- Research in Precision Manufacturing especially in the area of mechanical alignment system and precision mechanical assembly

- Development of advance equipment and instrument for industry especially in the area of development of state-of-the-art precision measurement system with precision level up to a few nm range

- Development of new generation of material handling system and development of automated patrol system.
Manufacturing precision is important because it affects product quality and cost. Today, with global competition in product quality and product cost, continuous improvement of manufacturing precision has become an important element of business success for many industries. Dr Lee is interested in research of low cost manufacturing methodology and tooling that can improve the level of manufacturing precision for many types of products. Besides research, Dr. Lee is working with industry to produce advance high precision manufacturing equipment and system as well as working on new generation of automatics material handling system, patrolling and dispatching system.

Before joining HKUST in 1994, Dr Lee was an industry technologist with proven effective management skills. He has managed projects ranging from research development to manufacturing process development. He has numerous inventions and has contributed to manufacturing technology, storage device, laser, optical device, electromechanical system and solid state physics.

Precision levels in assembly processes: a comparative study (15/10/2001-14/10/2004) HKUST6224/01E, $387,248

1. N. K.-S. Lee, R. S. Goonetilleke, Y.-S. Cheung and G. M.-Y. So (2001), Flexible Encapsulated MEMS Pressure Sensor Packaging Technology for Biomechanical Applications, Microsystem Technologies, 7 (2),  pp. 55-62.


2. N. K.-S. Lee, J.-Y. Chen, and A. Joneja (2001), Effects of Surface Roughness on Multi-Station Mechanical Alignment Process, ASME Journal of Manufacturing Science and Engineering, 123, pp. 433-444.


3. N. K.-S. Lee, K. K.-C. Hon, V. P.-Y. Cheung and A. Joneja (2000), Effect of Datum Securing Method on Precision of Mechanical Alignment System, ASME Journal of Manufacturing Science and Engineering, 122, pp. 350-359.


4. Q.-A. Huang, and N. K.-S. Lee (2000), A Simple Approach to Characterizing the Driving Force of Polysilicon Laterally-driven Thermal Microactuators, Sensor & Actuator A Phsical, 80, pp. 267-272.


5. Q.-A. Huang, and N. K.-S. Lee (1999), Analytical Modelling and Optimization for a Laterally-driven Polysilicon Thermal Actuators, Microsystem Technologies, 5, pp. 133-137.


6. Q.-A. Huang and N. K.-S. Lee (1999), Analysis and Design of Polysilicon Thermal Flexure Actuator, Journal of Micromech. Microeng, 9, pp. 64-70.


7. N. K.-S. Lee, Y. An, and F. Tsung (2005), Studying Effects of Screw-Fastening Process On Assembly Accuracy, International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology, 25 (5 - 6), pp. 493-499.


8. N. K.-S. Lee,  G. H. Yu, J.-Y. Chen, and A. Joneja (2003), Effects of Mechanical Alignment System on Assembly Accuracy, ASME Journal of Manufacturing Science and Engineering, 125, pp. 595-608.


9. Y. Kuang, Q.-A. Huang, and N. K.-S. Lee (2002),Numerical Simulation of a Polysilicon Thermal Flexure Actuator, Microsystem Technologies, 8 (1), pp. 17-21.