How to Change the World...

What do you do when you want to make a difference, to change the world, to make it a better place? You go to the FIRST Robotics Championship, put on a silly hat and take a photo with the sign that says “I will change the world”, of course! And look, that is exactly what I had done recently!

Yours truly making the pledge to change the world!

On the surface, this might look like a joke, with the silly hat and all. But tens of thousands of people gather at the FIRST Robotics Championship with that exact purpose every year for the past 25 years! Our mission is to change the culture in the world we live in: by inspiring our next generation of youth to be involved with Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education… through fun and games no less! For those not familiar with FIRST, here is the official introductory video. Personally, I like this one more because of Morgan Freeman.

At the 2014 FIRST World Championship opening ceremony inside the Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis MO

Education is Quanser’s business. So it is not surprising Quanser embraces the FIRST ideals and supports FIRST in numerous ways. At the corporate level, Quanser partners with FIRST Canada to help spread the message of FIRST by sponsoring and mentoring a FRC team, Team 4001 Retro Rams from St. Robert Catholic High School. In addition, Quanser invites other teams, such as Team 771 SWAT and Team 4252 Cardinal Robotics, to our corporate headquarter for onsite visits. These visits usually involve hands-on demonstrations and discussions with our engineers that help to engage and entice the students into careers in STEM. Also, our very own Tom Lee was a keynote speaker at the annual Robotics Symposium hosted by Team 771 SWAT back in the fall of last year.

Dr. Tom Lee giving the keynote speech at the SWAT Robotics Symposium 2013.

Furthermore, Quanser is the Academic Partner with National Instruments. NI is, of course, one of the strategic partners of FIRST and is the supplier of the existing cRIO robot controller and the new roboRIO controller for the 2015 FRC season. The roboRIO is a close cousin of the myRIO platform, which we, at Quanser, have some prior experience with. So personally, I can’t wait to see what we can do with the new roboRIO platform and to share it back to the FIRST community.

Quanser judges and mentors at the FRC Waterloo Regional Competition (left to right): Tom Lee,
Tim Vrablik, Peter Martin, Yona Baskharoun, Safwan Choudhury, and Gilbert Lai.

At the people level, Quanser encourages our employees to be involved with FIRST as part of our outreach activities. Yours truly and fellow Quanser engineers Peter Martin, Safwan Choudhury and Yona Baskharoun are mentor volunteers for FRC teams. Quanser has traditionally supplied ample number of volunteer FRC judges at regional competitions. This year is no exception. We, the FRC mentors, also doubled up as FRC and FLL judges. In fact, there is a record number of Quanser judges (8!) volunteered at five out of the seven Canadian FRC regional events this year. Our fellow Quanser judges include veterans like Tom Lee, Cameron Fulford, Herve Lacheray, and rookies like Keith Blanchet and Tim Vrablik. Representing Quanser at the World Championship in St. Louis this year is yours truly, as a mentor, and Tom Lee, as a judge advisor.

Quanser "Six Pack" at the FRC Greater Toronto Regional East (GTRE) Competition (left to right): Gilbert Lai,
Safwan Choudhury, Peter Martin, Cameron Fulford, Herve Lacheray, and Tom Lee.

As you can see, I have taken this opportunity to share a few of the photos of us at various events this year to show how much fun it was for us. Having fun is great, but more importantly, we know we are contributing to a good cause while we are at it.

Selfie with Herve Lacheray (left) and Tom Lee (right)!

Judges with FIRST founder Dean Kamen at the FRC Montreal Regional Competition. Herve Lacheray (back row, second from the left) and Keith Blanchet (back row, fourth from the left) are Quanser's representations.

On a more personal level, this is my fourth year getting involved with FIRST. Up until this year, my main involvement was being a mentor for an all-girl FRC team, SWAT 771, from St. Mildred’s-Lightbourn School in Oakville, Ontario. Heavily influenced by the veteran judges surrounding me at the Quanser office, I was motivated to volunteer as a judge as well this year. As a rookie judge, I found the experience refreshing and invaluable. The perspective of being a judge is different, yet complementary, to the experience of being a mentor. Not only did I learn a lot from talking to the students of other teams (expanding my horizon), I have gained a lot of experience (and wisdom) from my fellow judges.

More selfie! This time with the banner of my team at the FRC Waterloo Regional Competition.

As a parent to a young child, I was also motivated to start my own Jr. FLL team this year. While the Jr. FLL program is non competitive, the satisfaction in seeing how the young kids learn and explore through Lego and play is enormous. It is truly amazing how the little minds are like sponges, soaking up and learning everything they can. As a geek and engineer, the most fulfilling (and personal favorite) aspect from my Jr. FLL experience this year was teaching them about simple machines. Prior to the simple machine session, I didn’t expect the group would be able to retain a lot from what I was about to teach them. My best hope was perhaps they can recall a couple of the more common and obvious simple machines, like wheels and screws. To my astonishment, they managed to recall all seven of them (We had some debates as to whether there are 6 or 7 simple machines… in the end, we decided to teach all 7 of them: lever, wheel and axle, pulley, incline plane, wedge, screw and gear). In fact, they have now developed a habit of looking out for these simple machines everywhere around them. For example, when we pass by a house, we would stand witness to a very excited child pointing up at the roof and chanting “incline plane” repeatedly; or at the playground pointing at the seesaw and calling out “lever”.

Our Jr. FLL team, the Storm Spinners, showcasing their poster and Lego model at a local Jr. FLL Showcase Event.

What is the lesson learned from all of these experience? When it comes to the education of our youth, never underestimate their capacities to learn and grow, no matter how old they are (especially the younger ones)! FIRST is one of those programs that facilitate a rich and fun environment for the kids to explore and learn. They are learning all of these amazing things without even realizing it. And that is the beauty of the program!

So if you want to change the world like I do, get involved! Volunteer! Or just come out and have fun with us! Hope to see you at a FIRST event soon!

P.S. Congratulations to all of the teams participating in the FRC Aerial Assist game this year! See you again next year!

P.P.S. This year is the 25th anniversary for FIRST. Incidentally, this is also Quanser’s 25th anniversary. To mark the occasion, I brought along the Quanser’s 25th anniversary commemorative jersey with me to St. Louis and put it on our robot in our pit. The SWAT ladies had graciously agreed to pose for the photo. Thanks SWAT!

Quanser was there!

~ Gilbert Lai
Systems, Control and Software Engineer, Quanser

Quanser Going for a Ride on a Big Bike

This year our CEO Paul Gilbert will be participating in his 3rd annual Ride to Conquer Cancer. Last year Paul rode over 200km from Toronto, through Hamilton, all the way to Niagara Falls, and helped his team raise just shy of $65K for the cause. Through his personal commitment to this cause, and his passion for social responsibility and community involvement, Paul has sparked a movement in Quanser to get involved and give back!

I am excited to announce that this year will mark Quanser's first year participating in a team fundraising event. We will be taking part in the Heart and Stroke Foundation's Big Bike event on June 5, 2014; our goal is to raise $1,500.00 to support research efforts, and to raise awareness for this cause. We feel like this will be a good opportunity for us give back and support a worthy cause, and to do it as a team is an added bonus.

Quanser is committed to having a positive impact in our community. We have sponsored many programs and initiatives within the academic field over our 25 years, and we have supported various charitable organizations in the past. Our goal going forward is not only to continue this support, but to be more actively involved in our community, and to do it as a team.

We kicked off our Big Bike campaign on February 4th, and we have already signed up 7 team members, and started chipping away at our $1,500.00 goal. If you are interested in supporting our efforts, please visit Quanser's Team Page and donate today! We thank you for your support.

If you would like more information on Quanser's fundraising events, or Paul Gilbert's 2014 Ride to Conquer Cancer, please email me at cheryl.persaud@quanser.com.

~Cheryl Persaud

A Field Trip to the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute

Our host, Dr. Geoff Fernie, TRI Director

As a kid, I always loved field trips, and could enjoy a few extra ones volunteering for my kids' school ones. Now, when the boys claim its embarrassing to have a parent around on such occasions, Quanser helped. Partnering and collaborating with the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, Canada's largest academic health sciences centre, for several years, the whole company got invited to visit the Institute and see how we are contributing to the great research going on in there.

The CEAL motion simulator

TRI is home to one of the world's most advanced rehabilitation facilities - Intelligent Design for Adaptation, Participation and Technology (iDAPT). The centerpiece of iDAPT is the Challenging Environment Assessment Lab (CEAL), a huge underground research lab with a 6 DOF hydraulic motion simulator where researchers can study interactions between people and their environment. 

Entering the WinterLab payload

Quanser partnered with TRI on CEAL development  - our QUARC real time control software is actually at the heart of this unique lab, controlling the motion simulator. I had read about CEAL previously, but seeing it in real life is really impressive. Several "payloads" or chambers simulating different environments and conditions can be put on the motion simulator to perform various research projects. 

2 DOF Gantry and safety harness

To protect the people actually performing tests, a safety harness is mounted on the roof. This is also a contribution of the Quanser team - our engineers designed an active robotic system that follows a person's movements around the chamber in a non-intrusive manner.

Inside the StreetLab

We had an opportunity to check some of the payloads, including the WinterLab that can simulate different conditions such as cold, wind, snow drifts and ice. It can simulate cold and icy sidewalks really well!

Another interesting payload we saw was the StreetLab, with a high res, 180-degree field-of-view curved visual projection screen combined with a treadmill interface and a wheelchair simulator.

We also visited other TRI research labs, and were amazed by the work they do. It was quite inspiring for all of us visitors from Quanser to see the real-life applications of our technology, skills and expertise. Definitely a recommended field trip for high school kids, and sorry, boys, I am volunteering for that one!

New Additions to the Quanser Engineering Team

Quanser is proud to announce the recent addition of three new engineers to its team.  All three bring distinct but overlapping skills to our engineering design group.

Gilbert Lai has spent the past 10 years as an applications engineer, software developer and systems and control engineer. He holds a PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Waterloo, where he specialized in Controls, Robotics and Aerospace (UAVs). His focus at Quanser is in robotics and systems engineering. For the past several years Gilbert has been a mentor for the SWAT771 FIRST Robotics team from St. Mildred's-Lightbourn School in Oakville, Ontario.

Amir Haddadi has been involved in professional R & D in academia and industry for the past seven years. A graduate of Queen’s University, Amir holds a PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering, with a focus on Robotics and Controls. Amir’s areas of special interest include teleoperation systems, haptic interfaces and human-robot interaction.

Safwan Choudhury earned a MASc. in Electrical Engineering, Systems and Controls (Robotics) at the University of Waterloo. An experienced software engineer, Safwan has worked with such diverse institutions as the Canadian Department of National Defence, General Motors and Arista Networks.

With a large number of new and ongoing projects underway, Quanser is already enjoying the benefits of Gilbert, Amir and Safwan’s skills. Welcome aboard, gentlemen!

Waterloo Awards Honorary Degree to Quanser Founder and CTO, Dr. Jacob Apkarian

Quanser is proud to announce that its Founder and Chief Technology Officer, Dr. Jacob Apkarian, was awarded an honorary Doctor of Engineering degree by the University of Waterloo, of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The award was conferred on June 15th during the university’s engineering convocation ceremony.

In recognition of his achievements in the entrepreneurial and academic worlds, Quanser Founder and Chief Technology Officer Jacob Apkarian was awarded an honorary Doctor of Engineering degree by the University of Waterloo on June, 15th, 2013.

The university described Dr. Apkarian’s achievements in this way: “Dr. Apkarian is an engineer, entrepreneur and a valued colleague of the University of Waterloo. He is an authority in the area of control systems and related fields such as mechatronics, haptics and robotics. Dr. Apkarian's work contributed to the success of the Canadarm I and II. 

“As an entrepreneur, he founded and grew Quanser, which stands today as a Canadian success story that has transformed the way we study, explore, and design control systems. His body of work spans involvement in high profile national projects to developing the very basis of training systems for engineering students across the globe.”

A number of Jacob's Quanser colleagues attended the ceremonies and, below, offer a personal appreciation.

Jacob has what can only be described as an "overly inquisitive" mind, and his imagination knows no bounds. As a young engineer he made major contributions to many sophisticated projects, including the legendary Canada Space Arm, where he successfully applied his innovative approach and intuitive understanding of Robotics and Control Engineering to develop complex algorithms that are more than likely still in use today.

In 1989 he decided to turn his attention to the academic engineering community and provide interesting and motivating platforms for the next generation of engineers to learn how to put theory into practice. For over twenty years Quanser (derived from QUestion & ANSwER) has continued to develop and advance this dream and continually break new ground.

As his friend for almost twenty years, and business partner for twelve, I can say from the heart that this honour is well deserved and his legacy is that we are still operating ahead of the curve thanks to his mentoring and guidance for so many years.

Paul Gilbert

CEO, Quanser

Quanser is a very open and dynamic organization where the qualities of your ideas and the conviction in your actions matter more than the number of degrees you have, or the thickness of your resumé. But this award was a moment where everybody paused and reflected on a singular member of the team who has achieved what most of us only dream of.

The accolades expressed about Jacob were many, significant, and genuine. And characteristically, Jacob accepted the honours with profound gratitude and humility.

Dr. Tom Lee

Chief Education Officer, Quanser

In addressing the graduates at the convocation ceremony, Jacob made the observation that "intuition develops as 'tuition', in the sense of instruction, is applied." Jacob embodies this principle. His wealth of knowledge and experience is evident in every conversation, along with the uncanny intuition that stems from it.

Combined with his passion for engineering education and a healthy dose of humility and wisdom, Jacob possesses those unique qualities that have made him the successful entrepreneur that he is. But Jacob is more than an entrepreneur; he is a mentor, an inspiration and a friend and he continues to touch the lives of many. The honour was well deserved.

Dr. Dan Madill

Chief Scientist, Quanser

New Quanser Staff Member Helps Align Product Development and Marketing

Abdullah Dhooma spends his working day speaking two languages: engineering and marketing. As Quanser’s new Product Marketing Engineer, his specialized “language” skills are employed to co-ordinate communication across different departments and working groups inside and outside the company. He is closely involved with Quanser products at every stage of the development, sales and marketing cycles. Abdullah also acts as a bridge between Quanser and National Instruments as the two companies grow their partnership and offer new instructional and research solutions to academic engineering labs.

Abdullah Dhooma, Quanser's new Product Marketing Engineer, makes a presentation   introducing the our newest product, the fully integrated QUBE-Servo  Rotary Servo Experiment, during the recent Quanser Distributor Conference.

Abdullah completed a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering and an MBA at Ryerson University. He is a licensed Professional Engineer in Canada, and has also earned Project Management Professional (PMP) certification. Abdullah joins Quanser with 10 years of experience as a product and business manager at a company responsible for building part of the Canadian weather station of the Phoenix Mars Lander.

A tinkerer by nature, Abdullah was a computer enthusiast and Internet user at a very early age.  So his path to becoming an engineer was a logical one. As he puts it, “It’s who I am.  I love the problem-solving aspect of engineering.”  When he’s not helping to guide the development and marketing of Quanser’s engineering education solutions, he spends his time with his family as well as reading and playing golf. 

Zen and the art of raising teenagers

Click here to watch the FIRST GTA West Regionals in full swing

Nothing could be more terrifying to most adults than being surrounded by thousands of sleep-deprived, cola-filled teenagers wielding power tools … unless you're at a FIRST Robotics competition, of course. Quanser, once again, was an active participant in this highly successful annual competition designed to give young nerds, and young nerd wannabes a chance to show off their cerebral mojo. This past week was the Greater Toronto Regional, one of the largest and most prestigious among the many FIRST regional tournaments. I had the pleasure of being Judge Advisor for the event. Joining me as part of the Judge team were Quanser engineers Peter Martin and Abdullah Dhooma. On the field, the newest Quanser engineer, Gilbert Lai was a mentor for Team 771 affectionately known as SWAT. Additionally, Quanser was once again the proud sponsor of Team 4001, the Rams of St. Robert CHS of Thornhill near Toronto. Our team competed in the Toronto East competition and Calgary.

This interaction with a high school competitions has multiple benefits for Quanser. At a pure business level, our future success depends on our ability to offer relevant products and services to a greater range of audiences. The fact that the K12 world has thoroughly embraced robotics and key essential concepts of control means our experiences today can help secure our success tomorrow. But perhaps the more important benefit is almost spiritual in nature. The competition depends largely on volunteers and in many cases, these volunteers are seasoned technical professional who sacrifice their own time to guide the teams through the monumental challenges that are at the heart of FIRST. I and my Quanser colleagues are examples of such people and year after year, we emerge from these sweaty, exhausting weekends with a newly found faith in the future and our youth. Any notion of the emerging generation being somewhat unfocused, or dispirited, or any disenchantments about the increasing volatility and meanness in society magically vanish for an all too brief moment.

I am currently in the latter stages of shepherding two teenagers into adulthood and like most parents in may phase, a large part of our lives is dedicated in worrying about whether we've provided the best guidance and environment for our kids to learn to make the best choices in life. At home, it's all too easy to dwell on the mistakes that we make as parents or our kids make as … well … kids. Or we repeatedly stress over things that didn't quite turn out as you thought they would or should. At a FIRST competition, you only see the good. Although there are countless disappointments — breakdowns, strategy errors, bad timing, and even the theft of an entire trailer full of essential equipment — the teams manage to achieve miracles. For judges like myself, the toughest part is figuring out how best to commend and congratulate students without resorting to clichés and overused platitudes. "Great job!" and "Way to go!" do not come close to capturing all the nuanced dimensions of success that the teams achieve. But in the end, we all get through it and the most precious part of the experience for us volunteers is we learn to become positive again and things make much more sense when we get home. Yes, it is true that a bulldozer could not clear away the clutter in my daughter's room but that is so insignificant when you consider that she pulled herself to an A grade from an earlier state of sheer terror in her AP math course.

I have been involved in one way or another with the FIRST program for almost twenty years but this year was my most active. And every year the importance of this competition becomes ever more clear. I consider myself extremely fortunate that I get to enjoy all of these existential and spiritual benefits but there are also distinct and real benefits to the company. Indeed it was at a FIRST event when Quanser CEO Paul Gilbert and Founder Jacob Apkarian ambushed me and persuaded me to sign on the dotted line. A very prophetic moment indeed.


P.S. Our team 4001 in their second year of competition was awarded the Innovation in Control award — an award typically won by the most seasoned and technically accomplished teams. I guess it's not a bad thing to have a leading mechatronic company as your mentors!

Tom Lee
Chief Education Officer, Quanser

Why We Ride, Why We Work

There’s a world of reasons to gather a group of dedicated, socially aware individuals and create a team to Ride to Conquer Cancer.  There’s also a world of reasons to assemble a group of dedicated, global-focused colleagues to create a team to help ensure more and better engineering.

Believe it or not, those reasons can be one and the same: the well-being of our families, friends, neighbours – and of the world we live in.

All those goals came together in June as Quanser CEO Paul Gilbert and his “Team Painkiller” teammates mounted their bikes and completed the 200 Kilometer Enbridge Ride to Conquer Cancer.  Pedaling from Toronto to Niagara over two days, they raised almost $40,000 to benefit the Campbell Cancer Institute at the Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto, and the whole ride raised just over $18 million.


A great cause - cancer research - deserves a great effort. Here are a few tired but happy
Team Painkiller members at the end of Day One in Hamilton, Ontario. 

As noted in an earlier blog post, Paul and his teammates trained rigorously for the Ride.  A number of personal objectives spurred him on, including the wish to get in better physical shape, and the desire to set an example to his children to be socially aware. 

Paul sees a strong connection between encouraging increased research on curing cancer and Quanser’s corporate goal: to help educate talented global engineers who will tackle engineering’s grand challenges and, ultimately, engineer a better world.

To tell you more about the Ride experience, here’s Paul in his own words:

"Last Christmas, after I publicly announced my intention to ride during the Christmas period, I could not believe the support I immediately received from family, friends and acquaintances. I pretty much met my personal fund raising goals in the first month. I also asked a few Quanser vendors for sponsorship support and got so much feedback that we ran out of spaces on the riding jersey very quickly. A hearty thanks to all of you who donated and forced my hand, or should I say my legs, since receiving so much money for the cause meant I had no chance of backing out.

The build-up to the ride was intense, many hours of training in all weather conditions allowed the Painkiller Team to really bond, and this shared experience was really helpful on the weekend of the Ride. A long ride like this is physically and mentally challenging, so to have good friends nearby at moments of weakness was invaluable, especially during some long arduous climbs.

Anyone who has done this ride knows about the final seven kilometer ascent to the campground in Hamilton at the end of the first day—to do it in a torrential downpour was something I wouldn't wish on a living soul. However, shortly after we arrived, ironically in glorious sunshine with steam coming off our backs, we went directly to the oasis, that is, to free beer and massage tents. At this point we were euphoric. Day One was over and there was only 100 kilometers left to go the next day.

Team Painkiller completed the Ride and raised $40,000 for cancer research.
 Members of the team gather at the end of the Ride and Day Two in Niagara. 
Quanser CEO Paul Gilbert is standing in the first row at far left.

Almost 5,000 people gathered to share stories of the first day’s ride and enjoy the food and entertainment. It’s hard to describe how it feels to be amongst so many people who have given so much of themselves. Suffice it to say, it was a great crowd. We shared tears of laughter and the occasional howl of pain as cramping started to kick in.

Day Two was hot and sweaty, 40 degrees Celsius for the most part, and it took a good 20 kilometers of riding to warm our muscles up; oh my lord, it was hard. We stopped for a rest every 20 or 25 kilometers and received supplies to keep us going. Probably the best moment of the weekend was when someone decided to dump a bucket of ice cold water over my head.

Paul Gilbert and his wife Joanne at Ride's end, by the Niagara River and Niagara Falls.

The final 20 kilometers were very uplifting and emotional.  To give you an idea, the whole team decided to bike as a group, ending the Ride going past the finish line two by two with two cancer survivors in the front , and an enormous cheering crowd all around. All the pain of the training and ride disappeared at that moment. I can honestly say the Ride is one of the top things I have ever done in my life and, yes, I am signed up to do it again next year."

The Ride Is Almost Here... and Paul Gilbert Is Raring To Go!

This Saturday and Sunday Quanser CEO Paul Gilbert and his biking teammates will be taking the 200 Km Enbridge Ride to Conquer Cancer benefitting the Campbell Cancer Institute at the Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto. As Paul and his teammates’ final preparations are being made, we find this the perfect time to thank you again for your generous support.

Paul Gilbert and a "Team Painkiller" teammate have been training hard for this weekend's 200 Km Enbridge Ride To Conquer Cancer.  Check back with us soon to hear more about this great community event.

To all who sponsored Paul, we say your sponsorship, be it through purchasing a team jersey, a logo placement, or simply through making a donation, is important and greatly appreciated.  You’ve more than done your part—and we thought you’d like to know that Paul’s been doing his part too.  

He’s been training since last winter, beginning with weekly swimming and spinning classes, then stationary bike riding for 30 km a day. When spring arrived, he started cycling outdoors on real roads and hills for 30 or 40 km at a time. He continued regular workouts even with business travel to Malaysia, and in recent weeks he, his wife Joanne and his Ride teammates have gone on weekend training runs of up to 100 km.  So they’re primed and ready to hit the road this Saturday.

Naturally, social media will be on the Ride as well. Paul plans to Tweet (@TeamPainkiller) and post Facebook updates, so whether you had the opportunity to sponsor Paul or not, you can to check in and “ride along” with him and his teammates for two days, experiencing all the challenges and triumphs along the way!

Paul and his teammates are confident they will reach their fundraising goal before the Ride is over and he deeply appreciates all the support he and his teammates have  received.  To all those who'd like to take this opportunity to sponsor Paul now, you can. Just click this link to his donation page.  We never forget that individual contributions represent a vital part of the Enbridge Ride to Conquer Cancer.  Thanks again to all who rallied to this worthy cause.  And be sure to follow Paul on the Ride!

P.S.  To learn more about Paul’s experiences on the Ride, check out the Quanser Engineering Blog in the days following this remarkable event!

Quanser Appoints First Channel Manager Dedicated Exclusively to India and South Asia

Quanser is pleased to announce the appointment of Sunny Ray as Quanser’s first Channel Manager for South Asia. This appointment not only reflects the growth and vitality of engineering education in the region, but demonstrates Quanser’s commitment to supplying full service and support to the Indian and South Asian academic engineering community.


Sunny Ray (far right), Quanser's new and very first Channel Manager for South Asia, with visitors to the Quanser Center of Excellence at the College of Engineering, Pune, India.

Sunny holds a BSc. in Electrical Engineering. His previous roles at Quanser have included Inside Sales Manager, North America Academic Solutions Advisor and Latin America Channel Manager. Consequently, he possesses a strong technical understanding of Quanser solutions. In his previous roles within Quanser Sunny assisted top universities around the globe and enabled engineering educators and researchers to tackle grand challenges in the field of controls, robotics and mechatronics.

Sunny is ready to work with the academic engineering community in his region:

• To help choose lab equipment for your Control, Mechatronics, Robotics, Aerospace, or Civil Engineering courses
• To provide samples of course materials that come with all Quanser lab solutions
• To arrange demonstrations of experiments that improve learning outcomes

Both Quanser and Sunny look forward to working closely with leading edge educators to attract, retain and graduate a new generation of engineering students in your country.

Sunny can be contacted at sunny.ray@quanser.com

The Spotlight's On Quanser In the Latest Issue of EEWeb - Pulse Magazine

EEWeb-Pulse magazine, a leading e-zine for the electrical engineering community, features not one but two stories about Quanser in its January 17, 2012 issue.

The first article, an interview with Tom Lee, focuses on Tom's role as Quanser's Chief Education Officer and on how Quanser's engaged, hands-on approach to engineering education is designed to serve "the overall mandate of the university, as well as the emerging influences and trends of global industry."

The second article, authored by Tom himself, is titled, "What's New at Quanser?" and outlines some of our latest activities and initiatives. To read both stories, click here.

A New Addition to Our Systems and Control Team

John Daly recently joined Quanser's engineering team as a Systems and Control Engineer. John brings a strong background in control systems theory to this position, as well as a wealth of experience with unmanned systems. He will be working on implementing advanced algorithms on tele-operated and fully autonomous unmanned systems, both airborne and grounded.

An area of particular interest to John and Quanser is the control of robotic manipulators.

John holds a PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Waterloo (2010). He earned a BEng in Computer Systems Engineering and a MASc in Electrical Engineering from Carleton University in Ottawa. Most of his graduate research work focused on controlling robotic manipulators, which is an area of particular interest at Quanser.

An affinity for math and science through his school years led John to take his first step towards an engineering career. But a summer spent at a science and computer camp run by engineering students at Carleton University really helped point the way. His decision to pursue that the engineering life soon followed. In his spare time John enjoys cooking, camping and skiing. Welcome to Quanser, John!

The Two Sides of Korea

No, this is not a commentary on the political situation in Korea, but an account of a series of events that transpired over a scant three months involving an intriguing combination of international meetings in China, Korea and Canada... yes, it still does sound like a political tale, doesn't it?

In October of 2011, Quanser CEO Paul Gilbert and I attended the Global Colloquium on Engineering Education in Shanghai. There, we, by chance, met with Professor Wonjong Joo of Seoul National University of Science and Technology (affectionately referred to as SeoulTech). Through various chats and coffee breaks, we discovered that he ws the director of a "Hub Center" in a national inititative called the Innovation Centers for Engineering Education (ICEE). This is a well-funded government initiative that identified 60 leading engineering universities in Korea and encouraged them to research and establish innovative practices to transform the engineering curriculum to better meet the needs of the roaring Korean industrial sector of the 21st century.

South Korea has earned the reputation of a "miracle" economy. Within a single generation, the nation innovated itself up from theashes of two brutal wars and foreign occupation. Since the 1960's when the basic infrasturcture stabilized, the average annual income climbed from $100 to the current $20,000 - from the extreme end of "third world" existence to one of the most respected and dynamic economies of today. To continue its progress, the country has concluded that it needed a community of modern engineers who not only escelled technically but were also innovative and global in their worldview. Indeed, mega-companies such as Samsung strongly expressed a desire to close the gap between the skill sets of engineering graduates with the needs of conttemporary Korean industry. ICEE was born out of these needs.

Side one of this tale was an invitation by Dr.Joo to me to speak at a conference of Korean engineering educators representing the network of ICEE institutions. This was held in early December of 2011 on the famous Jeju Island off the southern tip of Korea. This island has a very special place in the hearts of the people of the country. Volcanic in origin, it offers a startling comination of natural beauty and cultural uniqueness even within a larger context of the Korean nation which generally prides itself on its cutural uniqueness. In all, it was a very stimulating and collegial environment to engage in healthy discussions on pedagogy.

Professor Joo and I pose atop Seongsan volcanic peak, a landmark on Jeju Island

What I learned from my new friends was enlightening and heartening. The discussion were dominated by ideas and case studies on increasing the relevance and experiential dimensions in modern engineering education. Hands-on, application-driven, collaborative, immersive and interactive were the kind of words that framed all of the discussions. for a country whose traditional education paradigms enforced intensive absorption oand uncompromising discipline, this was indeed refreshing. Over the years my own views on education have generally challenged the traditional linearity of the North American curriculum; certainly ths success of the Quanser business is founded on this modern perspective as well.

Leaving my mark on the rugged beaches of Jeju

Side two of this tale occurs on the other side of the world. In addition to the generous invitation that I received to address the Korean conference, I also received a request  from Professor Joo for help in facilitating a visit to Canada to learn more about how education innovation happens here. The fun part about this visit, as I quickly learned, was that the visit would not be one or two professors but a delegation of 23 people representing 11 institutions. Somehow we had to engineer an itinerary that combined visits to leading Canadian universities and industry... and this had to happen during a very short visit duration of two days. In the end we settled on a visit to York University, currently in the process of increasing its undergraduate engineering program from 500 to 2000 students; the University of Waterloo, arguably Canada's most successful engineering program; and a visit to our own headquarters to gain insight into progressive Canadian industry.

The delegation at the University of Waterloo's Student Design Center

With both universities, we received a rich and engaging series of sessions covering a vast range of education topics with respectively unique views from the two institutions. Waterloo has a 60 year history of doing the unconventional. From building the world's largest co-op program, to introducing new interdisciplinary programs at a blistering pace, to methodically expanding its positive influence through community outreach programs, it has set the standard for academic engineering innovation. York, being the rising star within the Canadian engineering scene, draws from its global reputation as a center for fundamental sciences, humanities and business and has attempted to redefine what the modern engineer should be.

Quanser curriculum developer Peter Martin demonstrates a new application concept for control systems labs

Yes, the modern engineer should be technically proficient, but she must also be interdisciplinary in thinking, entrepreneurial in ambition, creative in methodology, and global in attitude. At Quanser, the delegation had an opportunity to see and feel first hand some of the latest technology trends that, we believe, will transform the way universities deliver essential engineering experiences to students.

For me as a Korean-born Canadian, this was an amazing chance to experience the Korean academic community in the home country and in my adopted country. I felt privileged that the two sides of my heritage converged on the key context of education, a context that has been so important to me for many years. And in the end, I'm happy to report that, as the cliche goes, there seems to be more that draws us together than keeps us apart.

- Dr. Tom Lee

As Chief Education Officer at Quanser, Tom Lee is focused on spearheading the development of Quanser's global academic community. He is closely involved with Quanser's technology and solution development process and the company's partner and alliance programs. He holds a PhD in Mechanical Engineering, and an MASc and BASc in Systems Design Engineering from the University of Waterloo.

Quanser to Host Korean Academic Delegates Researching Best Practices in Engineering Education

Quanser will host a delegation of faculty members representing the Innovation Centers for Engineering Education (ICEE) Korea on Wednesday, January 4th.

The purpose of the Korean delegation's trip is to gain insight into best practices in engineering education in Canada, then adopt key practices to improve the quality and quantity of engineering graduates in their country. The itinerary includes visits to the engineering departments at the University of Waterloo and York University. Quanser will be their only industry visit.

"We're deeply honoured to be the only industry stop on the ICEE Korea itinerary," says Paul Gilbert, Quanser CEO. "As a company focused on educating the next generation of engineering innovators, we're keen to share our experience in enabling the kind of captivating laboratory teaching that not only brings engineering concepts to life, but motivates students to graduate and seek new solutions to engineering challenges."

Quanser's dedication to pace-setting education solutions was recently recognized when it was named "most innovative company" in Markham, one of Canada's leading high tech business zones.

The Korean delegation will tour Quanser headquarters, meet key staff and learn how Quanser educational solutions are assisting over 2000 universities worldwide to attract, motivate and graduate engineering students. The half day event will include demonstrations of popular and innovative engineering lab experiments, including a tele-operation robotic device.

Quanser's 2011 Holiday E-Card Is Here!

Quanser's E-Card has just been sent to the members of the global controls education and research community. This yearour card touches on some great global engineering challenges - and our collective progress in meeting them and engineering a better world. We encourage you to share the card with your friends and colleagues. Turn up the volume and enjoy!

Quanser Hosts Two FIRST Robotics High School Teams To Help Them Envision Engineering Careers

What in the world could make twenty Markham, Ontario high school students get up at the crack of dawn and attend an off-campus event before starting a full day of classes? How about the chance to control unmanned vehicles, network with Quanser engineers—and get a closeup view of what a 21st century engineering career can look like?

The students from St. Robert Catholic High School and St. Brother André Catholic High School were here at our invitation because they had entered the upcoming 2012 FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC), with Quanser sponsoring and mentoring the St. Robert team.

Students, teachers and Quanser engineers meet and mingle to get the day underway.

The day began with an informal get acquainted session and light breakfast for the students, teachers and Quanser staff. After official greetings from Tom Lee, Quanser’s Chief Education Officer, everyone moved over to a presentation area where Tom gave an illustrated talk titled, “What Is Engineering?” In just a few minutes, he explained how broad, individualized and varied an engineering career could be.

Tom Lee, Quanser's Chief Education Officer, delivers a motivational presentation titled 'What Is Engineering?"

The next speaker was Mark Breadner, Executive Director of FIRST Canada, which will host the 2012 Robotics Competition. Mark spoke about the exciting learning possibilities that the students would experience once the competition was underway, and of how today’s experience at Quanser would help the students prepare for it.

Mark Breadner, Executive Director of FIRST Canada, explains how enjoyable and involving the upcoming FIRST Robotics Competition will be for the St. Robert and St. Brother Andre teams.

The students formed into three groups: “Captivate”, “Motivate” and “Educate”, named after the three key benefits of Quanser products and solutions, and headed over to the demonstration areas to get their hands on the robotic equipment. The demo stations featured the Quanser Driving Simulator, designed to teach undergraduate students control fundamentals; the HD^2 haptic device, which introduced students to a robotic tool that incorporates the sense of touch; and an unmanned ground vehicle that could autonomously navigate, detect and collect specified objects.

Each demo area was manned by a Quanser engineer who introduced the students to the equipment, described its functions and real-world applications, then put it through its paces. After that, the students were given the opportunity to control the equipment for themselves.

A future engineer tries her hand at the Quanser Driving Simulator.

It takes a moment to get used to the touch and feel of the HD^2 haptic device.

A student takes the controls of the Quanser Unmanned Ground Vehicle.

Once every group had experienced all three demo areas, everyone reconvened in the presentation area for a lively Q&A session with an all-star panel - Quanser engineers and managers who specialize in robotics and mechatronics, software development, non-linear control, engineering management, educational materials for engineering programs, as well as business roles such as marketing management. Each panelist explained his or her role at Quanser, how they came to be engineers, and what appealed to them about working for a technology company.

Quanser engineers and management staff answer questions about pursuing engineering careers.

Students wanted to learn all they could about the engineering possibilities that await them.

How did it all go over? As one student put it, “It’s interesting to visit Quanser because this is where the actual engineering and innovation gets done. It’s definitely an advantage for us to experience an engineering company first hand.”

St. Robert Principal Jennifer Sarna summed up the day as well. “We were thrilled to come to a real engineering facility, to see what it’s like to be a real engineer and to have the classroom come to life. Our students are very lucky to work with the engineers from Quanser as they prepare for the FIRST Robotics competition next March.”

Everyone at Quanser is looking forward to working closely with the St. Robert team as they prepare for the FIRST Robotics Competition starting in January 2012. Stay tuned for posts in the coming months from Quanser mentors as they detail the St. Robert students’ progress.

Quanser unleashes robots and unmanned vehicles for FIRST Robotics high school teams to promote careers in engineering

Twenty high school students from two Markham area high schools will get to spend a morning with professional engineers experiencing innovative technology that could inspire them to choose exciting careers in engineering. Quanser will host students from St. Robert Catholic High School and Saint Brother Andre Catholic High School at our headquarters in Markham on Friday, December 16, 2011 at 7:00 am.

"Our young visitors will get a chance to control robots and learn firsthand about what it is like to be an engineer,” says Paul Gilbert, Quanser CEO. “The students will manipulate a driving simulator, interact with a robot used for remote surgical procedures, and control an unmanned ground vehicle as it completes a specific mission. They’ll also have plenty of opportunities to mingle with Quanser engineers and ask questions about the technology or what it is like to be an engineer.”
 

Both high schools will participate in the upcoming 2012 FIRST Robotics Championships, with Quanser sponsoring the St. Robert student team. The student teams will have six weeks to design, build, and program a 140-pound robot to compete against other high school teams in a high stakes, no-holds barred, robotics competition solving real-world challenges. They will be aiming to earn a place in the World Championship competition this April in St. Louis, Missouri.

“FIRST Robotics Canada is proud to partner with companies like Quanser. Our mission is to inspire young people to pursue further studies and careers in the fields of science, technology and engineering. Our vision is of a world which celebrates success in science, technology and engineering and in which young people dream of becoming science and technology heroes” says Mark Breadner, Executive Director, FIRST Robotics Canada.

The principal of St. Robert, Jennifer Sarna, also appreciates Quanser’s involvement. “By opening their doors to us, Quanser is allowing our students to gain a hands-on understanding of what it means to be a professional engineer, working in a state of the art facility, as part of a company that prides itself on innovation and inspiration."

The robotics that the students will be getting their hands on is currently being used by more than 2000 universities worldwide to captivate and motivate engineering students and produce graduates and researchers with industry-relevant skills and a zest for innovation. The visiting students will gain insight in to how exciting an engineering career can be. Quanser, recently voted Markham’s “most innovative company” by the Markham Board of Trade, strongly supports outreach programs that encourage young minds to pursue math, science and engineering education.