The newsletter will highlight your ongoing activities and accomplishments, not only on the research front but also on education and outreach. We hope to keep you up-to-date on the broad research activities within the Institute, as well as provide opportunities for collaboration. We look forward to connecting with you.
Swarup Bhunia, Director & Semmoto Endowed Professor, ECE
My T. Thai, Associate Director & UF Research Foundation Professor, CISE
Warren B. Nelms Institute Hosts 2nd Annual IoT ConferenceThe 2024 Warren B. Nelms Annual IoT Conference was held Dec. 5–6 in the heart of the University of Florida campus. Organized along the theme of ‘Secure and Intelligent Internet of Things for Solving Global Problems,’ the conference successfully brought together thought leaders and researchers from academia, industry, and government to explore the current state of Internet of Things (IoT) technology and its convergence with artificial intelligence (AI). More than 300 attendees and 25 invited speakers filled the NVIDIA Auditorium in Malachowsky Hall over the two-day event. |
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Introducing Hands-On Microelectronics Fundamentals in Children’s MuseumsResearchers in the Warren B. Nelms Institute are developing a curriculum on microelectronics and artificial intelligence (AI) that will support and encourage engaging, hands-on learning for upper-elementary students in a unique setting– children’s museums. Through a partnership with the Cade Museum for Creativity and Invention in Gainesville, FL, the curriculum will be delivered as a two-week summer camp at the museum from July 14th to July 25th, 2025. |
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Dr. Yan Wang Aims to Enhance Disaster Preparedness StrategiesDr. Yan Wang, assistant professor in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, has received a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant to fund the project, “RAPID: Assessing Urgent Time Use Dynamics Among Time-Poor Populations in Preparation for Hurricane Helene and Milton.” After a destructive 2024 Hurricane Season with hurricanes Helene and Milton impacting the Southeast, the need for efficient disaster preparedness is clear. This project aims to evaluate a hurricane warning period’s effectiveness and how different populations allocate their time to prepare. |
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Dr. Christophe Bobda Leads Research on Using AI to Improve Surgical RoboticsWhile not elbow deep in the flesh, blood, rubber and metal of surgical robotics, engineering researchers at the University of Florida are playing a key role in advancing safety and precision in robot-assisted surgery, or RAS. Professor Christophe Bobda, Ph.D., and Ph.D. student Antonio Hendricks are analyzing vast datasets from robot-assisted procedures, processing them using artificial intelligence and finding patterns and processes that can be improved. |
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F1Tenth Autonomous Driving Wins 1st Place in IoT Conference Demo CompetitionThe two-day Warren B. Nelms Annual IoT Conference featured student demo and poster competitions, showcasing innovative projects on a variety of Internet of Things (IoT) topics. Among the 25 student demos, “F1Tenth Autonomous Driving” was awarded the Best Demo Award by industry and government judges. The demo highlighted the capabilities of an F1Tenth car, a one-tenth scale autonomous race car. |
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Join the IoT Students Club!Discover the exciting world of the Internet of Things! The IoT Students Club offers many fun-filled events such as hands-on IoT workshops, panels, and social events. The club is open to all undergraduate and graduate students in any major or department at University of Florida. |
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Publication on AI’s Impact in Healthcare to Appear in ‘IEEE Reviews in Biomedical Engineering’In this review paper, researchers explore the transformative potential of foundation models in medicine, from enhancing clinical decision-making to driving biomedical research. The paper highlights both the opportunities and challenges of these models, including interpretability, fairness, and adaptation to domain-specific needs. The paper titled, “A Comprehensive Survey of Foundation Models in Medicine” will be published in IEEE Reviews in Biomedical Engineering. This paper is authored by Wasif Khan, Seowung Leem, Kyle B. See, Ph.D., Joshua K. Wong, Shaoting Zhang, and Ruogu Fang, Ph.D. |
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Research portfolioWarren B. Nelms Institute research addresses major world challenges relating to public health, energy, education, transportation, and more. Together with our esteemed group of multi-disciplinary faculty and students, we are developing broad Internet of Things (IoT) technologies and their applications to create more secure, sustainable, and connected communities. With billions of IoT-connected devices al-ready in the world today—and billions more in the coming years—the institute remains at the forefront of this burgeoning field while creating a critical mass of expertise at the convergence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and IoT. We invite you to browse our current and ongoing Warren B. Nelms Institute research projects. |
