Septimiu Tim E. Salcudean

Septimiu Tim E. Salcudean is a Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of British Columbia, holding the C.A. Laszlo Chair in Biomedical Engineering and a Canada Research Chair. He joined UBC in 1989 after research at IBM Watson Research Center and fellowships in France. His research focuses on medical robotics, image-guided interventions, and ultrasound-based technologies for surgical guidance and cancer diagnosis. Key projects include real-time ultrasound elastography for prostate cancer imaging and augmented reality systems for robot-assisted surgery.

Education:

• B.Eng (Hons.) and M.Eng from McGill University
• Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from UC Berkeley

Research Interests: Medical robotics, image-guided interventions, ultrasound elastography, teleoperation, and needle-tissue interaction modeling. His work bridges robotics, control systems, and biomedical applications, with a focus on improving surgical precision and cancer diagnosis.

Publications: Over 100 peer-reviewed articles, including contributions to IEEE Transactions on Robotics, Medical Image Analysis, and Medical Engineering & Physics. Recent work emphasizes real-time tissue parameter estimation and brachytherapy guidance.

Awards:

• Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering
• Fellow of the IEEE
• NSERC Synergy Award (2009)
• UBC Killam Research Prize (2004)

Advising & Grants: Supervised over 20 graduate students, co-authored patents on steerable needles and ultrasound guidance systems. Active in NSERC and NIH-funded projects, including collaborations with the British Columbia Cancer Agency.

Labs: Leads the Robotics and Control Laboratory (RCL) with facilities in haptic interfaces, medical robotics, and ultrasound systems. Collaborates with industry partners like Ultrasonix Medical Corporation.