Mike Lipsett: University of Alberta

Professor, Mechanical Engineering

Ernest & Gertrude Poole Chair in Management for Engineers

Ph.D. Queen’s University (1995)

Graduate Diploma (Applied Systems Science), Kyoto University, Japan (1990)

 

Welcome to my Web Page.

My research interests focus on the reliability of complex energy systems, especially in oilsands. Reliability is the likelihood that some system will remain operating properly for a required length of time. As systems become more complex, it becomes harder to predict whether something will last, and what to do as a system begins to fail.

 

I am currently working on integrated oilsands systems, an area which combines systems modeling and analysis, reliability engineering, and classification techniques. I am also interested in robotic systems for remote and hazardous environments, such as robotic aircraft to monitor pipelines for leaks, and rovers for ensuring that tailings deposits are safe. This is part of making industrial processes more sustainable.

 

Before coming to U of A, I was an industrial researcher in oilsands processes for Syncrude Canada Ltd., including mining automation and extraction processes. Prior to that, I did reliability research, and developed remote tooling and robotic systems, for Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd (AECL).

 

How to Contact Me

M.G. Lipsett Ph.D. P.Eng.

Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering

5-8J Mechanical Engineering Building

University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta  T6G 2G8   CANADA

tel: 780-492-9494      fax: 780-492-2200

email: michael [dot] lipsett [at] ualberta [dot] ca

 

Links on This Page:

Administrative Responsibilities

Teaching

Current Research

Opportunities for Graduate Students

Current Research Activities

Previous Research

Publications

Committees & Service Work

Personal Stuff

 

Administrative Responsibilities

As holder of the Ernest & Gertrude Poole Chair in Management for Engineers, I direct the Engineering Management program in the Faculty of Engineering here at the University of Alberta. This is an exciting area of engineering, which recognizes that the complex technological problems of today can only be solved through teamwork and effective organizations. More detail is available on the MEC E website on engineering management undergraduate courses, graduate programs, and research interests of the faculty involved in engineering management. You can also contact me with questions.

 

Until December 2009, I was the Associate Chair for Graduate Program in Mechanical Engineering and Engineering Management. Prof. Peter Schiavone now has this role.

 

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Teaching

 

In the Fall 2012  term I am teaching:

ENG M 401 & ENG M 620 Section X1, Fundamentals of Engineering Finance, offered Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings (MWF 5:00 pm to 5:50 pm); ENGM 620 has additional investment analysis group project work beyond the ENGM 401 material, and a seminar on Wednesdays 6:00 pm to 7:50 pm. 

This is where we discover that engineering is technology at the right price, and that all value cannot be measured with money.

Registration is now open for both ENGM 401 X1 and ENGM 620.

 

In the Winter term, I will be teaching:

ENG M 541 & ENG M 670, Modeling and Simulation of Engineering Systems. with lectures on Wednesdays from 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm in ETLC 2-001, and a lab for ENGM 541 on Thursdays from 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm in ETLC 2-005. 

This course shows us that sophisticated engineering analysis can be done based on a small number of basic formulations in mathematical physics expressed as differential equations that are derived from lumped-parameter representations of a physical system. As well, many engineering systems can be very well represented without deep insights into the physics, using a discrete-event formulation.

Lectures for ENGM 541 are concurrent with ENG M 670, but the graduate course has a significant amount of additional material, more assignment requirements, a more substantial project, and additional evaluation criteria.

ENGM 541 (which will be re-coded as MECE 467 in 2013) fulfills the technical elective requirement for a simulation course in the Mechanical Engineering program. Please see the course on-line Moodle site and contact me if you would like more details.

Registration for Winter 2013 is now open.

 

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Current Research: Reliable Integrated Oilsands Systems

Existing oilsands production methods are energy intensive and have ongoing operability and reliability challenges. Current plants use economy of scale and integrated operations to improve unit cost of production, which is economical only for large, high-quality orebodies. This strategy introduces issues of net land disturbance, material handling costs, and process robustness.

 

Although the fundamentals of bitumen separation processes are being extensively investigated, other aspects of bitumen production have received less attention, particularly how oilsand mining methods affect downstream extraction separation performance and equipment reliability. Many techniques exist for monitoring and controlling the performance of mechanical systems and chemical processes. There are also many techniques for monitoring and refurbishing the condition of such systems to restore system reliability. There is, however, little understanding of the relationships between them and a framework for controlling reliability within the constraints of production to improve the utilization of equipment and processes. New, more integrated processes will rely increasingly on process control for robustness and on-line assessments of reliability to achieve production targets and run lengths while reducing energy intensity, environmental footprint, and costs.

 

This research program in reliable integrated oilsands systems considers issues of design and reliable operation of complex industrial systems, with a focus on oilsands bitumen production equipment for surface deposits and near-surface marginal orebodies. The objectives of this research program are:

·         to develop a framework for controlling the reliability of a system with process constraints or interdependencies;

·         to develop model-based understanding of complex systems such as oilsands bitumen production, and

·         to apply this understanding to new production methods that more sustainable (reduced energy intensity, emissions, and cost of capital and operation, including maintenance and reclamation).

 

Short-term objectives address process performance and reliability of components and systems in discrete-event mining systems and continuous extraction and material handling systems, and the potential for automation.

 

This research area combines systems analysis, modeling and identification, reliability engineering, and classification techniques to develop:

·         methods to detect anomalous equipment behaviour;

·         direct measures of equipment condition - ideally on-line;

·         methods to evaluate machine condition by indirect methods, when direct methods are unavailable and incipient failure is detectable by a change in process performance;

·         mechanistic understanding of damage processes and their relationship to process dynamics;

·         characterization of maintenance and refurbishment processes to determine to what extent reliability is restored.

Examples of bitumen production systems reliability relationships include:

·         shovel tooth loss leading to crusher damage leading to screen blinding leading to reduced throughput

·         screen cloth opening increase to improve throughput leading to bigger lumps leading to PSV wear

·         solids loading leading to centrifuge fouling, sloughing, imbalance, and failure

·         slurry PSD leading to higher deposition velocity leading to increased pump and pipe wear

 

Longer-term objectives are more sustainable production and reclamation methods, and novel methods for extracting bitumen from new orebodies.

 

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Opportunities for Graduate Students

 

I am always interested in hearing from potential students who have their own funding. I am not actively recruiting new students at this time, but I will be starting some new projects in 2013 at both the Master’s and Ph.D. level. Please contact me for details.

 

Possible topic areas for graduate students (and in some cases undergraduate students as well) include the following:

·         characterizing physical relationships between process variables and system integrity (damage mechanisms in time-varying energy systems such as oil sands and solid-oxide fuel cells)

·         developing methods to measure directly indicators of equipment condition for components in demanding service (e.g. on-line tomographic inspection of pump component geometry and networked embedded sensors for machinery diagnostics)

·         evaluating methods for anomaly detection, fault detection, and fault identification for components in time-varying energy systems (such as wear in slurry lines and gear damage in wind  turbines) using mode classification

·         developing new methods for sampling and analyzing multiphase fluids in pipelines and vessels to assess mixing and separation performance (physical models and full-scale systems)

·         developing new methods for on-line cleaning of solids and fouling inside tanks and vessels (both workspace access and cleaning head methods)

·         developing new methods for sampling muds and subaqueous soils from ponds and evaluating densification in place

·         developing optimal control methods for integrated at-face surface mining and bitumen flotation systems

·         evaluating the technical and economic potential for remote surface mining operations, including operability, maintenance, and automation

·         dynamic modeling and control of shovel systems (characterization of locomotion in oilsands; system identification of shovels; shovel control methodologies for sensing, trajectory generation, and hybrid force control for digging; targeting preferred ore at a face; optimal loading strategies for heterogeneous ores; assessment of autonomous operation vs. human-in-the-loop operator assistance)

·         developing concepts for teleoperated or autonomous robots in hazardous environments (earthmoving equipment for capping soft tailings and for densifying MFT in place; biohazard lab inspection of animal condition)

·         developing novel methods for bitumen extraction from inaccessible orebodies (deep fragmentation and dense slurry production, monitoring and control of robotic underground tooling on drill strings)

·         developing novel repair and refurbishment methods for exergy conponents, such as robotic weld repairs in tanks and pipes, or on wind turbine structures

·         modeling maintenance processes.

 

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Current Research Activities

 

Note that all students listed have explicitly given permission to disclose their name.

 

PDF: Dr. Giri Mani worked with me in 2009 to study causal relationships in industrial processes that affect long-term reliability, particularly nonlinear system modeling and identification techniques. Dr. Mani is continuing this work since completing his PDF. The focus was on Semi-Markov modeling, but processes involving non-Gaussian noise are also being considered using sequential Markov models (particle filtering). One expected outcome is a method for anomaly detection in process upsets in oilsands extraction and their relationship to system reliability causal factors.

 

PhD:

    Rezsa Farahani is applying model-based analysis for assessing technological risks for novel oil production methods.

    Mohammad Hajizadeh is applying Kalman filtering and particle filtering techniques to anomaly detection in time-varying systems, with a focus on mobile mining equipment.

    Tamran Lengyel is developing new methodologies for design of electromechanical systems, with a detailed case study designing robotic tooling for characterizing soft tailings

    Phil Michailides is examining how different groups within an organization become personally engaged with corporate social responsibility.

    Nicolas Olmedo is developing dynamic wheel-soil interaction models as part of a project to deploy and demonstrate a robotic system to characterize soft tailings deposits.

    Cesar Poveda is developing a new framework for assessing the sustainability of oilsands projects, based on conventions such as LEED.

    Christina Seidel is developing methods for assessing the value and environmental impacts of materials that can be burned for fuel, converted for other uses (with an energy and emissions impact), or disposed in landfill (co-supervised with Prof. D. Checkel).  

    R. Vaghar Anzabi is developing new methods for detecting geometric faults in deformable bodies, with applications to condition monitoring of haul truck tires.

     Nima Yousefi is developing methods of fault-tolerant control for excavators, including machine damage and soft ground conditions, with modeling and experimental aspects.

 

I am also the supervisor of record for Joanne Phillips, Rishad Hakkim, and Ahmed Foutoh.

 

MSc:

    Waqas Awan is applying value-stream mapping and other system performance methods to maintenance modeling and benchmarking in heavy oil

    Stephen Dwyer is investigating how  autonomous robotic vehicles can be used  for environmental monitoring of industrial processes (NSERC CGS scholarship) (co-supervisor W Moussa).

    Victor Jaimes is developing experimental methods for characterizing the relationship between slurry process conditions and wear damage rates in pipelines, using a laboratory-scale slurry flow loop and a novel wet-slurry wear  testing apparatus

    Amanda Kotchon is developing a laboratory method for image-based feature extraction for fault detection in deformable bodies (haul truck tires)(Queen Elizabeth II scholarship).

    Derek Loewen is conducting characterization studies of the relationship between slurry flow near the wall of a slurry pipe, shear forces, and wear rates.

    Jamie Yuen is developing methods for pipeline inspection using remote sensing (NSERC CGS scholarship) (co-supervisor W Moussa).

 

Undergraduates:

    Derek Russell is developing a protocol for relating oilsands ore processability to hyperspectral features.

    Nerissa Wong is using image analysis to determine statistical features of slurry particle flow.

    Julie Diep is analyzing particle trajectories to assess how much energy is transferred to a pipe wall during collisions.

    Todd Van Mechelen is characterizing the performance of a novel MEMS wireless sensor.

 

    Amanda Kotchon was a Research Assistant for the underground fragmentation and dense slurrying project from January to August 2009, developing and conducting experiments on oilsand fragmentation.

    Stephen Dwyer worked on a robotic system for characterizing soft tailings deposits (which he also worked on in 2008). Stephen also worked on instrumentation development and calibration under the terms of a Dean’s Research Award.

    Jamie Yuen worked on validating a traction model for a wheeled vehicle in soft sand.

    Nicolas Olmedo designed and developed a remote operator workstation and graphical user interface for the tailings rover. He also worked on parameter estimation for validating a soil traction model as part of a traction control scheme for navigating on very soft soils. He is now a PhD student.

    A MECE 460 team developed a design for a robotic tool for taking samples of soft tailings (B Ferguson, M Janssen, N Kummer , K Martin),

    A MECE 460 team developed a design for a robotic tool for core drilling on Mars at depths of up to 5 m (S Dwyer, N Olmedo, J Patzer, J Yuen). The Mars drill team won the CSME National Student Design Competition in Victoria in June 2010.

 

Funding for these projects comes from NSERC, The Centre for Oil Sands Innovation (COSI), Syncrude Canada Ltd., and the University of Alberta.

 

Other:

I am working with Prof. Benoit Rivard in Earth & Atmospheric Sciences on using hyperspectral reflectance spectrometry to characterize oilsands and oilsands tailings. This work has been supported by the U of A School for Energy & Environment, Shell, and the Oilsands Tailings Consortium. Field studies will take place at Shell Albian Sands in Summer 2010.

 

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Previous Research

 

University of Alberta

    Marc Evans investigated the rheology of dense multiphase slurries for subterranean oil sand slurry production (co-supervised with Prof. D. Nobes).  He works for Allan vanguard in Ottawa.

    Nathan Starchuk modeled the reliability of distributed manufacturing and material handling systems, for applications as diverse as medical clothing manufacture in China and relocatable mining systems. He is a design engineer in Edmonton.

    Mohamed Ashraf Ismaeil developed a concept for carbon capture and deep-ocean storage in the Antarctic (paper study and technical, economic, and environmental assessment) (co-supervisor Prof. P. Flynn). He works as a project engineer for Novopro in Edmonton.

    Vivek Bhushan developed a set of models relating process variability and damage mechanisms of a laboratory-scale mechanical flotation cell. Vivek is now a business analyst in Calgary with PriceWaterhouseCoopers.

    Anthony Lam developed and evaluating system concepts for underground oilsand fragmentation and slurry production methods (co-supervised with Prof. D. Nobes). He successfully defended his thesis in July  2010.

    Suheil El-Sayed characterized the physical relationships between slurry pipeline process variables and pipeline integrity, using simplified parametric modeling of slurry flow related to damage mechanisms. He successfully defended his thesis in April 2010, and now works for Stantec.

    Roberto Gallardo modeled the reliability of a repairable component as a multi-state system and conducted numerical experiments on the sensitivity of PM interval on costs. He defended in late 2009 and is now a PhD student with J Doucette. (co-supervised with Prof. M. Zuo).

    Markus Timusk, PhD, successfully defended his PhD thesis in April 2006. His topic was operating mode classification, novelty detection, and fault classification on machinery operating in non-steady-state conditions (co-supervised at Queen's University with Prof. C.K. Mechefske). Dr. Timusk is now an Associate Professor at Laurentian University.

    Andrea Scaffo-Migliaro modeled an at-face mining and slurrying method as a discrete-event system with both production and reliability constraints, defended the thesis in late 2006, and now works as a maintenance engineer for the City of Calgary. (This student was co-supervised by Prof. M. Zuo.)

    Wesley Gilbert developed a control method for a gravity settling process to recover from process disturbances, and defended his MSc in July 2005 (co-supervised by Prof. F. Forbes in Chemical & Materials Engineering). Wes now works as a process control engineer in Vancouver.

    In 2008, Allen Feng developed a robotic system prototype for using machine vision for remote health monitoring in hazardous environments. Allen is now a medical student in Baltimore.

    Pavel Pineda worked on control systems and data acquisition for experimental systems. He is a maintenance engineer with CNRL.

 

Syncrude Research

·         Extraction Process Research: improved recovery and product quality of bitumen from oilsand/water slurries

·         Optimal Trajectory Generation for Control of a Separation Process

·         Integrated Systems and Reliability Research: anomaly detection and mode classification for equipment operating in non-steady state

·         Mining Automation: autonomous excavation and condition monitoring over wireless nondeterministic communication networks

·         Leader of a team of twenty researchers

AECL, Chalk River Laboratories

·         Condition-based maintenance and reliability of systems

·         Remote tooling and robotic systems development for reactor maintenance

·         Robotic excavation: integrating range-vision for telerobotic control in remote environments with geometric uncertainty

Queen's University

·         Robot Looseness Fault Diagnosis

·         Design of a High-Bandwidth Haptic Interface for a Planar Hybrid Position/Force Hand Controller

Kyoto University

·         Transition between Proximity and Force Control of a Robotic Manipulator

 

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Recent Publications and Patents (Partial List)

THESIS:

Robot Looseness Fault Diagnosis, 1995  (pdf, 30 MB).

 

PATENTS:

“Apparatus and process for coalescing bitumen in an oil sand slurry,” Barry Bara, Michael Lipsett, Waldemar Maciejewski, Samson Ng.

Canadian Patent 2,445,645, issued May 20, 2008.

US Patent 7,481,318, issued January 27, 2009.

 

Two patents pending.

 

REFEREED JOURNAL ARTICLES 2000-2008 (students underlined)

 

RJ-1.      M.G. Lipsett*, R. Gallardo-Bobadilla. “Modeling Risk in Discrete Multi-State Repairable Systems.” Engineering Asset Management Review (EAMR-D-11-00001 Accepted), 10 pp.

RJ-2.     M.G. Lipsett*, V. Bhushan. “Modeling Erosion Wear Rates in Slurry Flotation Cells.” J. Failure Analysis & Prevention, DOI 10.1007/s11668-01-9496-2, published on-line 11 Aug 2011, 15 pp.

RJ-3.     C.A. Poveda, M.G. Lipsett*. "Rating System for Sustainability of Industrial Projects with Application in Oil Sands and Heavy Oil Projects: Areas of Excellence, Sub-Divisions, and Management Interactions." J Sustainable Development, Vol. 4, No.4 August 2011, 11 pp.

RJ-4.     CA. Poveda, M.G. Lipsett*. "A Rating System for Sustainability of Industrial Projects with Application in Oil Sands and Heavy Oil Projects: Origins and Fundamentals" J. Sustainable Development, Vol. 4, No. 3, June 2011, 10 pp.

RJ-5.      B. Rivard*, D. Lyder, J. Feng, A. Gallie, E. Cloutis, P. Dougan, S. Gonzalez, D. Cox, M.G. Lipsett. “Bitumen Content Estimation of Athabasca Oil Sand from Broad Band and Infrared

Reflectance Spectra.” Canadian J. of Chemical Engineering. CJCE-09-0112.R1, June 2010, 9 pp.

RJ-6.     W.A.M. Gilbert, J.F. Forbes*, M.G. Lipsett. “Trajectory Planning for Grade Transitions: A

Restricted Form Approach.” Canadian J. of Chemical Engineering. Vol. 88, June 2010, pp432-441.

RJ-7.      M.A. Timusk, M.G. Lipsett, J. McBain, C.K. Mechefske*. “Automated Operating Mode

Classification for Online Monitoring Systems.” ASME J Vib & Acoustics. Vol 131 Aug.2009,10 pp

RJ-8.     S. Dessureault, M.G. Lipsett, M. Scoble. “Achieving the Benefits of Information Technology in Surface and Underground Mining Processes.” Canadian Institute of Mining Bulletin. March/April 2009. paper #23, 5 pp.

RJ-9.     M. Timusk, M. Lipsett and C.K. Mechefske*. “Fault detection using transient machine signals,” Mechanical Systems and Signal Processing, Vol 22 No 7 October 2008, 27 pp.

RJ-10. M. Lipsett. “Mining Innovation,” CIM Bulletin May 2008, pp. 42-43.

RJ-11.   M.G. Lipsett. “Innovation: Where Will the Next Good Idea Come From?” CIM Bulletin, January 2007, 2 pp.

RJ-12.  M.A. Timusk, C.K. Mechefske, M. Lipsett. "A Pragmatic Framework for On-Line Neural Network Based Fault Detection of Machinery." International Journal of Condition Monitoring and Diagnostic Engineering Management, 8(1), January 2005, pp. 35-41.

RJ-13.  M.G. Lipsett. "Oilsands Extraction Research Needs and Opportunities." Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering, Vol. 82, No. 4, July 2004, pp. 626-627.

RJ-14.  M.G. Lipsett. "Information Technology in Mining: An Overview of the Mining IT User Group." CIM Bulletin vol. 96, Jan. 2003.

RJ-15.  M.G. Lipsett, G.R. Baiden. "Mining Information Systems Development." CIM Bulletin vol. 94, Jan. 2001.

RJ-16.  S. Blouin, A. Hemami, M.G. Lipsett. "Qualitative Review of Models for Earthmoving Processes." Journal of Aerospace Engineering, March 2000.

RJ-17.  M.G. Lipsett, "An Infrastructure for Surface Mining Equipment Teleoperation." CIM Bulletin, vol. 93, September 2000.

 

REFEREED CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS 2000-2008 (students underlined)

RC-1.     L. Mottola*, M.J. Scoble, M.G. Lipsett. “Machine Monitoring and Automation as Enablers of Lean Mining.” Proc. 2nd Int’l Future Mining 2011, Sydney, Nov 22-23, 2011 (accepted), 6 pp.

RC-2.    M. G. Lipsett, J. D. Yuen*, N. A. Olmedo, S. C. Dwyer. “Condition Monitoring of Remote  Industrial Installations Using Robotic Systems.” Proc. World Congress on Engineering Asset Management (WCEAM) Cincinnati Oct 2-5, 2011. (Invited)

RC-3.    J. Wolodko, A. Fotouh*, and M.G. Lipsett. “Manufacturing and Mechanical Characterization of Natural Fibre Reinforced Thermoplastic Composites.” Proc AES-ATEMA’ Int’l Conf. Advances and Trends in Engineering Materials and their Applications, Montreal August 1-5, 2011, 7 pp.

RC-4.    M. Hajizadeh, M.G. Lipsett*. “Anomaly detection in mining haul truck suspensions using wavelet analysis of strut pressures and parametric modeling of strut damage.” Proc 8th Int’l Conf on Condition Monitoring and Machinery Failure Prevention Technologies (CM 2011 and MFPT 2011), Cardiff, UK 20-22 June 2011, 12 pp.

RC-5.     M.G. Lipsett*, R. Vaghar Anzabi, A. Kotchon, and D.S. Nobes. “Condition monitoring for mining haul truck tires.”  Proc 8th Int’l Conf on Condition Monitoring and Machinery Failure Prevention Technologies (CM 2011 and MFPT 2011), Cardiff, UK 20-22 June 2011, 12 pp.

RC-6.    B. Rivard*, J. Feng, V. Bhushan, and M. Lipsett. “Infrared Reflectance Hyperspectral Features of Athabasca Oilsand Ore and Froth.” Proc IEEE Int’l  Conf on Remote Sensing (Whispers 2011) Lisbon Portugal 3 June, 4 pp. (Best Paper Award)

RC-7.     N.A. Olmedo*, S.C. Dwyer, J.D. Yuen, MG Lipsett. “Soft Soil Parameter Estimation and Traction Control of a Gas Powered Rover for Environmental Monitoring of Oil Sands Tailings.” Canadian Congress of Applied Mechanics, Vancouver June 2011 4 pp.

RC-8.    V. Bhushan, M.G. Lipsett*. “Damage Modeling and Condition Monitoring of Flotation Cells.” Proc 24th Int’l Congress on Condition Monitoring and Diagnostic Engineering Management (COMADEM) Stavanger Norway, May 30 – June 1 2011, 10 pp.

RC-9.    R. Vaghar Anzabi, M.G. Lipsett*. “Reliability analysis and condition monitoring methods for off-road haul truck tires.” Proc 24th COMADEM Stavanger Norway, May 30 – June 1 2011, 10 pp.

RC-10.M.G. Lipsett*, Benoit Rivard. Conceptual Design of a Remote System for Characterizing Oilsands Tailings Deposits.” Proc 2nd Int’l Oilsands Tailings Conf. Edmonton Dec 6-8, 2010, 8 pp.

RC-11.  RY Moghaddam*, MG Lipsett. “Modeling, Simulation & Fault Detection in Excavators with

Time-Varying Loading.” Proc 2010 IEEE/ASME Int'l Conf on Advanced Intelligent Mechatronics,

Montreal July 6-9 2010, 6 pp.

RC-12. S. Dwyer, J. Yuen, A. Hakman, M. Mills, C. Wong, N. Olmedo, D. Sloan, R. Worobec, A Jazayeri, S. Redl, J. Bottoms, J. Schoepp, H. Evans, C. Lee, D. St. Pierre, D. Pollard, M. G. Lipsett,

D. G. Elliott. “Methodology and Design of a Small-Scale Unmanned Aircraft System for Georeferenced Image Acquisition,” Proc 2010 AUVSI Student UAS Competition, St. Inigoes, MD, June 16-20, 2010, pp. 10.1-10.20.

RC-13. D. Loewen*, S El-Sayed, and M.G. Lipsett. “Harmonic Filter Design for a Fluid Shear Sensor.” Proc. Can Soc for Mech Eng CSME FORUM 2010 June 7-9, 2010, Victoria BC, 6 pp.

RC-14. RY Moghaddam*, MG Lipsett. “Design, Commissioning & Modeling of a Shovel Test Rig for

Fault Diagnosis of a Time-Varying System.” Proc.CSME FORUM June 7-9, 2010, Victoria, 8 pp.

RC-15. M.G. Lipsett*. “Methods for Assessing Dynamic Performance of Shovels.” Proc.18th Int´l Symposium on Mine Planning and Equipment Selection Banff Nov 2009, 9 pp.

RC-16. SC Dwyer*, MG Lipsett. “A Robotic System to Cap Soft Tailings Deposits.” Proc. Mine Waste 2 Banff, Nov, 2009, 5 pp.

RC-17. MG Lipsett.* “Incorporating Damage Models in Deterministic System Models to Model Reli-ability in Time-Varying Systems.” Proc BINDT Condition Monitoring, Dublin June 23, 2009, 10 pp.

RC-18.S El Sayed, M Lipsett.* “Monitoring Wear in Slurry Pipelines.” Proc. 22nd Int’l COMADEM Congress San Sebastian, June 11 2009

RC-19. MG Lipsett, S El-Sayed.* “Simple Predictive Model of Slurry Wear in a Pipeline with Bed Flow.” Proc Global Petroleum Congress, Calgary, June 10 2009.

RC-20.                       MD Evans,* DS Nobes, MG Lipsett. “Design of an Apparatus for Determining the Effects of Acoustic Stimulation on the Rheological Properties of Oils and Multi-Phase Fluids.” Canadian Congress of Applied Mechanics, Halifax June 2009 (extended abstract)

RC-21. R.Y. Moghaddam*, M.G. Lipsett. “Reliability Assessment and Condition Monitoring of a Shovel Test Bed,” Proc 3rd World Congress on Engineering Asset Management Beijing, Oct 2008.

RC-22.                        M. Lipsett, “Modeling wear damage accumulation in slurry pipeline systems,” Proc British Inst NDT Condition Monitoring 2008, Edinburgh, July 2008.

RC-23.                        M.G. Lipsett, R.Y. Moghaddam*, “Dynamic Effect of Ground Looseness on Hydraulic Shovel Performance.” Proc 5 Intl Workshop on Bifurcations, Instabilities and Degradations in Geomaterials, Lake Louise, May 2008.

RC-24.                        M.G. Lipsett*, M-J Zuo, A. Scaffo-Migliaro, “Operability and Maintainability of In-Pit Oil Sands Bitumen Production Systems.” World Heavy Oil Congress, Edmonton March 10-12, 2008.

RC-25.M.G. Lipsett*, A. Scaffo-Migliaro. “Modeling and Simulation of the Operability and Reliability of an Oilsands At-Face Slurrying System.” 57th Canadian Chemical Engineering Conference/Oilsands 2007, Edmonton, Oct 30, 2007. 

RC-26.                        M. Timusk*, M Lipsett , C.K. Mechefske, “Automated Duty Cycle Classification for Online Monitoring Systems.” Proc. ASME International Design Engineering Technical Conference, 20th Biennial Conference on Mechanical Vibration and Noise, Symposium on Engineering Asset Management, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, 4-7 September 2007. (MMO)

RC-27.M. Lipsett, R. Gallardo, M. Zuo. “Modeling Risk in Discrete Multi-State Repairable Systems.”  Proc. Second World Congress on Engineering Asset Management (EAM) and The Fourth International Conference on Condition Monitoring, 11-14 June 2007, Harrogate UK, 10 pp.

RC-28.                       W.A.M. Gilbert, J.F. Forbes, M.G. Lipsett. "Trajectory Planning for Grade Transitions: A Restricted Form Approach." Proceedings Advanced Process Control Applications for Industry Workshop, Vancouver BC, Apr. 26-28, 2004. (NSERC)

RC-29.                        M.A. Timusk, C.K. Mechefske, M. Lipsett. "A Unified Methodology for Anomaly Detection in Unsteady Systems." Proceedings 21st Canadian Machinery Vibration Association Vibration Seminar, Halifax NS Oct. 27-31 2003. (MMO)

RC-30.                       M.G. Lipsett. " Discrete-Event Modeling and Control of Truck-Shovel Mining Operations." Proceedings CSME Forum, Kingston, 2002.

RC-31. M.G. Lipsett. "Intelligent Systems for Oilsands Surface Mining." Proceedings 3rd International Conference on Intelligent Processing and Manufacturing of Materials, Vancouver, 2001.

RC-32.                        M.G. Lipsett*, L. Mottola. "Discrete-Event Modeling and Control of Mining Equipment and Systems." International Advanced Robotics Program: 1st International Workshop on Advances in Robotics for Mining and Underground Applications, Oct. 2-4, 2000, Brisbane.

RC-33.                        R. Gillett; M.G. Lipsett*. "Robotics Leading the Way to Sustained Human Presence in Space." Proceedings ISR2000, Montreal May 2000.

 

CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS (REFEREED ABSTRACTS) 2000-2008 (students underlined)

NC-1.     M. Hajizadeh*, MG Lipsett. Detecting Faults in Haul Truck Suspension Struts.  Can Chem Eng Conf Saskatoon Oct 2010.

NC-2.    V Bhushan, MG Lipsett*. Modeling erosion damage on the walls of a flotation cell, Proc.

MITACS Annual Conf. Edmonton May 2010.

NC-3.    M. Godin, B. Peachey, M. Jamieson, M. Lipsett, T. Heidrick, Evaluation of Oil Sands Research and Innovation Effectiveness. CANMET 2009. (162 pp)

NC-4.    M. Godin, M. Lipsett*, B. Peachey, T. Heidrick, “Direct Contact Steam Generator for Heavy Oil and Oil Sands Applications.” Proc. Global Petroleum Conference Calgary AB June 10-12 2008.

NC-5.    M.G. Lipsett*. “Robotics and Automation in Oil Sands Bitumen Production and Maintenance.” Proc. National Conference of Canadian Institute of Mining, Edmonton AB May 5-7, 2008, 12 pp.

NC-6.    M.A. Timusk, C.K. Mechefske*, M. Lipsett. "Mechanical Fault Detection in Machinery Operating under Non-Steady-State Condition." Proceedings CIM Conference 2004, Edmonton AB, May 9-12, 2004. (MMO)

NC-7.    M.G. Lipsett. "Modeling the Flow of Information in Mine Maintenance Systems." MineSpace 2001, CIM AGM, Qubec City, May 2001.

NC-8.   R.A. Hall*, L. Daneshmend, J. Wong, M. Lipsett. "Reliability Analysis as a Tool for Equipment Evaluation and Selection." Proceedings CIM Mining Millennium, Toronto March 2000

NC-9.    M.G. Lipsett. "Intelligent Interactive Remote Operations: Prototype System Results." Proceedings CIM Mining Millennium, Toronto Mar. 5-10, 2000.

 

BOOK CHAPTERS

 M.G. Lipsett, R.Y.Moghaddam. “Modeling Excavator-Soil Interaction.” To appear in Bifurcations, Instabilities and Degradations in Geomaterials, R. Wan, Ed. Springer (2011).

 M.G. Lipsett. “Reliability and Maintenance of Oilsands Bitumen Production Systems.” Oilsands Handbook. J. Masliyah & J. Czarnecki, editors, U Alberta Press (submitted).

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Special Lectures & Invited Talks (Partial List since 2007)

SL-1.      “Some Links between Reliability and Safety.” Plenary Keynote, CIM Mining Safety & Reliability Conference, Calgary, Oct 12, 2011.

SL-2.     “Combining Physics-Based Models with Signal-Based Methods for Diagnostics and Prognostics.” Plenary Keynote, 8th Int’l Conf Condition Monitoring 2011, Cardiff, June 20, 2011.

SL-3.     Oilsands Systems: Challenges and Opportunities for Natural Sciences, Engineering, Industry, and Communities.” How Science and Clean Tech Can ‘Green’ the Oil Sands, Canada 2020 Panel, Ottawa April 29, 2010. (Session Moderator: S. Fortier, President of NSERC)

SL-4.     “Reliability and Maintenance in Oilsands Operations.” Oilsands Heavy Oil Materials & Integrity Workshop. Edmonton Oct 28, 2009. (plus follow-up invited tutorial session at OSHOW 2010.)

SL-5.      “Terrestrial Analogues for Space Mining: Opportunities for Technology Implementation and Commercialization.” Plenary, Planetary & Terrestrial Mining Sci. Symp, Toronto, June 8, 2009.

SL-6.     “Reliability and Sustainability of Oilsands Bitumen Production.” TU Freiberg, June 18, 2007.

SL-7.      “Reliability and Maintenance in Oilsands Operations.” Shanghai Jiaotong U, April 2007.

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Committees and Other Service Work

 

I am involved in a number of National and regional organizations:

 

Vice-Chair, Management Committee, International Society for Condition Monitoring, 2011 - .

Group Chair (Engineering), NSERC Joint Committee on Grants and Scholarships (COGS), 2006-10.

Member, Interdisc. Adjudication Comm., Canada Research Chairs, 2004-05,-08,-11. Chair 2005-06.

Director, Board of Directors, Precarn Inc. 2005-09. Vice Chair, 2007-09. Chaired Research Management Committee, 2002-2005, 2006-09.

Chair, Management Advisory Board, Alberta Ingenuity Centre for Machine Learning, 2007-09.

Member, NSERC IRC site visit 2010 / Vanier Scholarship Committee 2008, 2013-15 / Steacie Committee, 2004.

Member, Extraction Res. Group, Canadian Oilsands Network for R&D (CONRAD) 2001-5 Chair 03-5

Director, Society for Innovative Mining Technologies, Canadian Institute of Mining, 2006 - present.

Member, Tech. Program Comm. & Session Organizer, COMADEM 2009-12, MFPT CM 2009-12.

Warden Camp 3 (Edmonton) and Professional Assoc’n APEGGA Ethics Workshop Volunteer

Committee Member, Thesis Examinations (about 12/yr), Academic Planning, Faculty Hiring, Chair Selection, Tenure & Promotion, Academic Appeals, U of A Press, University of Alberta, 2006 - present.

Reviewer, NSERC, CRC, MMO, OCE, Industry Canada (Precarn), CONRAD, Fuel, J. Field Robotics, IEEE Trans. Ind. Electronics, Can. J. of Chem. Eng., IEEE/JRS Conf IROS, Int’l Conf Robotics & Automation, CIM, CANCAM, ASME Pipeline Materials Symposium, Int’l J of Condition Monitoring, J Measurement, J Geotechniques.

Leader, 182nd Riverbend Scouts. (2001 - 2011).

 

Personal Stuff

My family and I have lived in Edmonton for over fourteen years. We all enjoy the outdoors, particularly hiking, cycling, camping, and canoeing. I ride a bike to work but I take a bus when it’s below -15.  I also dabble with watercolour paints and read fiction when I can find the time.

Some non-technical books I’d recommend (alphabetically by author):

·         Austen, Jane. “Emma”

·         Bradbury, Ray. “The Martian Chronicles” and “Fahrenheit 451”

·         Card, Orson Scott. “Ender’s Game”

·         Clarke, Arthur C. “Childhood’s End” and “2001: A Space Odyssey”

·         Curtis, Charles, and Greenslet, Ferris. “The Practical Cogitator”

·         Dick, Philip K. “Ubik” and “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?”

·         Golding, William “Lord of the Flies”

·         Heinlein, Robert. “Stranger in a Strange Land”

·         Helprin, Mark. “Winter’s Tale”

·         Hemingway, Ernest “For Whom The Bell Tolls” and “The Complete Short Stories”

·         Huxley, Aldous. “Brave New World”

·         Lem, Stanislaw. “The Cyberiad”

·         Melville, Herman. “Moby Dick”

·         Miller, Walter M. (Jr) “A Canticle for Leibowitz”

·         O’Brian, Patrick “Master and Commander” (all twenty books in the series - really)

·         Orwell, George. “Animal Farm”

·         Pirsig, Robert. “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance”

·         Thoreau, Henry David. “Walden”

·         Tolstoy, Leo. “War and Peace”

 

What I’m reading right now: “A Game of Thrones”

 

Here’s a video clip you might enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hds3jvjZY-Y

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Last updated on August 7, 2012.