring together leading researchers from around the world to conduct impactful
collaborative research in Hong Kong.

Laboratory for Artificial Intelligence in Design (AiDLab)

Centre for Advances in Reliability and Safety (CAiRS)

Centre for Eye and Vision Research (CEVR)

PolyU is pleased to establish three
world-class research centres at the Hong Kong Science Park under the government-funded
InnoHK initiative. These three centres, which have commenced
operation, are i) the Laboratory for Artificial Intelligence in Design (AiDLab), ii) the Centre for Advances in Reliability and
Safety (CAiRS), and iii) the Centre
for Eye and Vision Research (CEVR).  

PolyU has also become the first local
collaborating institution of the “Centre
for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, Hong Kong Institute of Science &
Innovation, Chinese Academy of Sciences”. Established by the Institute of
Automation of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), the Centre has been
admitted to [email protected] under InnoHK Clusters. With a longstanding and close
collaborative relationship, PolyU and CAS, based on their existing cooperation,
will further conduct in-depth research collaboration and academic exchange
activities in frontier research in data science and artificial intelligence, to
jointly promote the development of the AI industry.

Deputy President and Provost of PolyU, Professor Wing-tak Wong, is pleased with the University’s
contribution to the InnoHK initiative, stating that, “Innovation
and technology (I&T) has always been one of the key drivers of economic
development. With the rapid development of the Nation and the Greater Bay Area
bringing unprecedented opportunities for I&T, Hong Kong will play an even
more important role in the ongoing process of innovation.” He added, “By
partnering with world-acclaimed institutions to establish research centres in
InnoHK’s two research clusters, PolyU hopes to fully leverage each institution’s
academic strengths to bring about significant research breakthroughs, and thereby
create impactful technology that boosts the economy and brings benefits to
society.”

Professor Naren Barfield, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Provost of the
Royal College of Art said, “We are delighted to partner with
PolyU to establish a world-class centre for research in Artificial Intelligence
and Design. This strategic partnership integrates AI into the design of
products and services, delivering vital research to understand the future of
society and the economy, interrogating our future requirements and humanising
the fourth industrial revolution. As the world’s leading art and design
university, the Royal College of Art brings to AiDLab its expertise in
cross-disciplinary research, human-centred design and creative innovation, to
shape the industrial and social futures of the 21st century.”

Professor Michael G.
Pecht, Director of the Center for Advanced Life Cycle Engineering (CALCE) of
the University of Maryland, College Park, USA said, “CAiRS is a collaboration between PolyU and CALCE, that
aims to conduct research and development to enable advanced design and
manufacturing, and to test the next generation of reliable and safe electronics
and components for transportation, consumer products, telecommunication
systems, public utilities and other applications in Hong Kong. Together, we
hope to create a new paradigm for reliability science and promote customised product
health management for different industry sectors, using real-time, in-situ,
artificial intelligence-based reliability and safety analytics.” 

Bob Lemieux, Dean of Science at the University of Waterloo said, “We are proud to be partnering with an exceptional institution
like PolyU on this critical initiative. CEVR is already bringing the University
of Waterloo’s entrepreneurial culture to Hong Kong as the research team tackles
the world’s biggest questions in the field of vision science – from discovery and
clinical application to commercialisation.”

Going forward, PolyU will continue its
efforts in addressing the ever-changing needs of society by promoting
high-impact research and fostering collaborations with world-leading
institutes, industry partners as well as the government, in order to contribute
further to the future research clusters of InnoHK.

Laboratory for Artificial Intelligence in
Design (AiDLab)

In collaboration with the Royal College of
Art, UK, PolyU established the
AiDLab under the [email protected] cluster to integrate innovative AI technologies into
design to address society’s needs for creativity, efficiency and
customisation of products and services. AiDLab is the world’s first research
laboratory specialising in interdisciplinary AI and design innovations. Its
cutting-edge research will create impacts on society, industry and policy that
enhance quality of life. Three research programmes at AiDLab include Ergonomic
and Inclusive Design, Innovation in Product and Service Design, and Intelligent
Fashion Design and Quality Control.

Centre for Advances in Reliability and Safety
(CAiRS)

CAiRS has been initiated by PolyU under the
[email protected] cluster and the key research collaborator is the University of Maryland, College Park, USA.
CAiRS’ mission is to develop new approaches using AI methodologies for
customised management, and to ensure the reliability and safety of products and
systems used in robotics, medical devices, vehicles, telecommunication,
consumer products, public utilities, transportation, microelectronics, power
devices, sensors and IoT products as well as a broad range of Advanced
Manufacturing applications. These research applications and deliverables will
contribute significantly in Smart City development. Five research programmes at
CAiRS, namely Anomaly Detection and Syndromic Surveillance, Innovative
Diagnostics for Product Health Management, Prognostics for Remaining Useful
Life Assessment, Safety Assurance to improve Functional Safety, and Data Analytics
Platform for Reliability have commenced.  

Centre for Eye and Vision Research (CEVR)

Under the [email protected] cluster, CEVR has
been set up as a joint partnership between PolyU and the University of Waterloo, Canada. CEVR promotes eye health with
clinical, basic and applied research, and develops ground-breaking technologies
to prevent vision loss and preserve sight among the ageing population. CEVR
runs five research programmes, namely Myopia and Eye Growth, Ocular Drug
Discovery and Delivery, Vision Enhancement, Tear Film and Ocular Surface, and
Advanced Optometric Technology.

For
more details about InnoHK, please visit: https://www.itc.gov.hk/en/technological_infrastructure/innohk_clusters.html

#PolyU