Vision Systems Group
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Centre for Image Processing & Analysis

Education & Outreach

The Vision Systems Group also runs a wide ranging Education & Outreach programme covering undergraduate & graduate education along with undergraduate internships and outreach into second level education.


Undergraduate Modules

EE425: Image Processing & Analysis. This module will concentrate on developing the fundamentals necessary to design and develop a wide range of imaging solutions. Such solutions relate to the fields of computer and machine vision, video data processing, imaging graphics, imaging science, multimedia and enhanced reality systems.


Graduate Education (Taught)

EE544: Computer and Machine Vision. Would you like to participate in an online course in Computer and Machine Vision? Well now you can. A fully integrated online course has been developed by the Vision Systems Group. This course will combine the interactive power of the Internet with detailed course notes on many practical aspects of vision technology. It is expected that people with a wide range of backgrounds, including technical, engineering, manufacturing, production and computer science will find this course useful. As vision technology begins to play an ever increasing role, can you afford to let this opportunity pass? (Registration information is available).

NEW - Unique Major in Image Processing & Analysis is now available within the Masters in Electronic Systems. The growth of applications in manufacturing, biomedicine, media, ICT and the life sciences is creating a strong demand for graduates in the Image Processing & Analysis field. This Major will prepare graduates to specialise in the areas of image processing and analysis, computer & machine vision, biomedical imaging and image synthesis techniques. Students taking this Major will study from a selection of IPA modules:

See the School of Electronic Engineering graduate education web site for additional details.


Graduate Education (Research)

IRCSET PhD Studentships: The VSG currently hosts 4 IRCSET funded PhD students. Prospective Ph.D. students can apply via the Irish Research Council for Science, Engineering and Technology (IRCSET) funded Embark Initiative. See our open positions page for details on other research related jobs and studentships.


SFI UREKA Summer Internships

2007: Zhenning Su - second year undergraduate student in DCU. The main goal of this project was to create an rotation invariant texture analysis system. This project required the student to utilize his knowledge of computer science and software engineering to develop computer vision solutions. Zhenning worked as part of a larger team and interacted with his research colleagues during the course of this placement.

What they said:"The experiences obtained by participating in this program are extremely valuable since the knowledge learnt throughout the progress of this project was extremely useful and may impact significantly on my future career." "During this short research programme I had the opportunity to learn many texture analysis techniques and more importantly how to apply them to practical problems." "As this program was carried out in a real laboratory, I had the chance to work in a research environment"

2006: Tony Marrero Barroso - second year undergraduate student in DCU. The main goal of this project was to create an imaging system with a controllable environment, in which mole image samples of the skin could be taken. The method of diagnosis that was used was to capture the mole images under different frequencies of light. The images obtained are required to have a high quality of detail to be successfully analysed by machine vision software techniques.

What they said:"This project gave me the opportunity to work in a team and I will be willing to pursue research in the area of machine vision in the future. Maybe what was most beneficial to me was that I learned to put into practice the knowledge that I have obtained. To tackle a real life problem, and think of a design that was appropriate to solve those problems and achieve the desired result. While doing this, I learned a lot about time management and about how to approach the design and building processes in a simple foolproof logical manner to avoid mistakes. Naturally, most of what I learnt has been gradual by knowing why those mistakes occurred, and making sure that my methodology for the future would not give those mistakes a chance to repeat again"

2006: Donnchadh O h Ainle - second year undergraduate student in DCU. Donnchadh worked on adding functionality to the VSGs virtual colonoscopy software package (NeatCTC). Computed Tomography Colonography or CTC interprets and processes X-ray CT data from an abdominal 'CAT' or CT scan. The scans come in the DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine) format, a standard developed by the American College of Radiology Manufacturers Association to define the connectivity and communication protocols of medical imaging devices. The software has been developed to present this data in various forms to the user (a radiologist) including orthographic views of 'slices' through the abdomen and virtual 3D fly through of the colon. In addition, unique algorithms have been developed to automatically detect both 'flat' and 'pedunculated' polyp features, should they exist. His research focussed on three key areas - Manual colon segmentation - Select local volume rendering - Report generation and output (PDF format).

What they said: "The fulltime research environment was a departure from the undergraduate student situation. It was a chance to apply myself for a period of time to some real engineering challenges. Over all this has been a very rewarding opportunity. The research tasks set were challenging, useful and realistic considering my abilities as an undergraduate entering the third year of my degree."

Prospective Undergraduate / Intern students can apply for via the SFI UREKA (Undergraduate Research Experience & Knowledge Award). Potential applicants should contact the VSG directly.


Outreach to Second Level

2005: SFI Secondary Teacher Assistant Researcher (STAR) Niamh Sullivan from Mercy College, Coolock, joins the Vision Systems Group for the summer. Niamh was employed employed under the SFI (STARs) programme which aims to help teachers renew their interest in science and engineering and develop new skills so as a to enrich the teaching of maths and science at second level. Niamh worked in the area of colon cancer detection under the direction of Professor Paul Whelan in the Vision Systems Laboratory. Specifically, the lab is designing software, using 3-D imaging, to detect polyps of the colon at a pre-cancerous stage while concomitantly minimising the levels of radiation being used. Her aim was to explain this large project in terms that would be accessible and interesting to second-level students. She also focused on making higher- level maths relevant to the student i.e. explaining the role that mathematical formulae have in computer vision.

What they said: "I began working in Dublin City University in the Vision System Group's Laboratory in the School of Electronic Engineering. My time here was spent developing and designing a web site that explains the complex research that is carried out in the laboratory in a more general sense so that people with little or limited scientific background can understand the research been done here. Since Mathematics plays a key role in Engineering and Computer Science, part of the web site was dedicated to make Leaving Certificate Higher level Mathematics more relevant to the 'real' world. My experience in DCU has been both enjoyable and interesting. I have learnt a great deal, not only about the research been done but also the skills and competencies needed to be a researcher."

Prospective applicants should first refer to the SFI terms and conditions of the Secondary Teacher Assistant Researchers (STARs) programme . Then they can discuss their proposal with a member of the Vision Systems Group team which most closely matchs their research interest.


General

The VSG makes a large amount of its software available for both public use (NeatVision) and to the wider scientific community.