Department+of+mechanical+engineering
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KAIST Collaborating with U.S. Universities to Advance Humanoid Robotics
Hubo, a life-size walking bipedal humanoid robot, is perhaps the best-known character in Korea that KAIST has ever produced. It was shown to the government heads of the Asia-Pacific region during the APEC held in Busan, Korea, in 2005 and appeared at the hit concerts of the pop singer Jang-Hoon Kim. The humanoid robot is soon likely to catch the fancy of Americans as a U.S. government-funded project seeks to create a Hubo that can work and interact with people in collaboration with Korean scientists.
"We are going to give the brains to Hubo. (Japanese) Asimo can do only pre-programmed actions. We want to create a Hubo that can help people, interact with people," said Prof. Paul Oh of the Department of Mechanical Engineering & Mechanics at Drexel University in Philadelphia and leader of the five-year international project which was launched in November 2007.
The U.S.$2.5 million project is funded through the Partnership for International Research and Education (PIRE) Program of the National Science Foundation (NSF) of the United States. It brings together world-renowned experts in humanoid design and information technologies.
"Dr. Jun-Ho Oh"s lab at KAIST (that has created Hubo) is the world"s leader in humanoid design and the U.S. has advanced technologies in the areas such as artificial intelligence, mechanical learning and robot vision. Combining the strengths of the two countries can create a synergy effect and develop a more advanced humanoid robot," said Paul Oh. He is currently serving as Program Director of Robotics of the NSF which is overseeing robotics research (non-military) in the U.S. consisting over 150 robotics faculty.
Paul Oh"s research team consists of experts from five U.S. universities -- Drexel, Bryn Mawr College, Colby College, the University of Pennsylvania and Virginia Tech -- and KAIST.
Leading a delegation of six professors and eight students, Dr. Paul Oh made a two-day visit to KAIST on Nov. 18-19 to review the progress of the project and have a technical meeting with participants.
"The U.S. universities participating in this program are scattered across the nation. So we decided to have a technical meeting here in Korea," he said.
Asked the reason why he chose KAIST as a partner for the program, Dr. Oh said that KAIST is willing to open Hugo to international researchers, whereas in Japan only Honda engineers are allowed to touch Asimo, which is a humanoid robot created by Honda Motor Company.
The project is to establish no barrier for roboticists anywhere in the world to pursue the humanoid research; a suite of humanoid platforms will be available for researchers to develop and advance capabilities like locomotion and human-robot interaction.
The team has been initially involved in development of three tools, all of which are based on the Hubo platform, in order to kick-start humanoid research in the U.S. They are the Mini-Hubo (a small, light-weight and affordable humanoid purchasable at the price lower than $8,000), On-Line Hubo (a program to operate Hubo online) and Virtual Hubo (a simulation program to do researches in cyberspace). As the first outcome of the project, the Mini-Hubo is expected to be released in the U.S. around next April.
Another important purpose of the PIRE program is to seek transformative models to train scientists and engineers to effectively work in global multi-disciplined design teams. To this end, an aggregate number of 20 students from U.S. universities are to stay at the KAIST during the next five years, with two students taking turns on a six-month term.
"I was really amazed how much work is done with small funding here. This is really an excellent example to learn," said Roy Gross, an undergraduate from Drexel who has been staying at Prof. Oh"s Lab for the past three months.
2008.11.21 View 16150 -
KAIST, KARI to Conduct Joint Research, Exchange Tech Manpower
KAIST and the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) have agreed to conduct joint researches and exchange technical personnel in order to spur research activities on artificial satellite and other aerospace technology, KAIST announced Wednesday, Sept. 17.
An MOU was signed in a ceremony at the KARI Tuesday, attended by senior officials of the two institutions which both are located in the Daedeok Technopolis in Daejeon City.
Researchers from KARI will participate in KAIST"s interdisciplinary project of "Space Exploratory Engineering" and the two organizations will also jointly take part in the International Lunar Network (ILN), an international moon exploration program, to accelerate development of space technology in Korea.
As a result of the tieup, Dr. Lee So-yeon, Korea"s first astronaut who lived in space for a week aboard a Russian spacecraft this year, will be able to teach and conduct research at KAIST as an adjunct professor. Lee earned her doctorate from KAIST.
2008.09.17 View 13194 -
Int'l Conference for Integration of Science & Technology into Society Opens
The 2008 International Conference for the Integration of Science and Technology into Society (ICISTS-KAIST) opened a four-day meeting on Tuesday (July 15) at Daejeon KAIST campus. The conference is an annual event organized by a group of KAIST undergraduate students.
The fifth-year gathering is designed to provide participants with an opportunity to broaden their scientific perspectives by sharing ideas and experiences in related topics, as well as building an international human network. This year"s event has drawn about 200 students from 40 countries.
The centerpiece of the conference is three workshops on the following themes; Human-Robot Symbiotic Society, Neo-brain Science and Trafficmatics. Myung-Ja Kim, former Korean Environment Minister, will appear as a keynote speaker.
In the workshop sessions, two speakers will discuss specific issues and arrive at a tentative conclusion. Participants will have the opportunity to participate in the debate through Q&A for each session.
The first theme "Human-Robot Symbiotic Society" delves into the current trend that robot is being transformed into a perceivable and touchable concept from an abstract one. Guests for the workship include June-Ho Oh, professor at the Department of Mechanical Engineering, KAIST; James Dater, professor at the Department of Political Science, University of Hawaii at Manoa, and Director of the Hawaii Research Center for Future; Michael Pollitt, CEO of Shadow Robot Company; and Steven Dubowsky, professor at the Department of Mechanical Engineering, MIT.
The second theme "Neo-Brain Science" focuses on attempts to shed light on brain from diverse perspectives including psychology, economics and art. Among invited speakers are Prof. Jai-Seung Jung at the Department of Bio and Brain Engineering, KAIST; Prof. Un-Jung Kang at the University of Chicago Medical Center; and Peter Geyer, a consultant for the Association for Psychological Type.
The third workshop on "Traffimatics" will deal with "intelligent transport systems (ITS)" which will discusst new paradigm in transportation policy and traffic engineering. On the list of speakers are Assaf Biderman, assistant director, SENSEable City Laboratory, MIT; Prof. Richard Tay, at the Department of Civil Engineering, University of Calgary; Prof. Shoshi Mizokami at Kumamoto University; and Ho-Jong Baik, research associate professor of Virginia Tech.
2008.07.16 View 17097 -
New System to Generate Extreme-Ultraviolet Light Developed
A KAIST research team led by Prof. Seung-Woo Kim of the Mechanical Engineering Department developed a new system for generating coherent extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) light, school authorities announced on June 5.
The new system comes in a metallic nano-structure consisting of a two-dimensional array of gold "bow tie" elements on a sapphire plate. The new process was featured in the British journal Nature on June 5.
The properties of coherent EUV light make it a prime candidate for exciting technological applications. But, at present, the equipment needed to generate the short-wavelength light is costly and bulky. The system developed by Prof. Kim"s research team is expected to reduce both cost and bulk.
The new system uses the conventional principle of high-harmonic generation via the interaction of a femtosecond laser pulse with a gas, but adopts the novel concept of amplifying light by way of local plasmon field enhancement, according to the research team.
2008.06.10 View 12294 -
Emeritus Professor Lee Dies
Jeong-Oh Lee, Emeritus Professor of Mechanical Engineering, died of his chronic disease on June 15, 2007 at his age of 76.
The late Lee began his lecturing career at Mechanical Engineering Department in 1973 and had made considerable devotions to the education and development of mechanical engineering for 24 years. As the former Minister of Science and Technology, former President of Korea Institute of Science and Technology, and former President of Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, he also has made significant contributions to the development of Korean science and technology.
Particularly, he played key roles in vitalizing Daeduk Research Complex (DRC) by planning and executing the movement of government-funded institutes despite the inactive research atmosphere in the early 1980s. He also set up the Extended Council for Technology Promotion, consisting of many distinguished persons from diverse fields under the supervision of the President, to make significant contributions to the promotion and spread of technology innovation among governmental and civil enterprises. He received Cheongjo Geunjeong Medal in 1985 and never stopped his devotion to the education of young students even after his retirement in 1997.
<Funeral Notice>- Date: Sunday, June 17, 2007 at 7 am.- Place: Eulji University Hospital, Daejeon- Graveyard: Cheonan graveyard- Bereaved family Wife Ok-Hyang Kang Son Jong-Sun Lee, Professor of Handong University Han-Sun Lee, LG Chemicals Daughter Myung-Ae Lee Son-in-law Young-Soo Lee, Korea Institute of Industrial Technology- Contact Point: C.P. 019.480.2451 (Han-Sun Lee)
2007.06.18 View 14283 -
Largest Number of Teams Selected From KAIST at 2007 LG Global Challenger Contest
Largest Number of Teams Selected From KAIST at 2007 LG Global Challenger Contest
The largest number of teams has been selected from KAIST at 2007 LG Global Challenger Contest
Despite of the record high competitive rate of 30/ 800, the largest number of teams has been selected from KAIST at 2007 LG Global Challenger Contest.
LG Global Challenger Contest is an exploration program where undergraduate and graduate students perform explorations on their own schedules and share the results with the public online.
Thus far, about 1,500 students from 410 teams have participated in the contest, and the contest is now regarded as the most representative overseas exploration program among university students, showing the average competitive rate of 1/ 20.
Exploration teams are selected by thorough examination and the members of selected teams have to complete the preliminary education program. The exploration teams will perform two-week overseas exploration on their own schedule during the summer vacation and their exploration activities will be relayed through the official web site of the contest by the designated team for online relay.
The exploration teams are obliged to submit the result reports, and the winners of the prize for good reports will be granted scholarship and employment privileges. The followings are the selected teams from KAIST:
Name: U-rekaTopic: U-Eco City, Advanced city where nature and human are well harmonizedMembers: A-Chim Chang (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering)Hyuk-Il Cho (Department of Computer Sciences)Jung-Hyun Hong (Department of Industrial Engineering)Seung-Kyun Ryu (Department of Computer Sciences)
Name: TWIMTopic: The trend of unmanned ground vehicle development and its influence on unmanned societyMembers: Moon-Jung Byun (Department of Mechanical Engineering)Joon-Seok Park (Department of Electrical Engineering)Hye-Sun Hyun (Department of Electrical Engineering)Jong-Hoon Kim (Department of Electrical Engineering)
Team Impediment-free ODATopic: Future way of Korean ODAMembers: Joon-Youn Kim (Department of Industrial Engineering) Jae-Min Kim (Department of Industrial Engineering)Yoon-Jung Choi (Department of Industrial Engineering)Seul-Ki Lee (Department of Industrial Engineering)
2007.06.12 View 15396 -
A doctorate of Mechanical Engineering Named Recipient of Best Student Paper Award at International Society
Seung-Min Ryu, a doctorate of Mechanical Engineering under the supervision of Professor Dong-Yul Yang, has been named as a recipient of the best student paper award of the Society for Information Display (SID).
The title of the paper is ‘the study on the fabrication of super-high resolution cathode separators by X-ray lithography processes’. He proposed at this paper the fabrication of 12 micron-thick cathode separators, which can fabricate further delicate separators than the current 50 micron-thick commercial PDP separators, thereby significantly improving the resolution of PDPs in the future.
Ryu will make an oral presentation on this paper and win the award at the SID conference, which will take place in the U.S. for six days from May 20.
2007.04.23 View 14158 -
Professor Jongwon Lee wins Korean Engineering Award
Professor Jongwon Lee wins Korean Engineering Award
Professor Jongwon Lee of the department of Mechanical Engineering won the 7th Korean Engineering Award conferred by the Ministry of Science and Technology and Korean Science and Engineering Foundation.
Professor Lee is a world-famous scholar in the field of ‘dynamics and vibration of rotors’ and his work in 1993, ‘Vibration Analysis of Rotors’, is highly recognized as a creative and practical research on the dynamics of rotors.
The Korean Engineering Award is conferred on domestic scientists who have made world-level research achievements in the engineering field by the Ministry of Science and Technology and Korean Science and Technology Foundation every two years.
2007.01.11 View 12035
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Gold prize for Sungkoo Yeo and silver prize for Youngsik Kim at 'Samsung Electrics paper contest'
Gold prize for Sungkoo Yeo and silver prize for Youngsik Kim at ‘Samsung Electrics paper contest’
Sungkoo Yeo, doctorate student at the division of Electrical Engineering, and Youngsik Kim, doctorate students at the division of Mechanical Engineering, won gold and silver prizes respectively at ‘the 2nd Inside edge paper contest’ organized by Samsung Electronics.
Yeo, under the supervisory of Professor Youngse Kwon, won the glory of gold prize in recognition of his highly evaluated researches in the fields of silicon-based micro mold manufacturing technologies and fine shaping technologies revealed by his paper of ‘"Fabrication of Microlens array Using PDMS Replica Molding and Oxidized Porous Silicon Bulk Micromachining’.
Kim, under the supervisory of Professor Seungwoo Kim, also won the silver prize for his research performances over the thickness pattern measuring technologies of transparent thin film coated on the pattern of an opaque metal in the field of optical technology unveiled by his paper of "Dispersive white-light interferometry for in-line inspection of thin-film layers on patterned structures".
Inside Edge paper contest is an academic paper contest organized by Samsung Electronics to reveal the fresh ideas and potential technologies of the young talented.
2006.11.27 View 15008
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Former Information and Communication Minister Soonhoon Bae appointed to Vice president of KAIST
“KAIST graduate school of management will be a world-class graduate school of management”
Professor Soonhoon Bae was appointed to the vice president of KAIST in Seoul campus on August 16.
Vice president Bae started his carrier with Daewoo Inc. as the head of the technical H.Q. in Daewoo Heavy Industry in 1976, and took office as the CEO of Daewoo Electronics (1991-95) and Daewoo Inc. (1995-97).
He was also the Minister of Information and Communication in 1998 and the chairman of the Presidential Committee on Northeast Asian Business Hub during 2004-05.
He became an issue by ‘TANKism’, a motto of making strong and core function-convergent electronic goods, when he was the CEO of Daewoo Electronics in 1992. From 1999, he’s made lectures for KAIST graduate school of techno management and Classroom No. 101 in Supex Management Hall where he has made lectures is called ‘tank classroom’.
Vice president Bae expressed his intention of the globalization and level-up of the school by saying, “I will focus on basic researches of management and thus raise the level of KAIST graduate school up to be qualified for Nobel Prize. I’ve taken many high-rank positions such as the CEO of major companies and the minister, however, position doesn’t matter at all. I am fully satisfied with the fact that the organizations that I belonged to have been reborn as world-class communities, and I am planning to lead KAIST graduate school of management in such a direction.”
2006.09.05 View 13352
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18th Student Council Elected
The KAIST Herald December 3, 2003
The votes were cast and counted on November 27. Donggodongrak won the election of the 18th Undergraduage Student Council of Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST). Of the 2,340 eligible voters for the 18th student council election, 1,304 votes, or about 56 percent of the total, were amassed after a full day of election on November 27.
The two candidate teams, waiting to hear the result with much anxiety, were juniors Hye-min Kim and Jung-mo Kim running for the president and vice president positions, respectively, of the team "Donggodongrak" and juniors Dong-geun Kim and Yong-jae Yoon running for the same positions, respectively under the name "Woorung Chonggak."
Donggodongrak secured over 58 percent of the votes, with 760 supporting ballots, while Woorung Chongak polled 503 votes, or about 39 percent of the votes. Forty-one votes, or three percent of the votes cast were spoiled votes. With more than half the voters having participated, the election was valid, and Donggodongrak was declared the new student council of KAIST.
The election platform of the Donggodongrak team largely consist of four themes, composed of several smaller goals. First, they assert the "togetherness" of the student government and plan to achieve it by publishing monthly newsletters, hosting an open outdoor student council every other week, and creating various committees.
Secondly, they assert under the theme of an "improving" student government that they will promote festivals and events among the sixteen departments, form an official "class" of the freshmen, and broaden the association of the student representatives.
Third, Donggodongrak declares it wants to create an "open and just environment" by holding periodic meetings with the school for direct discussions of school policies; and by taking care of the welfare of the students in detail.
Finally, they advocate "a student government that communicates with society"; they will support opportunities to become more aware of various issues of society.
President Hye-min Kim, a graduate of Pusan Science High School, has participated in various intramural, socially active groups, and is majoring in applied mathematics. Vice-president Jung-mo Kim is a graduate of Mokpo High School and studies mechanical engineering.
2004.03.15 View 17573