top of page

Bio

I am a Senior Researcher at Microsoft Mixed Reality. My research focuses on Computer Vision and Mixed Reality. More specifically, I work on enabling human-level understanding of object behaviors using advanced statistical and machine learning algorithms. I also work on bringing the next generation of Augmented Reality experiences to IoT connected devices. I collaborate with experts across the field to identify exciting opportunities, and to delivery broader impact through research and innovative products.

 

I previously finished my PhD in Computer Science & Engineering, University of Washington advised by Dr. Shwetak Patel and Dr. Alanson Sample. with a focus on enabling sensing of user interaction with everyday objects.

Download my CV here

Past Projects

Sensing and understanding user interactions with everyday objects can enable immersive Internet of Things (IoT) applications. In the following projects I explore several sensing and interaction techniques to blur the line between physical and digital experiences.

DeviceAR: Techniques for Device-oriented Augmented Reality Interactions

IDCam: Precise Item Identification for AR Enhanced Object Interactions

PaperID: A Technique for Drawing Functional Battery-Free Wireless Inter- faces on Paper.

IDSense: A Human-Object Interaction Detection System Based on Passive UHF RFID.

MoveVR: Enabling Multiform Force Feedback in Virtual Reality using Household Cleaning Robot

ID-Match: A hybrid computer vision and RFID system for recognizing individuals in groups.

FlexTouch: Enabling Large-Scale Interaction Sensing Beyond Touchscreens Using Flexible and Conductive Materials

ShopSight: A Retail Analytics Platform Tracking Consumer Behaviors in Physical Stores.

Home: Research

Professional Experience

Home: CV

JULY 2018 - PRESENT

Senior Researcher, Microsoft, Redmond, USA

I am a senior researcher at the Microsoft Mixed Reality team. 

SEPT 2013 - JUNE 2018

Research Assistant, The Ubicomp Lab, University of Washington, Seattle, USA

Advisors: Dr. Shwetak Patel & Dr. Alanson Sample.

JULY - OCTOBER, 2016

Research intern, Microsoft Research, Sensors and Devices Group, Cambridge, UK

  • Mentors: Dr. Tobias Grosse-Puppendahl, Dr. James Scott

  • Developed novel IR based solutions for user presence sensing and localization

JUNE - SEPTEMBER 2014-2015

Research Intern, Wireless Systems Group, Disney Research, Pittsburgh, USA

  • Mentor: Dr. Alanson Sample

  • Designed and implemented IDSense, a novel human-object interaction detection system based on passive RFID.

  • Designed and Implemented PaperID, a wireless paper-based passive sensing interfaces.

OCTOBER 2012 - MARCH 2013

Research Intern, HCI Group, Microsoft Research, Beijing, China

  • Mentor: Dr. Koji Yatani

  • Designed and implemented a novel insole sensing system recognizing body posture based on foot pressure distribution

Key Publications

Home: Publications

IDCam: Precise Item Identification for AR Enhanced Object Interactions

Hanchuan Li, Eric Whitmire, Alex Mariakakis, Victor Chan, Alanson Sample, Shwetak Patel.

In the Proceedings of the 2019 IEEE International Conference on RFID (IEEE RFID 2019) 

IDAct: Towards Unobtrusive Recognition of User Presence and Daily Activities.

Hanchuan Li, Chieh-yih Wan, Rahul C. Shah, Alanson P. Sample, Shwetak Patel 2019. In the Proceedings
of the 2019 IEEE International Conference on RFID (IEEE RFID 2019)

PaperID: A Technique for Drawing Functional Battery-Free Wireless Inter- faces on Paper.

Hanchuan Li, Eric Brockmeyer, Elizabeth Carter, Josh Fromm, Scott Hudson, Shwetak Patel, Alanson Sample.

In The Proceedings of the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI16)

ID-Match: A hybrid computer vision and RFID system for recognizing individuals in groups.

Hanchuan Li, Peijin Zhang, Samer Al Moubayed, Alanson Sample, Shwetak Patel. 2016.

In the Proceedings of the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI16)

IDSense: A Human Object Interaction Detection System Based on Passive UHF RFID

Hanchuan Li, Can Ye, and Alanson Sample. 2015.

In the Proceedings of the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI15)

Enabling Sensing and Interaction with Everyday Objects

Hanchuan Li

In the Proceedings of the 30th Annual ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology (UIST17 DS)

FlexTouch: Enabling Large-Scale Interaction Sensing beyond Touchscreens using Flexible and Conductive Materials

Yuntao Wang, Jianyu Zhou, Hanchuan Li, Tengxiang Zhang, Minxuan Gao, Zhuolin Cheng, Chun Yu, Shwetak Patel. In Proceedings of the ACM on Interactive, Mobile, Wearable and Ubiquitous Technologies 3.3 (2019): 1-20.

MoveVR: Enabling Multiform Force Feedback in Virtual Reality using Household Cleaning Robot.

Wang, Yuntao, Zichao Chen, Hanchuan Li, Zhengyi Cao, Huiyi Luo, Tengxiang Zhang, Ke Ou et al. In Proceedings of the 2020 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, 2020 (CHI 20).

Patents

US PATENT 9,805,232

Systems and Methods for Detecting Human-Object Interactions


Alanson Sample, Hanchuan Li, USPTO

US PATENT 9,805,233

Systems and Methods for Following Distinguishing Members Using Tags in Combination with a Localizing Device.

Alanson Sample, Hanchuan Li, Samer Al Moubayed, USPTO

US PATENT 10,013,589

Systems and Methods for Enabling User Interactions with Wireless Tags.

Hanchuan Li, Josh Fromm, Scott Hudson, Eric Brockmeyer, Elizabeth Carter, Alanson Sample, Shwetak Patel, USPTO

US PATENT 10302810

Use of thermopiles to detect human location

Tobias Grosse-Puppendahl,
James Scott, Rinku Sreedhar, John Franciscus Marie Helmes, Hanchuan Li USPTO Pending

Home: Publications

Honors and Awards

Home: News & Resources

SEPTEMBER, 2016

Qualcomm Innovation Fellowship

Qualcomm Inc.

SEPTEMBER, 2017

Second Place Award

GIX Innovation Competition

Global Innovation Exchange

OCTOMBER, 2017

People's Choice Award

UIST Doctoral Symposium Poster Session

SEPTEMBER, 2015

Disney Graduate Fellowship

Disney Research

SEPTEMBER, 2016

Third Place Award

GIX Innovation Competition

Global Innovation Exchange

AUGUST, 2012

Outstanding Demo Award

Technology Showcase, Carnegie Mellon University, Silicon Valley

JUNE, 2010, 2011, 2012

Outstanding Student Scholarship

University of Science and

Technology of China

APRIL, 2019

Best Paper Nominee

2019 IEEE International Conference on RFID

Press Coverage

Home: Events

Contact Me

Redmond, WA, USA

  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Instagram

Thanks for submitting!

Home: Contact
bottom of page