Past RAs
Chinthaka Dinesh
Simon Fraser University, Canadav
PhD, Simon Fraser University
I had an excellent and memorable collaboration with all supervisors of the research project on non-intrusive load monitoring (NILM), and it was my great honor and pleasure working with esteemed scholars like themselves. Due to the unwavering support, insightful advice, and enlightening guidance of all supervisors in the group, I was able to publish three international journal papers (including two IEEE transactions) and few international conference papers. All of my superviors' vast experience and innovative insight made this all possible, and I have learnt a lot from them during the project. In addition, the research experience gained through this NILM project was more beneficial for me to build up my self-confidence in doing research. So I started my PhD with this confidence that was really helpful to me to conduct my PhD research more productively.
Akila Wijethunga
Lecturer , Department of Materials and Mechanical
Technology, University of Sri Jayewardenepura
PhD, University of Peradeniya
It gives me great pleasure to work as a research assistant for the Smart Research Group, where I began my career under the supervision of top researchers in the field. It was a well-organized research group that provided us with countless opportunities to increase our scientific knowledge, practical skills, soft skills, and leadership abilities. Working on a project involving dynamic line rating and demand side management with a futuristic perspective allowed me to engage in fresh technology concepts with passion. Sharing project experiences with colleagues in the research group had a significant impact on expanding knowledge of smart grids and their potential applications, as well as how to successfully integrate the concepts to achieve the goals.
Shrinath Welikala
Postdoctoral Research Fellow,
Department of Electrical Engineering,
College of Engineering,
University of Notre Dame, USA.
Ph.D. (in Systems Engineering, Boston University, USA.)
Won the outstanding Ph.D. Dissertation Award
in Systems Engineering
I was privileged to be a part of this research group, first as a final year undergraduate student, then as a temporary instructor and eventually as a research assistant, during my years at UoP. In that period, I first took part in a vision robotics system development project focused on reconnaissance applications. Later on, I was involved in a non-intrusive residential load monitoring project focused on smart grid applications. Under the constant supervision of this research group’s supervisors, while participating in the said research projects, I was able to develop the essential skills to be a successful researcher and accumulate necessary credentials, which subsequently led me to secure a Ph.D. Fellowship at Boston University. Several years have passed since then, but still, I maintain a cordial relationship with my supervisors and follow the amazing research work that is being done in this research group
Chathuranga Jayarathna
Senior Engineer at Lear Japan Engineering, LLC
Master of Philosophy from
Faculty of Engineering, University of Peradeniya
During my time there were around ten closely knit researchers, specializing in areas similar and different to that of mine. Therefore, we had the chance to feed off each other when in trouble/doubt as well as adopt concepts from totally different subject areas. We enjoyed hanging out together on and off work and made my time at the university a memorable one.
The most important input from my research time to my current career in automotive (electric vehicle) business is good understanding of electric power converters. My MPhil research focused on renewable energy but included designing and implementing power converters such as rectifiers, dual active bridge dc-dc converters and inverters. So, I was groomed well to take on various technical challenges. Also, the researching papers/articles and technical writing are two other important skills I learnt during my research time and have become very useful for my current career.
Neelanga Thelasinghe
PhD student at Electrical Computer and
Systems Engineering Department,
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York, USA
Master of Science in Computer and Systems Engineering,
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Troy, New York, USA
Throughout my experience working as a research assistant in the Smart Systems Research group, I was able to witness how real graduate-level research was conducted from proposal to publication. The mentorship I received from some of the leading researchers in the country allowed me to have a headstart in my career in academic research. The environment and the work culture fostered within the group were in line with leading institutions and it made me very comfortable to adapt to research culture in my current institution when I started on my Ph.D. program. The well-guided process of knowledge dissemination has not only allowed me to publish my work in high-impact journals but also to grow and improve under the guidance, mentorship, and feedback through an extensive review process. This allowed me to have a foot in the door when I sought admission into a graduate program. Overall, It can be stated that the experience I had with the group played an important role in shaping up my academic career.
Anjana Wijesekara
Reading for a PhD at University of Alberta
BSc. Engineering
It was a great experience working in the group under the supervision of Prof. Lilantha Samaranayake, Dr. Prabath Binduhewa and Prof. Janaka Ekanayake. When I start work on the project the converter circuits and the traction system were already built. I was responsible of developing the controllers for the two bidirectional boost converters to realize the operation of Hybrid Energy Storage System (HESS) that combined the battery bank and the super capacitor bank to supply traction load. It was my first experience on practical implementation of closed-loop controls for a multi-converter system which gained me vast knowledge on handling real world problems in power electronic applications. Especially, I could extract a significant amount of knowledge from the supervisors who were very helpful when I was facing difficulties to overcome technical obstacles while working on the project. Further, I got the opportunity to showcase the project on exhibitions such as “Silpasena” and “IESL Techno” which helped me a lot to improve my presentation and technical explanation skills. All the experiences, skills and knowledge I gained through the project shaped me up to face challenges and perform well in my Ph.D.
Sachini Piyoni Ekanayake
University at Albany, State University of New York
BSc. Engineering in Electrical and
Electronic Engineering (Hons)
It was a great opportunity to work in the smart research group as it helped and prepared me for graduate education. The nature of the project execution improved my independent research ability and problem-solving skills. Most importantly, the IoT based battery swapping station prototype implementation in e-wheeler project allowed me to break barriers on realizing ideas on hardware. Further, the experience of that work was the main foundation for my graduate studies in the first two years. The documentation and research meetings helped me to improve my academic soft skills along with fostering sound theoretical knowledge. The continuous support and guidance from the advisors had a significant impact in shaping my research career even beyond the e-wheeler project.
Nuwan Herath
PhD Candidate, University of Manitoba, Canada
MSc, University of Manitoba in Electrical engineering
It was a great experience working in the group under the supervision of Prof. Lilantha Samaranayake, Dr. Prabath Binduhewa and Prof. Janaka Ekanayake. When I start work on the project the converter circuits and the traction system were already built. I was responsible of developing the controllers for the two bidirectional boost converters to realize the operation of Hybrid Energy Storage System (HESS) that combined the battery bank and the super capacitor bank to supply traction load. It was my first experience on practical implementation of closed-loop controls for a multi-converter system which gained me vast knowledge on handling real world problems in power electronic applications. Especially, I could extract a significant amount of knowledge from the supervisors who were very helpful when I was facing difficulties to overcome technical obstacles while working on the project. Further, I got the opportunity to showcase the project on exhibitions such as “Silpasena” and “IESL Techno” which helped me a lot to improve my presentation and technical explanation skills. All the experiences, skills and knowledge I gained through the project shaped me up to face challenges and perform well in my Ph.D.
Chaminda Bandara
PhD Candidate, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering,
The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
B.Sc. (Eng.) First Class Honours in Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Present RAs
Jameel Hassan
Research Associate – DEEE
BSc Eng. University of Peradeniya
I completed my undergraduate research project under the supervision of the Smart Grid research group. Upon graduation I worked as a research associate in Smart Grids and Computer Vision, Image processing & remote sensing teams. This created the foundation for me towards academic research whilst seeking graduate studies.
Harshana Weligampola
University of Peradeniya
Bsc (Eng) 1st class honours
I was engaged in a low light image enhancement research project for my final year. As an AI autonomous research intern, I completed my internship at Nokia, Antwerp, Belgium. After graduation, I continued my undergraduate research while working as a research assistant on a Canadian grant for COVID-19. This multidisciplinary research steered me towards application-oriented research while seeking graduate studies. I am a prospective Ph.D. student at Purdue University-West Lafayette.
I was engaged in hyperspectral and multispectral imaging as my undergraduate research project. I researched on hyperspectral unmixing for remote sensing and food quality analysis using multispectral imagery. After graduation I continued my undergraduate research while woking as an research assistant on a Canadian grant for COVID-19. This multidisciplinary research steered me towards application-oriented research while seeking graduate studies.