URI’s Research and Lab Facilities.
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3-D Facility for Biomedical Sciences: Animation, Visualization and Printing. Visit the facility’s website for details.
Bionanotechnology Laboratory. The lab’s research emphasizes colloidal and interfacial science, self-assembly, and lipid biophysics. Visit the lab’s website.
Computational Intelligence and Self-Adaptive Systems (CISA) Laboratory. Though innovative research, this lab designs intelligent computing systems that can think and act like a human brain. Visit the lab’s website.
Computer Architecture Laboratory. The Computer Architecture Lab focuses on the design and evaluation of general-purpose multi-core architectures, power/performance issues for high-performance and embedded computer systems, and design of hardware accelerators.
Corrosion and Surfaces Laboratory. The lab investigates degradation of materials and methods to mitigate degradation of materials, such as coatings. Visit the lab’s website.
Dynamics Photomechanics Laboratory. Established in 1981, the Dynamic Photomechanics Laboratory (DPML) at the University of Rhode Island brings together professionals and students who share an interest in Solid Mechanics. The main objective of the DPML is to conduct collaborative research and develop excellence in these fields. Visit the lab’s website.
Energy Transport and Ultrafast Spectroscopy Laboratory. Researchers in this lab mainly study energy transport, conversion and storage. Laser-based optical techniques and state-of-the-art computational tools are used to study heat transfer at the nano/macro scales. Lab website.
High Performance Computing Laboratory. The lab develops approaches to increasing the speeds of computers, whether though faster data retrieval or smarter memory hierarchy. Visit the lab’s website.
Intelligent Control and Robotics Laboratory. This interdisciplinary research group focuses on multi-robot systems and robotic swarms, aerial robotics, industrial automation, soft robotics and human-robot interaction. Lab website.
Laboratory for Soft Matter Research. Our lab focuses on characterizing and exploiting the physics underlying the behavior of soft materials to understand and elicit novel responsive properties. Lab website.
Mechanics of Materials Research Laboratory. Established in 1981 by Professor Hamouda Ghonem with the mission of developing a better understanding of the role of microstructure in time-dependent deformation and damage mechanisms of advanced engineering materials subjected to complex loading under extreme temperature and environmental conditions. Visit the lab’s website.
Microfluidics and Microsystems Laboratory. The goal of this lab is to develop advanced microfluidic systems to tackle challenges with respect to environmental monitoring, food safety and human health. Visit the lab’s website.
Multiscale & Multiphysics Mechanics of Materials Research Laboratory. The objective of M4RL is to synergistically integrate experiments and multiscale/multiphysics computational approaches to accelerate the design and development of various transformative multifunctional materials for exceptional performance. Lab website.
NanoBio Engineering Laboratory. The lab develops, characterizes and implements functionalized carbon nanotubes for bioimaging and biosensing applications. Lab website.
Network Security and Trust (NEST) Laboratory. With security an essential requirement in most network applications, this lab aims to develop trust establishment mechanisms that can stimulate collaboration among distributed computing and communication entities, facilitate the detection of untrustworthy entities, and assist decision-making in various protocols. Visit the lab’s website.
Neural Processing and Control Laboratory. The main research is focused on better understanding of brain function using the cutting edge of neural engineering and cognitive neuroscience knowledge with the goal of developing the translational medicine and, therefore, improving the quality of life of patients with neurological impairments. Lab website.
Neuro Rehabilitation Laboratory. The main areas of research in the Besio Lab are brain computer interfacing and neuromodulation. Electroencephalography (EEG) is the least costly and most widely used noninvasive technique for diagnosing many brain problems. It has high temporal resolution, but lacks high spatial resolution and is usually fraught with artifacts such as from muscle contractions. To improve the EEG spatial resolution and signal-to-noise ratio, Dr. Besio has pioneered the development of the tripolar concentric ring electrode configuration. Lab website.
Next Generation Sensing Technology Lab. This group of engineering researchers incorporates cutting-edge advances in wave optics, microwave photonics, and related areas into novel sensor technologies that address critical problems in science and industry. Visit the lab’s website.
Nonlinear Dynamics Laboratory. The Research in Nonlinear Dynamics Laboratory focuses on topics in nonlinear dynamics and vibrations, including: nonlinear time series analysis; damage diagnosis and prognosis in engineered, geophysical and biological systems; failure/damage mechanics; nonlinear system and parameter identification; modal testing and analysis; dynamics, stability and control of engineered systems. Lab website.
OPERA Lab (Ocean Platforms, Experiments, and Research in Acoustics). The OPERA Lab, led by Professor Lora Van Uffelen, has a broad interest in the area of underwater acoustics and a particular focus on the use of autonomous underwater vehicles as acoustic receiving platforms. Lab website.
Particle Engineering Laboratory. This research group seeks to address the drug delivery challenges of nanoparticles associated with overcoming physiological barriers. These barriers include, but are not limited to, the mucosal lining of tissues, tumor parenchyma, and the air-blood barrier within the lungs. Lab website.
Pharmaceutical Engineering Laboratory. This group seeks to address the drug delivery challenges associated with overcoming and subsequently penetrating physiological barriers. These barriers include, but are not limited to, the mucosal lining of tissues, tumor parenchyma, and the blood-brain barrier. This work involves a wide variety of skills involving pharmaceutical engineering and biomedical sciences such as particle formulation and engineering, physicochemical characterization of particle systems, and the development of in vitro cell models for the evaluation of these systems. Visit the lab’s website.
Power Electronics Laboratory. Research interests in this lab include electrical energy generation, power conversion and storage systems. More specifically, the group is researching high-efficiency power conversion systems for various applications, such as server/network power systems, electric ground/aerial vehicles and renewable energy systems. Lab website.
Rhode Island Consortium for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology. Established by Congress, the consortium is a joint initiative between the University of Rhode Island and Brown University and focuses on enhancing Rhode Island’s competitiveness in nanoscience and nanotechnology by fostering research collaboration, building infrastructure and promoting corporate investment. Visit the consortium’s website.
Rhode Island Transportation Research Laboratory. Through interdisciplinary research in the areas of intelligent transportation infrastructure and systems for all modes of transportation, the lab seeks to better our transportation infrastructure. Visit the lab’s website.
Rhode Island Water Resources Center. Chartered by Congress, the center is part of a network of institutes that promotes communication, multi-disciplinary research and policy analyses among members of the academic, government and private sector communities with water research expertise. Visit the center’s website.
Robotics Laboratory for Complex Underwater Environments (R CUE). The goal of this lab is to develop maritime robots with the ability to operate in dynamic and unpredictable environments.
Smart Networking and Computing Laboratory. In the SNeC Lab, research is conducted at the intersection of networking and machine learning, and their applications in various complex networked systems, including wireless virtual/augmented reality, mobile edge computing, mobile crowd-learning, Internet-of-Things, and communication networks. Lab website.
Sustainable Innovative Solutions (SIS) Laboratory. Though the SIS Lab has a broad premise, it is primarily focused on the understanding of how the human element influences sustainability. A single engineer working in isolation cannot deliver sustainability. Who delivers sustainability, and how? The research in the SIS lab ranges from traditional notions of sustainability (i.e., electric vehicles, product classifications) to human behavior modeling (i.e., teams creating sustainable products, communication, team performance). Lab website.
Thermomechanics Laboratory. The Thermomechanics Lab makes uses experiments and analytical models on materials in the areas of continuum mechanics to solve real-world engineering problems. Tribological problems related to contact mechanics and dissipative processes are also of special interest. Visit the lab’s website.
Undersea Robotics and Imaging Laboratory. Researchers specialize in creating novel systems for oceanographic research and deep-sea exploration, with a focus on low-light imaging systems, manipulators, and lightweight, low-cost technology. The team is hardware-centric and conducts extensive fieldwork around the world. Lab website.
Water for the World Environmental Engineering Laboratory. The lab’s mission is to develop, implement and evaluate efficient, safe and clean technologies to provide safe water for society. Lab website.
Wearable Biosensing Laboratory. The lab conducts interdisciplinary research between biomedical sensors and wearable embedded systems. The goal of the lab is to simplify the design of point-of-care medical devices to a point where individuals are enveloped by unobtrusive health sensing elements for telemonitoring disease symptoms and remote healthcare management. Lab website.
Core Educational Facilities
Acoustic Tank. Located at the Narragansett Bay Campus, the acoustic tank is a 25-foot long, 13-foot wide, 11-foot deep pool used for experimentation with hydrophones, underwater camera calibrations, and autonomous and remote operated marine robotics testing. The tank has an electronics and computer station for signal processing and data acquisition and also a gantry system above it with two rotating positioning towers.
Engineering Computer Center. The Engineering Computer Center serves as the hub for computer educational services and support for the College of Engineering. Center website.
Wave Tank. Hosted at the Narragansett Bay Campus, the wave tank is a 30m long, 3.6m wide 1.8m deep tank with a hinged, flapper style hydraulic wave maker at the bottom. The LabVIEW and Matlab based control system is capable of producing both regular and irregular waves in a wide array of wave heights and periods. It has 20m of adjustable beach for different shoaling profiles and a 2 m/s towing carriage. It is used for a broad range of testing, including work on tsunamis, wave energy extraction, acoustic measurement of surface waves and wave-induced forcing on marine structures.
Other Core Labs available at URI.
Other available resources in Rhode Island.
Research Centers
National Center for Undersea Vehicle Technology (NIUVT). The National Institute for Undersea Vehicle Technology is a university-industry partnership that collaborates with the Navy to advance the capabilities of the next generation US undersea fleet by training innovative workforce and by accelerating the research, development, and transition of key enabling technologies. Center website.
Contact us
Please send an email to bec@uri.edu or call 401.874.7084 to connect with one of our relationship managers.