Professor Gunho Sohn receives large NSERC Grant for Research and Development

Professor Gunho Sohn received a Natural Sciences & Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Collaborative Research and Development (CRD) Grant.

For his project which uses artificial intelligence to update Canada’s infrastructure, Dr. Sohn was awarded a grant worth $1,024,000, from NSERC. Additional cash and in-kind contributions made from industrial partners were also significant: the total cash contribution is approximately about $1.5 million ($1,536,000 total; $512,000 from Teledyne Optech) and $1 million in-kind contribution ($1,048,146). Total funding is $2.5 million over four years.

This project seeks to update Canada’s critical infrastructure – the independent network of utilities, transportation and facilities. Although Canada is the second-largest country in the world (in terms of area), with the world’s 10th largest economy, one-third of its infrastructure is in need of a significant update. In collaboration with Teledyne Optech, Sohn’s project will develop an advanced data processing system using a specific type of artificial intelligence (AI), called deep neural network, which has recently achieved remarkable success in computer and robotic vision and machine learning.

“This work will allow for the autonomous recognition of infrastructure assets using high-quality 3D models of critical networks, thus contributing to the field of infrastructure management and improving urban sustainability as a whole,” Sohn explains.

Importantly, this project will also train highly qualified personnel and, in this way, will contribute to Canadian industries and the fields of AI technologies, infrastructure management, urban planning, and 3D mobile mapping systems.

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