Flux Lab
Sensing Intelligence & Systems · School of Computing and Information Systems · Singapore Management University
The team, and a few things we build: MagLens · DualStrike · MagDesk · μTouch · Polaris · OralSense · Beyond Hearing · MagX · MagDot · MagAndroid (click any tile)
In today's rapidly changing technology landscape, we are poised to land on Mars and build intelligence that can surpass us. Yet, our technologies still severely fall short in understanding ourselves — analyzing everyday motion with high accuracy, quantifying our habits. Sometimes even our step counter is not accurate!
At Flux Lab, we bridge this gap between ourselves and machines by building human-centered sensing systems. Our work empowers individuals to better understand and improve their mobility, safety, and well-being, and fuels innovations in autonomous driving, robotics, and beyond.
We are led by Dongyao Chen. Find our latest demos on our YouTube channel and code on GitHub . Interested in our magnetic sensing work? See the dedicated project page.
Recent News
- Oct. 2026 Dongyao invited to serve as Poster Co-Chair for ACM MobiSys 2027.
- Feb. 2026 MagLens accepted at SenSys 2026! Congratulations to Jike and the team!
- Jan. 2026 Beyond Hearing accepted at ICLR 2026 — earphone-based ExG sensing across the five human senses. Congratulations to Xiaomeng and our collaborators!
- Jan. 2026 microTouch accepted at PerCom 2026! Congratulations to Siyuan and the team!
- Oct. 2025 DualStrike accepted at NDSS 2026 — first demonstration of vulnerability in magnetic sensing platforms. Congratulations to Xiaomeng and the team!
- Jun. 2025 Dongyao serving as Student Travel Grant co-chair for MobiCom 2025.
- Apr. 2025 BRIDGE accepted at MobiCom 2025.
- Nov. 2024 MagDesk accepted at UbiComp 2025 Distinguished Paper Award. Check out the demo.
- Sept. 2024 Dongyao serving in the TPC for MobiCom 2025.
- Aug. 2024 Invited talk: "Enabling Magnetoreception for Cyber-Physical Systems" at NUS, NTU, and SMU.
- Jun. 2024 Polaris accepted at MobiCom 2024! Watch the demo.
- Dec. 2023 MagDot accepted at UbiComp 2024 — world's first drift-free, low-cost joint angle sensing platform.
- Oct. 2023 METRO accepted at SenSys 2023 — magnetic sensing for safer roads. First paper by student Jike Wang!
- Mar. 2023 VeFi receives Best Paper Award at VehicleSec 2023 Best Paper Award.
Research
We build technologies that solve real-world problems at the intersection of sensing, systems, and intelligence. Our primary application domains are smart transportation, healthcare, and human–computer interaction.
Multimodality
The world is enriched by a variety of signals. We explore magnetic fields and beyond as new media for tasks that were not possible before.
MagX · MAGIC · MagDot · METRO · MagLens · Polaris
Security
With richer sensing capabilities come new attack surfaces. We believe that with great power comes greater responsibility.
DualStrike · VeFi · LibreCAN
Interactivity
We build systems people directly interact with, so we can augment human activity and bring sensing into the loop of daily life.
MagDesk · μTouch · MagX · MagDelta
Project Demos
Click any thumbnail to watch the demo or visit the project page.
Publications
Underlined authors are direct advisees · * denotes co-primary authors
Team
We are fortunate to work with these talented individuals. Their curiosity and drive to explore the unknown are the eternal forces behind Flux Lab.
Join Us
We are actively looking for self-motivated students at all levels who are passionate about building real systems that matter.
If you are excited about any of the following research directions, we would love to hear from you:
- Magnetic sensing and novel sensing modalities
- Mobile and wearable systems
- Smart transportation and autonomous driving
- Cyber-physical system security
- Human–computer interaction and healthcare applications
Prospective Ph.D. / M.S. Students
Please send your CV and a brief description of your research interests to dychen@smu.edu.sg. We welcome applicants with backgrounds in computer science, electrical engineering, or related fields.
SMU Undergraduates
Feel free to stop by my office or send an email to dychen@smu.edu.sg to discuss research opportunities. No prior research experience is required — curiosity and commitment matter most.
Visiting Researchers
We occasionally host visiting students and researchers. Please reach out with your CV, a research statement, and your intended visit period.
What to Expect
At Flux Lab you will build real systems, publish at top venues (MobiCom, SenSys, UbiComp, NDSS), and collaborate with researchers at SMU, UMich, UW, and beyond. Check our alumni page to see where our graduates are now.