News

Prof. Wolfgang Fink with a group of neuroscience and engineering students and a blind colleague prototyped a device to help visually impaired people move through the world more safely and efficiently: VISTA - Visual Impairment Subtle Touch Aid.

The MIT Technology Review article: "NASA’s new rovers will be a fleet of mobile robots that work together," showcases yet another adoption of the "Tier-Scalable Reconnaissance Paradigm" devised by Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Fink and his team 20 years ago [see foundational publication].

Prof. Dr. Wolfgang featured on NPR/Arizona Public Media regarding co-winning the $200,000 DOE/NREL E-ROBOT Prize for developing a new way to apply insulation on historic buildings using robotic technology. The end goal is to put wall-scaling machines to work installing exterior insulation on buildings.

Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Fink co-wins the $200,000 DOE/NREL-sponsored E-ROBOT Prize, an American-Made Challenge, to devise building envelope retrofit solutions that make retrofits easier, faster, safer and more accessible for workers. The team "wall-EIFS" co-led by Prof. Fink devised wall-EIFS: a robotically applied, 3D-sprayable exterior insulation and finish system (EIFS) for building envelope retrofits.

The Prognostics and Health Management Society has elected Wolfgang Fink, electrical and computer engineering and biomedical engineering professor and inaugural Edward & Maria Keonjian Endowed Chair in the College of Engineering, as the organization’s vice president. "I feel deeply honored by the confidence entrusted to me by the Executive Board of Directors to help define, direct, and advance the goals and aspirations of the PHM Society," Fink said. "Taking on such a leadership role is the culmination of my involvement with the PHM Society."

University of Arizona electrical and computer engineering professor and Edward & Maria Keonjian Endowed Chair Wolfgang Fink is one of the newest Fellows of the Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers, or SPIE. The organization, with a membership of about 255,000, has selected only 1,500 fellows since 1955. Fink received the designation “for achievements in vision science for the blind and tele-ophthalmic healthcare worldwide.”

Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Fink invited as Speaker at the "Can Chronic Diseases Be Reversed?" Symposium organized by Shalesh Kaushal MD, PhD, Comprehensive Retina Consultants to be held on February 14-15, 2020 at the Innisbrook Golf & Spa Resort, Palm Harbor, FL. World-renowned doctors, scientists, and researchers get together for a symposium about the new frontier of medicine - reversing chronic diseases.

For many people, getting away from it all means decamping to a cabin in the woods or a house by the beach. Soon there may be another option: lifting off to a hotel serenely orbiting high above the planet. Though space hotels have long belonged only to the world of make-believe, that's about to change. 

On behalf of the SPIE Board of Directors and the Membership Committee, Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Fink has been elected to the grade of Senior Member of SPIE.

Student-professor teams at Arizona do big things, like improve the ways humans and machines interact, use technology in new ways to benefit health and the environment, and more.

Prof. Dr. Wolfgang was elevated to Fellow of the Prognostics and Health Management (PHM) Society. "The PHM Society recognizes Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Fink as one of the preeminent researchers in the fields of PHM for Autonomous Systems and Human Health & Performance. As such, he serves as the Sector Lead on “Human Health & Performance” to help the Society expand into this evolving field."

Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Fink's research pertaining to the 4^th Industrial Revolution is featured in this UANews article. As humans prepare to push off the safe haven of Earth and embark on journeys into deep space, a new generation of explorers is in the making — some of them human, some robotic and some with aspects of both.

Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Fink has been named General Conference Chair for the Annual Conference of the Prognostics and Health Management Society (PHM Society) to be held in Scottsdale, AZ in October 2019.

Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Fink has been named Guest Editor of the Special Issue “PHM for Human Health & Performance” of the International Journal of Prognostics and Health Management (IJPHM).

The proposed InTelMed I/UCRC will devise and deploy biofeedback-controlled devices by integrating wearable sensors, bi-directional data exchange, cloud-based data analysis, health and disease status modeling and prediction, and prescribed intervention/treatment onto human smart service platforms. Biofeedback-controlled human smart service systems, as pursued by the InTelMed Center, have the potential to improve health and treatment outcome, and, thus, decrease outpatient healthcare costs.

Okularfest 2016 is a seven-hour symposium covering advances in diagnosis and treatment of anterior and posterior segment diseases. Twenty eye surgeons will be presenting on a variety of topics from retinal vascular disorders and femtosecond technology, to the latest in OCT scanning lasers to stem cell research. To attract top-notch expertise from across the country, the Retina Research Foundation of California once again partnered with Wolfgang Fink, Ph.D., in the Division of Physics, Mathematics and Astronomy at Caltech. Dr. Fink presented on the pupil as a gateway to the brain.

Planetary exploration and medical diagnostics might seem like topics for researchers in two different fields. But for Wolfgang Fink, the connection between the two is about equipping machines to make judgements normally entrusted to people.

Limburg. Wer sich für die Kult-Fernsehserie „Big Bang Theory“ interessiert, für den war das gestrige Sparkassenkolleg der Kreissparkasse Limburg ein gefundenes Fressen: Professor Dr. Wolfgang Fink, selbst gebürtiger Limburger und ehemaliger Tilemannschüler, referierte über seine Forschung an „Autonomen Systemen“. Fink entwickelt und konstruiert unter anderem ausgefeilte Roboter und Forschungsinstrumente, die nicht nur auf der Erde, sondern auch auf anderen Planeten eingesetzt werden.

The latest 'Star Wars' installment is bringing back some of the series most iconic characters. But, we are also expecting some new stars - including one beach-ball shaped robot named BB-8. That character is drawing up interest at the University of Arizona, where one associate professor decided to weigh-in on the latest robot to make its big screen debut, telling KGUN9 - he thinks the robot has evolved from its previous co-stars.

The real star of the upcoming "Star Wars" movie may not be a human or a Wookie. Instead it may be a round, two-foot tall astromech droid called BB-8. He may look great on screen, but can BB-8 exist in real life? UA researcher Wolfgang Fink would know, as both an expert in artificially intelligent Mars rovers and an unabashed "Star Wars" fan. As a longtime "Star Wars" devotee and someone who spends an awful lot of time around robots, Fink has done his fair share of thinking about the astromech droids seen in the franchise.

The panel will be comprised of three UA Martian experts: Wolfgang Fink, Alfred McEwen and Gene Giacomelli. McEwen was an author of the recent NASA report about finding evidence of flowing water on Mars. Fink is an engineer who researches autonomous decision-making algorithms that could one day be utilized by a Mars rover. Giacomelli is the director of the Controlled Environment Agriculture Center here at the UA and is helping to design greenhouses that could grow food on Mars.

Okularfest 2015 is a 7-hour symposium covering advances in diagnosis and treatment of anterior and posterior segment diseases. 20 surgeons presented on a variety of topics, e.g., retinal vascular disorders, femtosecond technology, OCT scanning lasers, and stem cell research. To attract top-notch expertise from across the country, the Retina Research Foundation of California once again partnered with Wolfgang Fink, Ph.D., in the Division of Physics, Mathematics and Astronomy at Caltech. Dr. Fink presented on smart ophthalmic mobile- and tele-health applications.

Tucson seniors pursue their interests in solar power and bionics in the UA's electrical and computer engineering labs before starting their undergraduate studies.

UA College of Engineering expert in artificial vision systems honored for his inventive and interdisciplinary research and teaching. Like many men of science, Wolfgang Fink works in diverse disciplines and enjoys eclectic avocations. He’s a physicist, an engineer, an educator, an inventor, a licensed helicopter pilot and a classically trained pianist. You might call him a Renaissance man.

UA faculty and students were awarded a grant for three years of development and research to create devices that will change the way eye examines are given around the world. Researchers at the UA are finding new and innovative ways to use smartphones to scan eyes in order to detect and quickly determine whether or not patients will be at risk of losing their sight. Wolfgang Fink, a professor of electrical and computer engineering and biomedical engineering, is heading the investigation.

UA engineers are at the forefront of developing technology that would one day be used to explore far-away planets or dangerous environments on Earth. Fink and his team use the rovers as test beds for what someday could become NASA's next generation of planetary exploration tools. While the prototypes still depend on human commands sent over a wireless connection between an iPod and the rover, "the goal is to make this completely independent of human control," Fink says.

Okularfest 2014 is a 7 hour symposium covering advances in diagnosis and treatment of anterior and posterior segment diseases. Twenty eye surgeons presented on a variety of topics from retinal vascular disorders and femtosecond technology, to the latest in OCT scanning lasers and stem cell research. To attract top-notch expertise from across the country, the Retina Research Foundation of California once again partnered with Wolfgang Fink, Ph.D., in the Division of Physics, Mathematics and Astronomy at Caltech. Dr. Fink presented on visualization of optical eye defects.

The focus of this NSF effort is on tele-ophthalmology, i.e., to bring the ophthalmic healthcare examination to the patient rather than the patient to the examination, thus enabling timely intervention to prevent irreversible vision impairment. There are many conditions that, if undetected or detected too late, may lead to irreversible visual field loss and ultimately to blindness, such as glaucoma (~76 million worldwide by 2020), macular degeneration (~196 million worldwide by 2020), and diabetic retinopathy (~247 million worldwide by 2030).

Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Fink accepts offer to serve as the Official Faculty Advisor for the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) Chapter of the entire University of Arizona (both undergraduate and graduate students).

Professor Dr. Wolfgang Fink, a physicist and engineer, at the University of Arizona has developed novel retinal implant stimulation strategies that assist in bringing light back into peoples lives. Use of the implant involves four pieces of equipment. First, a set of glasses with a built-in camera transmits video images to a mobile phone app. The phone then relays that information to a micro-processing chip implanted on the eye. That chip then sends a signal to another chip implanted on the retina that electrically stimulates the remaining healthy layers of an otherwise damaged retina.

New technology is helping some blind people see again, but a University of Arizona researcher says it can be even better. The Food and Drug Administration recently approved a retinal implant for people whose retinas have been damaged by disease. UA Associate Professor of Engineering Dr. Wolfgang Fink believes he and his colleagues can improve the implant and help once-blind people see better.

OkularFest 2013 is a seven-hour symposium covering advances in diagnosis and treatment of anterior and posterior segment diseases. Sixteen eye surgeons presented on a variety of topics from retinal vascular disorders and collagen crosslinking, to the latest in OCT scanning lasers and stem cell research. To attract top-notch expertise from across the country, the Retina Research Foundation of California once again partnered with Wolfgang Fink, Ph.D., in the Division of Physics, Mathematics and Astronomy at Caltech. Dr. Fink presented on the state-of-the-art in retinal implant research.

Professor Wolfgang Fink presented on the Biological Oxidant and Life Detection Mission (BOLD) (PI: Professor Dirk Schulze-Makuch) at the NASA Workshop on "Concepts and Approaches for Mars Exploration" in Houston, TX. The BOLD proposal was chosen for oral presentation out of a total of 400 submitted abstracts. Astronaut Dr. Buzz Aldrin was also in attendance at the workshop.

In the next decade, a little pontoon boat developed at the University of Arizona could be whizzing around a lake on one of Saturn's moons. Wolfgang Fink, a UA associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, recently presented his concept for a "lake lander" named Tucson Explorer II, or TEX II. Fink is proposing the autonomous exploration vehicle to explore the lakes of liquid hydrocarbon known to exist on Saturn's largest moon, Titan.

University of Arizona physicist Wolfgang Fink, Ph.D., constantly makes them as he pursues research in medicine, space exploration and robotics.  

University of Arizona College of Engineering professor Wolfgang Fink has been elected to the College of Fellows of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering “for outstanding contributions in the field of ophthalmology and vision sciences with particular focus on diagnostics and artificial vision systems.”

UA Engineering was a big hit at the Arizona Best Fest, which took place Sept. 16-18 in Prescott, Ariz. The University of Arizona exhibit was packed solid even before doors officially opened as thousands of festival goers piled into the Science and the Future Pavilion to view hi-tech, hands-on demonstrations by UA students and faculty. 

A University of Arizona scientist and his team are developing intelligent robots for planetary exploration. Currently it takes hours for scientists here on earth to send commands to rovers exploring the surface of Mars. Professor Wolfgang Fink of the University of Arizona's Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, envisions planetary exploration being conducted by tiers of intelligent, freethinking robots that could include satellites, blimps, a fleet of surface rovers and even sea rovers. 

UA students were treated to a display of planetary exploration rover prototypes on Monday. Professor Wolfgang Fink and other faculty and students marked the centennial of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering by discussing Fink's robot research. 

Science magazine recently published an article featuring UA professor Wolfgang Fink's research on using intelligent robots for planetary exploration. The main thrust of the July 30 Science article, "Making Smarter, Savvier Robots" by Sam Kean, was that "robots are pretty dumb" and must rely on scientists back on Earth to control their exploratory missions.  

A College of Engineering faculty member was recently honored for his work in helping the blind to see and developing a more efficient way to explore distant planets. Wolfgang Fink, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering and biomedical engineering, received the NASA Board Award as well as R&D Magazine’s 100 Award and Editors’ Choice award for 2009.  

An armada of robots may one day fly above the mountain tops of Saturn's moon Titan, cross its vast dunes and sail in its liquid lakes. Wolfgang Fink, visiting associate in physics at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena says we are on the brink of a great paradigm shift in planetary exploration, and the next round of robotic explorers will be nothing like what we see today.  

Professor Wolfgang Fink, the first recipient of the Edward and Maria Keonjian distinguished professorship in Microelectronics, is a senior researcher at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and the founder and director of the Visual and Autonomous Exploration Systems Research Laboratory at the California Institute of Technology, or Caltech, where he is a visiting associate in physics in the division of physics, mathematics and astronomy.

Mankind's fascination with Mars has inspired scientists for generations, beginning with the telescopic observation of the 19th century and more recently the remote exploration through a host of international space missions to our neighboring planet.