Madhawa Perera

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Hi, I am Madhawa (/'mæ.də.wə/). I am a research engineer at CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation). My work involves developing Augmented Reality (AR) and Mixed Reality (XR) applications and investigating human interactions and behaviours in immersive environments.

I use state-of-the-art machine learning models, (with a focus on computer vision and language processing models), and attempt to combine them with AR applications to enhance human experiences. I am passionate about investigating how AR/XR technology can assist with human tasks—like a copilot in various application scenarios. Thus, my research explores how advancements in AI, coupled with immersive computing (AR/XR), can help solve challenges in different domains (e.g., health and safety, remote collaboration, etc.).

In my current role and during my doctoral studies, I use head-mounted displays (HMDs) such as Microsoft HoloLens 2, Magic Leap, Meta Quest Pro and Quest 3, and Varjo XR 3 and the Unity real-time engine, C# scripting, and shader programming for application development. I use Python and R for data analysis and AI application development.

When there's spare time, I like to bake (@myfoodepisodes), play Ukulele (which I started recently), blog, volunteer, or enjoy a long distance run.

My interests

AR/VR/XR

Human Computer Interaction

Applied Machine Learning

My Experiences

2023 Jul - Present

Research Engineer

CSIRO

Research areas - Augmented Reality (AR) Virtual Reality (VR), Gesture Interactions, Human Computer Interaction, Computer Vision, Computer Graphics

2019 Jul - 2023 Nov

Sessional Academic

Australian National University

Deliver lectures and/or tutorials/labs. Conduct classes to an appropriate standard of teaching and professionalism.
Courses taught: Human-Computer Interaction and Design (COMP3900/6390), Data Mining (COMP3425/8410), Programming for Scientists (COMP1730/6730) and (COMP7230), Software Engineering (COMP2120/6120), Web Development and Design (COMP1710/6780), Game Development (COMP3540/6540)

2018 Jan - 2018 Dec

Senior Software Engineer

WSO2

As a senior software engineer I was involved in software engineering consultations, product feature designs and training junior engineers. Consultations include on-site and off-site customer engagements , e.g. Arizona of Department of Administration (ADOA) - State of Arizona, USA, and Transport for London (TfL) - UK.

2016 Jan - 2017 Dec

Software Engineer

WSO2

I was a member of the Internet of Things (IoT) and Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) research engineering team and lately joined client engagement (services) team. As a software engineer I worked on developing and integrating features to WSO2 product suite and providing customer support as a part of the role in services team. Some features that I developed include Android for Work and Apple Device Enrolment Program (DEP) with WSO2 EMM. As a services team member, I served in off-site customer engagements in Japan and USA clients.