Global Utilities

School of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences

Department of Electronic Engineering

Achievements

The department is recognised both nationally and internationally for consistent award winning contributions to research and industries. A number of student projects have been developed into profitable enterprises and this is attributed to extensive industry interaction. Developing solutions that are market driven is a core requirement of the Department.

 
Final Year Student Graham River-Brown on Channel News

La Trobe University Electronics graduate Graham Rivers-Brown has developed a GPS traffic device that will aid motorists to avoid traffic congestion and thereby reduce travel time. View the video for further information. video.wmv (file size 8MB.)

 

Institution of Engineering and Technology of Australia (IET)Technical Presentation Prize

La Trobe University Electronics graduate Glenn Boardman has. It was exactly this question that prompted him to design and develop a home theatre surround sound system with wireless speakers - a student project that so impressed judges it has just won the 2008 Victorian Institution Of Engineering and Technology (IET) Student Prize.

Glenn found a hole in the home theatre market," says Glenn's supervisor, Darrell Elton, a lecturer in electronic engineering in La Trobe University's School of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences. "The only similar products available currently are the wireless computer speakers, and they don't have the Hi-Fi quality."

Glenn says his project's design concept was more complex then "just incorporating wireless sensors."

Glenn says his motivation initially was to develop this project with the aim of being included in La Trobe University's annual Hooper Awards, which showcase the Department of Electronic Engineering's most outstanding developments that year.

"I really didn't expect to go further than that, I certainly didn't expect to be nominated for the State awards, let alone win," he says.

Darrell Elton saw the project's potential from the beginning, encouraging his student first of all to do his market research.

"Glenn was the very best student we had last year. He worked in an unconstrained manner, and seeing that his project had such merit, I pushed him very hard," Mr Elton says. "Glenn impressed everyone, especially the Hooper judges. He really went well beyond the requirements."

La Trobe's Department of Electronic Engineering is one of Australia's most consistently successful. It was a runner up in last year's National Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) competition and its annual Hooper Awards are widely respected as a showcase event.

Glenn and his supervisor agree that Glenn's winning design also reflects the dedication of the department's teaching staff, the quality of the students it produces, and the overall strength of the University's Faculty of Science, Technology and Engineering.

 

Harold Mitchell Postgraduate Student Travelling Fellowship

Congratulations to Mohit Shivdasani and Stefan Mauger on being jointly awarded the Harold Mitchell Postgraduate Student Traveling Fellowship. They will use this award to attend and present at the 10th International Conference on Cochlear Implants and other implantable Devices to be held in San Diego next year.

 

Institution of Engineering and Technology of Australia (IET)Technical Presentation Prize

 

 

 

Warren Proctor came runners-up at the National IET Technical Presentation Prize night in Brisbane, were he proudly represented the Department of Electronic Engineering at La Trobe and the state of Victoria.  The prize is awarded to an individual for excellence in the presentation of their final year project.  The emphasis of this prize is on the ability of the student to communicate the technical information of their project to an audience.

Warren built a device named X-SPAR ( Sports Performance Analysis Recorder). A black box, strapped to a boxer's body, interprets, translates and transmits the physiology of every punch as graphic data to a palm-pilot sized display on the second device held by the coach. On this second device, computer coded graphics incorporating electro-cardiographs and other information allow the coach to plot his boxer's next move in full control of real-time performance data.

Warrens prototype has been 'road-tested' by his own boxing coaches and is already being picked up for industry trials in other applications by international systems-engineering designers impressed by its potential. For example it is being trialled as a sensor -activated tracking mechanism in automatic car parks to allow operators to check how many parking spaces are occupied; as a remote control mechanism for small cranes to lift tilt slabs on building sites; and as a remote timing system for slalom kayak racing. Congratulations Warren!

 

 

IET Technical Presentation Prize Night.

Warren Proctor represented the department at the IET Technical Presentation Prize night.  The prize is awarded to an individual for excellence in the presentation of their final year project.  The emphasis of this prize is on the ability of the student to communicate the technical information of their project to an audience. Congratulations to Warren on winning this prize. He now goes on to Brisbane to the Australian final of this event.

 

Engineers Australia College of Biomedical Engineering (Victorian Chapter) Annual Undergraduate Student Presentations.

Nick Corken , (4th year biomedical student completing this year) has won the best presentation at the Engineers Australia College of Biomedical Engineering (Victorian Chapter) Annual Undergraduate Student Presentations. The prize is $200. Sohail Afkari and Dean Freestone also received honourable mentions amongst the runners-up. Congratulations to all students and Mr Paul Junor and Mr Graeme Rathbone their supervisors.

 

New use for technology in unmanned aircraft
Picture of avu glider
Two La Trobe University students are using their skills to advance the efficiency of one of the world's fastest growing aeronautical industries - autonomous unmanned aircraft.

The work of Robert Ross, right, and Wade Tregaskis has been described by their supervisor, Associate Professor John Devlin, as a 'novel implementation in the latest microelectronic devices'. The project is co-supervised by Mr Paul Main, a lecturer in Electronic Engineering.

The new 500 gram device developed by the students, while fitted to an unmanned aircraft only 50 cm long, can be applied to unmanned aircraft of any size. Dr Devlin says Robert's and Wade's advanced technology is a tiny step forward in improving the rapidly growing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) industry, estimated to be worth $8 billion world-wide, and hundreds of millions of dollars annually in Australia.

 

Engineering Australia Young Biomedical Engineering Award.

Congratulations to Mohit Shivdasani, Biomedical PhD student supervised by Mr Graeme Rathbone, on winning the Engineers Australia Young Biomedical Engineering Award. His prize is $3,000 towards presenting a paper at an overseas conference. This award is in addition to having twice won Best Poster at two previous conferences and one of these was the best from 450 posters entered. Congratulations and Well Done!

 

 

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Last Updated: 10 June, 2008