CSIRO selects 11 teams for ON Accelerator program

A GPS-free collision avoidance sensor for drones and facial-recognition technology for accurate pain assessment are among the projects selected to take part in the next round of CSIRO’s ON Accelerator.

Eleven teams of scientists and researchers from CSIRO and Australian universities have been shortlisted for the next round.

Winning teams were selected based on the potential of their ideas to have a positive impact on Australian industry, economy and the environment, among other factors.

One of the selected ideas is a GPS-free method of allowing drones and unmanned aerial vehicles to fly autonomously near infrastructure, using sensors to avoid collision.

The CSIRO said this technology has the potential to help the UAV and drone markets expand into new areas such as parcel delivery, meaning it has potential applications in Australia Post’s vision of using drones to rapidly deliver time-critical items such as medicine.

Another project involves using facial recognition technology to provide accurate, real-time pain assessment for patients unable to verbally communicate.

The 11 teams were selected from a group of 25 that participated in a two-day selection boot camp earlier in the month. They will now participate in the next round of the program, which is expected to take three months to complete.

This marks the first time the CSIRO has allowed university applications into the program. Curtin University and a team from Macquarie University, University of Adelaide and the ANU secured the two wildcard spots in the next ON Accelerator.

Starting in July, the CSIRO said it will expand the ON Accelerator program to include all publicly funded research organisations in addition to universities.

Image courtesy of Michael Coghlan under CC