SECOND INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON MECHATRONICS AND  MACHINE 

VISION IN PRACTICE; MMVIP '95


CITY UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG
12-14TH SEPTEMBER 1995
        
CALL FOR PAPERS
        
INTRODUCTION

Mechatronics is the basis of an ever growing list of products and 
techniques of great technical and commercial value. Microcomputer 
control,  mechanical and electronic systems  are amalgamated   in 
an  integrated  design, enabling mechatronic systems  to  achieve 
objectives which were previously impractical. Mechatronic  design 
can  result  in  products  which  are  much  simpler  than  their 
intricate and costly predecessors.

Machine-vision  is  emerging  from the laboratory  to  find  real 
applications  in  areas  which include  vehicle  guidance,  robot 
control, surgery and agriculture.

M2VIP'95  will   provide a forum for  international  experts  and 
researchers  to  present  and  review advances  in   mechatronics  
and   machine vision which have culminated in  practical   appli-
cations,  or   which  promise  practical  implementation  in  the 
very near future. Presentations will be especially welcome  which  
include  video  material or experimental systems.

SCOPE

Papers are sought in which  technical  innovation is backed up by 
evidence   of  original and practical implementation   at   least  
to  prototype stage.  It is hoped that  most  presentations  will 
include  a brief video of working  apparatus. Proposals and  sug-
gestions for  special  sessions and panel  discussions  will   be  
welcomed.

The  following  topics  are just a few of  those  which  will  be 
relevant  to  the  conference:

* Vision  guidance  including  factory  and road vehicles.
* Mobile robots and telechirs.
* Mechatronics in construction, civil engineering, agriculture 
  and other non-industrial based applications.
* Visiual recognition in manufacturing processes including quali-
  ty  control  and sorting.
* Mechatronics and machine vision in the garment and toy indus
  tries.
* "Intelligent" products - ranging  from consumer  items  to 
  automated  manufacturing systems.
* Sensory control of robots - for  exploration, security,  detec-
  tion,  maintenance, hazardous environments, compliant assembly.
* Novel actuator  and  sensor  systems  for mechatronic infra
  structure.
* Control  strategies  and  design  methodologies  of    particu-
  lar   relevance   to mechatronics.
* Mechatronics in surgery and medicine.
* Mechatronics education

PAPER SUBMISSION

Please submit three copies of a 2 page extended abstract, or a  1 
page abstract and a VHS video  to:

Robin Bradbeer
Department of Electronic Engineering
City University of Hong Kong
Kowloon Tong
Hong Kong
Tel: +852 2788 7199. Fax: +852 2788 7791. 
E-mail: eertbrad@cityu.edu.hk

Video  'poster' displays are also planned. Submissions  for  this 
are  welcome.  However full details have yet to be  finalised.  A 
compilation  video, including those shown during paper  presenta-
tions  and  any 'poster' sessions, will  supplement  the  printed 
proceedings,  if the quality and content is of sufficient  inter-
est.

Further  details  of  the conference,  including  a  registration  
pack, are available from the above address for those who wish  to 
attend but not submit a paper. The expected registration fee will 
be  in the order of US$200-250. This will include all  conference 
sessions, lunches, reception, banquet and proceedings.

INVITED SESSIONS AND PANELS

The conference welcomes proposals for invited sessions and panels 
to be submitted to:

Dr Kamineni P Rao
Department of Manufacturing Engineering
City University of Hong Kong
Kowloon Tong
Hong Kong
Tel: +852 2788 8409. Fax: +852 2788 8423. 
E-mail: mekprao@cityu.edu.hk

The  organiser  of  each invited session/panel  should  submit  a 
title, a brief description on the relevance of the  session/panel 
to  the  conference, and a maximum of four invited  papers  (each 
with an abstract of 2 pages) for review.

IMPORTANT DATES
*       1st April 1995          Submission deadline
*       15th May 1995           Notification of acceptance
*       1st August 1995         Submission of camera ready papers

LOCAL ARRANGEMENTS

Hong  Kong,  acknowledged as the Pearl of the  Orient,  cordially 
invites delegates to the 1995 Second International Conference  on 
Mechatronics and Machine Vision in Practice. The conference  will 
take place at the  new City University of Hong Kong.  The Univer-
sity  is in the centre of Kowloon and is close to  many  shopping 
malls, world-class hotels and recreational facilities. It is also 
at the crossroads of the mass transit systems.
   
This thriving city is now the world's busiest container port, and 
one  of  the biggest shopping and commercial centres.   Tax  free 
prices make it a shoppers' paradise.  With the highest per capita 
income  in Asia outside of Japan, Hong Kong has an ambience  that 
is  its own.  The mixture of Chinese and Western influences  pro-
vides a unique conference destination.
   
Hong  Kong is also home to some of the region's  top  educational 
and  scientific  establishments, and special study tours  to  the 
research  laboratories of the universities and  industrial  sites 
can be arranged. The Department of Manufacturing Engineering,  in 
collaboration  with the Department of Electronic Engineering,  at 
CityU,  for  example, has one of the first   Mechatronics  degree 
courses in Asia.  During the conference the laboratories of these 
two  departments  at CityU will be open to show  their  work   in 
mechatronics and machine vision, and also to allow presenters  to 
have  the opportunity to demonstrate their work. There will  also 
be an exhibition associated with the conference.
   
Hong Kong is not all skyscraper buildings and industry; there  is 
also  some stunning scenery with over 40% of the land area  dedi-
cated to country parks, and short excursions can easily be  orga-
nised.  Longer tours to the outlying islands, of which there  are 
235, can also be arranged.  The main attraction of Hong Kong  for 
many  visitors,  though,  is its proximity  to  China.   Just  35 
minutes  away  by train from the conference site is  the  booming 
border  city  of  Shenzhen.  Here you can  see  China's  economic 
miracle at first hand.
   
Further  up the railway line is the provincial capital of  Guang-
zhou, again a showcase for China's new economics. The Pearl River 
delta,  of which Hong Kong and Guangdong are part, has  been  the 
world's fastest growing economic zone for the past decade.   Some 
50 minutes from Hong Kong by hydrofoil is the Portuguese territo-
ry of Macau.  This small enclave boasts some of the best food  in 
the  region as well as a southern European charm seldom found  so 
far from the Mediterranean.
  
For  those wanting to venture further, tours to the famous  moun-
tains  of Guilin, for example, can be arranged.  Most  countries' 
citizens have visa-free access to Hong Kong, and its airport  has 
direct flights to most major cities around the world.  
        
CONFERENCE ORGANISING  COMMITTEE

CONFERENCE CO-CHAIRMEN

Prof J Billingsley
University of Southern Queensland
Australia

Prof V Patri
City University of Hong Kong

LOCAL ORGANISING COMMITTEE

Robin Bradbeer (Chairman)
City University Of Hong Kong

Peter Tse (Treasurer)
City University of Hong Kong

Sherman Lang (Secretary)
City University of Hong Kong

Daniel Chan
Hong Kong Productivity Council

A K David
Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Raymond Yip
City University of Hong Kong

K C Smith
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

Peter K S Tam
Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Lam Yeung
City University of Hong Kong

INTERNATIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Herb Rauch, USA
Derek Atherton, UK
Zhu Qin, China
T S Ng, Hong Kong
S W Lui, Hong Kong
Xu Guangyou, China
Makato Kajitani, Japan


INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMME COMMITTEE
S K Tso, Hong Kong (Chairman)
T J Tarn, USA (Co-Chairman)
J Hewit, UK
F Naghdy, Australia
D Leung, Hong Kong
J Trevelyan, Australia
S Yuta, Japan
T Fukuda, Japan
M Rodd, UK
K Simsarian, Sweden
R Willgoss, Australia
H Shinno, Japan
M Vincze, Austria
A Collie, UK
C J Harris, UK
Sun Jian, China
Zhou Zhaoying, China
Zhu Qiye, China
K Yamafuji, Japan
M Gupta, Canada
P N Brett, UK

(This list will be expanded as more confirmations arrive)

ORGANISED BY

IEEE Hong Kong Section
IEEE Robotics and Automation/Control Systems Joint Chapter

TECHNICAL CO-SPONSORS

IEEE Robotics and Automation Society
IEEE Control Systems Society
IEE Hong Kong Centre
HKIE  Electronics Division
Chinese Society for the Promotion of Mechatronics Engineering

SPONSORED BY

City University of Hong Kong

WORLD MICROMOUSE CHAMPIONSHIPS

As part of M2VIP '95 it is planned to hold the 1995 World 
Micromouse Championships. Micromouse, being the embodiment of 
mechatronics, is a well established international event. 

It is expected that around 30 of the world's top 'mousers' 
will be in Hong Kong to enter the event, which will take place 
after the conference, on 15th-16th September. 

All delegates are invited to stay on for a few more days 
and witness this fascinating contest.