PI: Billie F. Spencer, Jr. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The objective of this project is to establish a US-Japan Joint Working Group to develop a bilateral research program in Sensors, Smart Structures, and Mechatronic Systems that meets the mutual interests and integrates the respective strengths of the two countries. Advances of enabling technologies such as information technology, communication and miniaturization coupled with ever increasing needs for higher performance, increased functionality and safety/reliability enhancement at reduced costs have set the sensor technology and the engineering of sensor-based intelligent systems at the threshold of major growth. The two countries have vigorous research and development activities in the field, but it requires efforts by both US researchers and Japanese researchers to identify topics and areas of most effective and meaningful collaboration. A comprehensive plan will be developed, including goals and objectives, major research directions and thrusts, anticipated outcome and milestones, resources needed, and other supplemental information as industrial and educational components and their values, and practical applications as they impact on the civil infrastructures, aerospace and mechatronic systems, and earthquake hazard mitigation. Successful completion of this effort will facilitate broader international student exchange, technology transfer thru test bed experiments and transfusion of research data, education /training of engineers in the region for smart structure design, and promote smart structures and integrated mechatronic systems activity with regional industries.
