3 Postdoctoral research positions

Hybridlab, School of Industrial Design, Université de Montréal, Canada. 2012-2017

The Laboratory of Design Research, Hybridlab, at the School of Industrial design of the Faculty of Environmental Design at the Université de Montréal (www.hybridlab.umontreal.ca), is offering three Ph.D. and/or postdoctoral positions under the supervision of professor Tomás Dorta, in the following research fields: (a) Design theory, design process and design creativity; (b) Design and Human-Computer Interaction, (c) Design, CAD and computer science.

These research fold into the research program titled “Augmented Co-Design: Transparency and extraversion of the ideation process through the interconnected HIS” funded by SSHRC-Insight program. The project’s primary objective is to better understand ideation as it is being “extraverted” by collaborative design, letting its cognitive mechanisms come forward in the interconnected HIS. The HIS (Hybrid Ideation Space) is an immersive system (360 ° panoramic) for collaborative work in life-size and real time representations, through freehand sketches and models (www.hybridlab.umontreal.ca/his.php?l=en).
a) Design theory, design process and design creativity :
Unfolding creativity’s “black box” in ideation (conceptual design) within a collaborative, immersive environment. This project will investigate the ideation process of professional designers working in co-located and remote collaboration, by studying their “Design Conversations” (see: www.hybridlab.umontreal.ca/publications.php?l=en). The goal is to better understand, through the lens of complexity, the mechanisms of ideation and creativity in design.

The candidate’s profile: The candidate must hold an excellent record and a research MA in design or a related field.
Allocation: $ 15,000 CND gross annually (with possibility of a teaching load)
b) Design and Computer Human Interaction (CHI) :
This research will focus on the analysis of interactions within an immersive collaborative design system (the HIS). The user experience will focus on ideation tasks during design, using the “Design Flow” (based on Csikszentmihalyi’s optimal experience) as one of the methodological instrument (see: www.hybridlab.umontreal.ca/publications.php?l=en).
The candidate’s profile: Besides an excellent record, the applicant should hold a research MA in design or ergonomics, and have experience with observation methods in CHI.
Allocation: $ 15,000 CND gross annually (with possibility of a teaching load)
c) Design, Computer Science and CAD :
This study will explore new approaches to develop visualization and interaction in an immersive 3D environment combining manual sketches, 3D geometry imported from 3D modeling software and networking/interconnectivity in real time, on Mac OS platform and mobile platforms, such as the iPad (iOS). With a hybrid approach, combining real interactions, images and  videos with digital representations, through a “design” approach (i.e. sketching user experience before coding) to develop the next generation of the interconnected Hybrid Ideation Space (HIS) as applied to collaborative work in design.
The candidate’s profile: Beside an excellent record, the candidate should hold an MA in Computer Science or in a design discipline with extensive experience in computer science and programming (Java, iOS, Open GL) savvy of virtual and augmented reality systems.
Allocation :  20,000 $CND gross annually (with possibility of a teaching load)
Deadline for application: 24 september 2012
Send in :
• Detailed résumé
• Letter of intend
• Two recommendations
to professor Tomás Dorta  (tomas.dorta@umonteal.ca)
University of Montreal is a French-speaking institution therefore the candidates must have working knowledge of the French language, enough to attend the doctoral seminars (ability to follow and intervene in group discussions conducted in French; all written papers, final thesis and lab work can be done in English). The university offers remedial and basic French classes for international students.
PhD students at the Hybridlab are expected to regularly publish their research findings in conferences and journals with peer review.
Final acceptance is contingent upon formal acceptance into the PhD program of the Faculty of Environmental Design or in Postdoctoral Studies at the Université de Montréal.
Academic partners: The Faculty of Architecture and Town Planning The Technion – Israel Institute of Technology Haifa, Israel; Psychologie & Ergonomie cognitive InterPsy – ETIC, Université de Lorraine, Metz, France
Professional partners: Design Innovation, Milan, Ericsson Canada and Herman Miller Inc.