Under the tutelage of Algonquin’s Office of Applied Research and Innovation and working with industry partner Contextere, students Adesh Shah and Jack Garrard developed a ground breaking application targeted towards industrial work crews.
Adesh at Microsoft in Toronto
Adesh Shah and Jack Garrard, who are enrolled in the Mobile Application Design & Development and Interactive Media & Design programs respectively, were successful in creating the Contextere application. This is the first app of its kind with aims to optimize the workflow of industrial work crews by relaying a series of contextual instructions to workers based on in-situ awareness and advanced machine learning. It was built on the Universal Windows Platform which allows the app to run on any Windows 10 device, with special emphasis placed on the inclusion of Microsoft Band 2 and the HoloLens.
Algonquin College congratulates Adesh Shah who has recently become a Microsoft Student Evangelist due to his diligent work with ARI and the MADD program.
Algonquin’s Office of Applied Research and Innovation (ARI) have three paid positions open to 2nd and 3rd year students from the Bachelor of Information Technology – Network Technology program. The successful candidates will receive training by highly experienced professionals from CENGN, Telus and Inocybe. The main topic of this hands-on training will be Software-Defined Networks. The training will take place either during the Winter semester or the summer of 2017.
Apart from the obvious benefit of getting paid to receive training in a cutting-edge technology, the trainees will have great opportunities to expand their professional network with senior engineers and hiring managers from these leading companies.
If you are interested, please contact Theo Mirtchev, 613-727-4723/6080; mirtcht@algonquincollege.com; or apply directly through ARI’s online form at
Rainy Daze is a harm reduction app intended to inform the user about harm reduction and harm reduction techniques. The app features a series of mini games built around specific harm reduction concepts. The game is targeted directly to the College student demographic and addresses specific situational awareness and provides the user non-judgmental feedback and positive reinforcement of established harm reduction approaches.
CBC recently highlighted the application in an interview. Listen to it here
Try the Game for yourself on the Umbrella project website – Play Rainy Daze
Algonquin’s Applied Research Day a ‘win-win’ for Students, Industry
For Algonquin College students, applied research means solving real-world problems for actual businesses. That research – and its diversity – was on display at the school’s Applied Research Day on Aug. 19.
“We emphasize developing soft skills, understanding the expectations of a professional environment and since we do serve a lot of small startup-size companies, often there’s opportunities to continue on with the companies or, if they do a particularly good job, to get recognition.”
Read the full article and interview with Alex Yang.
Masterpiece VR is a Virtual Reality application used to create stunning 3D art, including sculptures,paintings, and even whole scenes. This is all achieved through a combination of PhD level mathematics,cutting-edge technology and professional grade software/UI design.
Partner: Brinx Software
Team: Nicolas Blier; James Hargrove; Gabrian Boileau and Morgan Morrell-Frewen
SmartMoms Canada
2nd Place Winning Project
SmartMoms is a mobile technology-based program designed to help women adhere to the gestational weight gain (GWG) guidelines, improve maternal-fetal health and attenuate the intergenerational cycle of obesity (fewer big babies, less post-partum weight retention and subsequent obesity in mom). The developed system consists of two mobile applications (Android and iOS), a web application and a backend server. Feedback that considers participant’s data gathered from Wi-Fi enabled accessories (FitBit physical activity tracker and an electronic weight scale) and provides personalized recommendations.The SmartMoms intervention also includes regular delivery of health information to women regarding their weekly GWG, physical activity and nutritional goals via the application.
Partners: School of Human Kinetics, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa
Team: Matthew Boyd; Dylan Griffiths; Kari Ball; Vlad Tonkogonov; McKenzie McGilchrist; Matt Young and Justin Bennett
Robotic Mower (GreenCare)
3rd Place Winning Project
The product provides an autonomous lawn cut. It does the job and comes back to its docking station.
Principal Investigator: Hooman Abdi
Team: Pietro Pucci; Mustafa Al Rubai; Bradley Domjan and Victor Silva Lago; Zachary Ouellet
Project Start Date: September 2016 Project End Date: April 2017
Are you interested in working with Electrical Engineering Technology student teams? The Electrical Engineering Technology program invites industry partners to participate in our experiential (work-integrated) learning as part of a college curriculum. Our program is hosting in-class client projects with the Office of Applied Research & Innovation (ARI) over a two semester period during the fall and winter semesters. Working in small teams, students engage in a research project.
Experience with practical projects provides students with learning opportunities to gain insight and experience, thereby making the connection to industry. Through collaborative participation in applied research projects, students work towards solutions using project management methodologies in real-world workplace environments.
The ability to identify and satisfy all stakeholder expectations is essential in successful product development. Students work in consultation with faculty and external stakeholders to create deliverables by monitoring and controlling the project resources. The solutions developed are defended in formal oral and written presentations.
Electrical Engineering Technology students can build a prototype or a testing procedure to answer a question or solve a problem. Students provide a detailed technical report on every aspect of the system and all project results are owned by the client.
There are 10 projects needed to start in September.
EXAMPLE 1: Design and testing of a device to automatically close blinds when outdoor light levels reach a certain limit.
EXAMPLE 2: Create new CAD designs using tools and equipment from ARI (3D scanners, printers, thermal cameras, etc.) to model existing spaces and components.
EXAMPLE 3: Install sensors and analyze data to determine the present energy consumption used in a process, or at a site, and make recommendations to improve efficiency and cost effectiveness.
If you have any further questions please contact Kathryn Reilander, Program Coordinator, at 613-727-4723 ext. 3431 or Kathryn.Reilander@algonquincollege.com
Project Start Date: September 2016 Project End Date: April 2017
Are you interested in working with Bachelor of Building Science student teams? The Bachelor of Building Science program invites industry partners to participate in our experiential (work-integrated) learning as part of a college curriculum. Our program is hosting in-class client projects with the Office of Applied Research & Innovation (ARI) over a two semester period during the fall and winter semesters. Working individually or in small teams, students engage in a research project that contributes to the body of knowledge in applied building science. Students focus on the choice of topic, the design of the project, the development of the project proposal, and preliminary research and testing.
Students will need to make use of all the fundamentals, tools and engineering principles learned throughout the program. More specialized needs in knowledge/equipment and tools will be defined next term. Below is a list of project proposals, we hope for industry to mold and shape the focus of the projects to steer towards a final outcome that is of their interest. General feedback on the progress would also be expected throughout the process. In some cases, in kind donation of material/testing equipment may be required.
Post Occupancy Energy Performance of a Single-Family Passive House and a MURB Passive Building
Reducing thermal bridging at cantilever and canopies with the use of emerging technologies
Thermal performance of wool insulation made with recycled plastic and Styrofoam
Impact of dynamic windows and window films in the hydrothermal performance of the building envelope
Examination of the most important durability considerations impacting precast concrete cladding performance
Sensitivity Analysis of the Multi-criteria used for Optimizing the Renovation of Buildings, an Energy Perspective
If you have any further questions please contact Maria Parra, Bachelor of Building Science, Coordinator Tel: 613-7274723 x 6589 email: parram@algonquincollege.com
2nd Place Winning Project
“Micro-encapsulation of probiotics: Are you reaping the benefits?”
Prof: Rudy Jones, Holly Dole
Industrial Partner: N/A
Team: Alan Cruz; Germain-Andres Mercado; Paul Arol Djonkamwambo
Information Technologies, Mobile, and Web Design
1st Place Winning Project
“Nepean Synchro / Synchro Ontario”
Prof: Steve Griffith, Gerald Hurdle
Industrial Partner: Jeremy Atherton
Team: Gabriel Dubé; Helen Fan; Nigneshkumar Patel; Chris Oudyk; Harsh Patel
2nd Place Winning Project
“Cartouche Puzzles”
Prof: Gerry Paquette, Vinay-Réginald Kumar,
Industrial Partner: Math Pickle
Team: Kirk Davies; Kate Bourque; Alex Imray Papineau
Arts, Design, Business, and Management
1st Place Winning Project
“Informal Settlement’s Urban Design”
Prof: Kurt Espersen-Peters,
Industrial Partner: N/A
Team: Erika Barros
2nd Place Winning Project
“Wayfinding Strategies for Today’s Hospitals”
Prof: Dorothy Stern
Industrial Partner: N/A
Team: Becky Thayer
The Office of Applied Research and Innovation is looking for volunteer judges for the Applied Research Day competition on April 15th, 2016.
Every year, student teams work on applied projects in which they apply knowledge and skills acquired through their field of study. The majority of these projects are showcased on the main Applied Research Day event in April each year. Read more >
Check out this amazing video created by Interactive Media Design students for their Project Development course. This course allowed students to work with real clients, such as Carrot Explains. This project won first place at Applied Research Day in December 2015, capturing the hearts of many visitors and judges.
