University of Technology SydneyHandbook 2007

Postgraduate course information

Postgraduate research

Postgraduate research

Contacts and inquiries
Research strengths and laboratories
Formal external research links

Applicants for research degrees should discuss their proposed research with either the Program Leader for Postgraduate Research Degrees or their chosen supervisor before submitting applications. The Faculty's Research Officer can assist applicants in contacting members of staff and in completing the application form.

Contacts and inquiries

General inquiries should be directed to:

University Graduate School
telephone +61 2 9514 1336

or (within the Faculty)

Research Officer
telephone +61 2 9514 4460

Research strengths and laboratories

The Faculty has been active in research and has established strong links with industry, as well as significantly contributing to international research. It has developed a number of research strengths through research laboratories that bring together Faculty staff, experts, students and external organisations to develop new and innovative ideas and apply them in practice. The quality and relevance of research in the laboratories is enhanced by well-established links, both with industry and with overseas research institutions. Graduate research students, academics, visiting researchers and research assistants undertake collaborative research within these laboratories. Within the Faculty, a wide range of information technology research is supported by a variety of research centres/groups/laboratories. The Faculty's research strengths are:

Distributed Knowledge and Intelligence

This research develops ways to provide higher value and extracts knowledge from both business practice and corporate data. Areas of research include:

  • collaborative learning and knowledge construction
  • computer-supported collaborative work
  • combinatorial optimisation
  • business process modelling
  • data mining
  • distributed databases and computing
  • e-markets
  • knowledge-based systems
  • multi-agent systems
  • negotiation processes in e-business
  • ontologies to create semantic webs
  • extended enterprises.
Laboratories and contacts
Extended Enterprise and Business Intelligence Laboratory (EXEL)
Professor Tharam Dillon
email tharam@it.uts.edu.au
Smart e-Business Systems Laboratory
Professor John Debenham
email debenham@it.uts.edu.au
Innovation and Technology Research Laboratory
Professor Mary-Anne Williams
email mary-anne@it.uts.edu.au
Cooperative Systems Laboratory
Professor I T Hawryszkiewycz
email igorh@it.uts.edu.au

Networking and Mobility

Research in Networking and Mobility develops service architecture, especially the provision of supporting mechanisms that emphasise intelligent assistance for the creation of on-demand services and integration with mobile devices. Areas of research include:

  • high-performance computing
  • network architecture
  • mHealth
  • mobile agents
  • QoS and multimedia applications
  • QoS control mechanisms
  • parallel and grid computing
  • P2P and overlay networks security
  • web services and semantic web.
Laboratories and contacts
Advanced Research in Networking
Professor Doan Hoang
email dhoang@it.uts.edu.au

Software Engineering

This research involves developing techniques and processes, and tailoring methodologies to realise best practices and improve productivity of software development, taking organisational factors into account. Areas of research include:

  • enterprise systems design and development
  • component-based software engineering
  • information modelling and management
  • programming language design and semantics
  • project management
  • software agent technology
  • software process improvement
  • method engineering
  • software quality methodologies for commercial software development
  • modelling (particularly with UML and MDA)
  • systems development methodologies
  • object technology systems integration
  • systems/software architecture.
Laboratories and contacts
Centre for Object Technology Applications and Research (COTAR)
Professor Brian Henderson-Sellers
email brian@it.uts.edu.au
Language Design Laboratory
Associate Professor Barry Jay
email cbj@it.uts.edu.au
Requirements Engineering
Associate Professor Didar Zowghi
email didar@it.uts.edu.au

Human–Computer Systems

This research involves determining ways to use technology within organisational and social settings to improve communication and foster practices that employ creativity and innovation. Areas of research include:

  • cognitive aspects of software design
  • computation and creative media
  • computer–human systems
  • creative practice in digital arts and design
  • human work practice
  • interaction design
  • intelligent interfaces
  • social and personal impact of Internet applications
  • ubiquitous computing
  • usability of mobile and web-based applications
  • user–developer relationships
  • virtual worlds and communities.
Laboratories and contacts
Creativity and Cognitive Studios
Professor Ernest Edmonds
email ernest@it.uts.edu.au
Interaction Design and Work Practice Laboratory
Dr Toni Robertson
email toni@it.uts.edu.au
VINES
Dr Jim Underwood
email jim@it.uts.edu.au

Visual Information Processing

The research into Visual Information Processing captures visual images through computer vision or other inputs and processes these images to recognise and display patterns or present data visually as graphs. It also generates computer graphics and develops games. Areas of research include:

  • computer vision and image processing
  • information visualisation
  • computer graphics and animation
  • search and visualisation methodologies for the Internet
  • visual pattern recognition.
Laboratories and contacts
Vision and Image Processing
Dr Xiangjian (Sean) He
email sean@it.uts.edu.au
Visualisation Laboratory
Dr Mao-Lin Huang
email maolin@it.uts.edu.au

Formal external research links

The Faculty research groups have a number of formal links to external organisations. These include:

Capital Markets CRC – aims to be the technology provider of choice to global securities businesses/markets. It supports research programs in corporate governance, data mining, interoperability, language technology, market design and visualisation. For details, contact:

Professor Chengqi Zhang
email Chengqi.Zhang@uts.edu.au
CRC for Interaction Design – the primary focus is on innovative and creative interaction design for computer systems. For details, contact:

Professor Ernest Edmonds
email ernest@it.uts.edu.au
Visual Image Processing – a key University strength that encompasses all different kinds of processing dealing with information of a visual nature. For details, contact:

Vision and Image Processing
Dr Xiangjian (Sean) He
email sean@it.uts.edu.au
Visualisation Laboratory
Dr Mao-Lin Huang
email maolin@it.uts.edu.au

or

Associate Professor Massimo Piccardi
email massimo@it.uts.edu.au
ARC Research Network in Enterprise Information Infrastructure (EII) – a network of 12 universities focusing on research in emerging advanced technologies and practices for large-scale enterprises, government agencies and community groups. For details, contact:

Professor Igor Hawryszkiewycz
email igorh@it.uts.edu.au