Prof Darwin Lau received Bachelor of Engineering (mechatronics) and Bachelor of Computer Science degrees from the University of Melbourne, Australia, in 2008, and the Ph.D degree in robotics from the University of Melbourne, in 2014, on the modelling and analysis of anthropomorphic musculoskeletal cable-driven robots. From 2014 to 2015, he was a postdoctoral research fellow at ISIR, Universite Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, France, on humanoid predictive control walking algorithms. Currently, he is an associate professor at the Department of Mechanical and Automation Engineering, and the co-director of the CUHK Centre of Robotic Construction and Architecture, The Chinese University of Hong Kong. His research interests include: the study of kinematics, dynamics and control of complex robotic mechanisms, such as redundantly actuated and cable-driven manipulators. The applications of the work focus on bio-inspired robots, biomechatronics and robotic architecture and construction. He is a senior member of IEEE, member of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society and ASME. Furthermore, he is currently a junior chair of the RAS Technical Committee on Mechanisms and Design, and associate editor of Frontiers in Mechanical Engineering. Noticeable awards received by Prof Lau include: University of Melbourne Chancellor’s Prize for Excellence in the PhD Thesis, CUHK University Education Award and Hong Kong University Grants Committee Teaching Award (Early Career Faculty Members).

Abstract

Robotics and Intelligence Solutions in Smart Cities and Maintenance for Sewage Treatment Works

The service and building construction industry have been significantly affected by the ageing workforce and the shortage of labour, particularly for tasks that are dangerous or under harsh working conditions. The development of smart cities solutions, involving robots, smart sensors, internet of things, big data and artificial intelligence, will be greatly beneficial in upgrading to the next generation of smart sewage treatment works. In this presentation, various forefront smart city research projects relating to robotics, intelligence and autonomy conducted by the Faculty of Engineering from The Chinese University of Hong Kong will be presented. Inspiring from these works, the vision and framework of how smart cities research and development will form a framework to upgrade sewage treatment works will be discussed. In particular, examples of intelligent robots that can be directly applied or already trialled in sewage treatment works will be presented, such as logistics autonomous vehicles, manipulation for service applications, facade construction robots and lamella plate cleaning robots.