October 15-19, 2023
Tomar, Portugal
Your poster should be no larger than 1.5 meter high and 1.0 meter wide (Portrait Style)
About This Conference
The primary goal of this conference is to bring together scientists, engineers and clinicians involved in the application of optics to biotechnology, medicine, and surgery. Clinical translation and technology commercialization are major areas of emphasis. By focusing on some of the most topical directions, this conference provides a forum for researchers of our field to access our most important progress and to chart course for future research through formal and informal discussions. Through providing ample time for informal networking, the conference facilitates positive interactions among trainees, junior investigators, and established experts. This interaction is vital to cultivate the next generation of scientists and engineers in biomedical optics. The proposed conference will be a continuation of meetings on this topic sponsored by Engineering Conferences International for more than 24 years.
Technical sessions are being planned on the following topics:
- Data Driven Approaches and Machine Learning
- Molecular Guided Surgery
- Sports Medicine and Wearables
- Physics Based Modeling
- Standardization and Phantoms
- Photons and Sound Waves
- Imaging through the Endoscope
- Technologies for Virus Detection and Quantification
- Drug Discovery and Drug Development
- Optics and Biomechanics
- Neurophotonics
- Optical and Fiber Systems
Confirmed speakers will be posted soon.
Conference Organization
Chairs
Frederic Leblond, Polytechnique Montreal, Canada
Mark Niedre, Northeastern University, USA
Conference Co-Chairs
Summer Gibbs, Oregon Health and Science University, USA
David Cuccia, Modulim, Inc.
Jonathan Liu, University of Washington, USA
Confirmed Speakers
Stefan Andersson-Engels, Tyndall National Institute
Sara Bohndiek, Cambridge University
Stephen Boppart, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Michael Bouvet, University of California-San Diego
Bernard Choi, UC Irvine
Daniel Côté, CERVO, Université Laval
Hamid Dehgani, The University of Birmingham
Turgut Durduran, ICFO : The Institute of Photonic Sciences
Nicholas Durr, John Hopkins University
Dan Elson, Imperial College
Maria Angela Franceschini, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital
Sylvain Gioux, Intuitive Surgical (company)
Jana Kainerstorfer , Carnegie Mellon
Dongkyun Kang, University of Arizona
Charles Lin, Massachusetts General Hospital
Faisal Mahmood, Harvard Medical School
Laura Marcu, UC Davis
Eric Potma, UCI, Beckman Laser Institute & Medical Clinic
Narasimhan Rajaram, University of Arkansas
Daniel Razansky, ETH Zurich
Darren Roblyer, Boston University
Kimberley Samkoe, Thayer School at Dartmouth
Melissa Skala, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Kenneth Tichauer, Illinois Institute of Technology
Kevin Tsia, The University of Hong Kong
Pablo Valdes, University of Texas Medical Branch
Alex Vitkin, University of Toronto
Brian Wilson, Univeristy Health Network, University of Toronto
Conference Fees and Registration
Conference Fees
All conference fees are inclusive. They include registration, accommodations (nights of October 15, 16, 17 and 18), all meals, excursion, and taxes from the reception and dinner on Sunday through lunch on Thursday. Incidental fees (telephone calls, laundry, bar, etc.) are billed to your personal account by the hotel.
ALL PARTICIPANTS (INCLUDING MEMBERS OF THE ORGANIZING COMMITTEE AND INVITED SPEAKERS) ARE REQUIRED TO REGISTER.
The conference fees are:
| Register | Register Sept. 19, 2023 | |
| Participant (single occupancy or sharing room with a guest; guest fee additional) | US $1,780 | US $1,980 |
| Participant (sharing a room with another participant) | US $1,670 | US $1,870 |
| Bona fide Graduate Student (sharing a room with another student) (Those in this category must upload proof of current status during registration – copy of current Student ID or a letter from your University confirming your student status) | US $1,255 | US $1,455 |
| Bona fide Graduate Student (single occupancy or sharing room with a guest; guest fee additional) (Those in this category must upload proof of current status during registration – copy of current Student ID or a letter from your University confirming your student status) | US $1,365 | US $1,565 |
| **Fees for Guest/accompanying person sharing bedroom with a participant. (Includes all conference included meals and excursion) | US $610 | US $610 |
| **Fees for Guest/accompanying person sharing bedroom with single occupancy participant. (Bed & Breakfast ONLY – no meals, no excursion, no social hours or coffee breaks) | US $130 | US $130 |
If you plan to bring children to the conference, please contact Kathy Chan for pricing.
Conference Registration
You will need a login name and password to register for ECI conferences through our online system. If you have been a recent participant at an ECI conference or have submitted an online application or request for information about an ECI Conference, you may already have an account with us. If you know your login information, please use it.
If you are not sure whether you already have a login and password, please click on automated password retrieval and enter your e-mail address before creating a new account. If we don’t have a valid email address on file for you, a pop up window will appear stating that no records were found. Click “OK” and then follow the instructions to create a new account.
If you have any questions or experience any difficulties, please email Kathy Chan.
Special Notes and Payment Instructions
We suggest that you register as soon as possible to be certain that you will have a hotel room at the conference rate.
All participants are encouraged to register before September 19, 2023. There is a discounted price for registering before this date. Hotel space cannot be guaranteed for registrations received after this date. Your registration is not officially confirmed until we receive payment of the amount due. ECI reserves the right to cancel your room registration if payment is not received or your vaccination proof is invalid. Your invoice/receipt will automatically be e-mailed upon of receipt of your registration. Should you need a signed receipt, please contact Kathy Chan.
Because of contractual guarantees made with the hotel for room and meal functions, no shows, late arrivals, missed meals and early departures cannot receive fee adjustments. If you have a disability and may require accommodation in order to participate fully in this conference, please indicate this when you register. An ECI representative will contact you to discuss your specific needs. If you have special dietary requirements (e.g., vegetarian or a food allergy), please make a note on your registration. The chef needs to know this information in advance if we are to accommodate you. ECI will attempt to accommodate special requests such as Kosher or Halal meals, but such meals may not be available at all conference sites. The participant must pay any additional costs for special meal requests that ECI pays a surcharge for.
Payment must be made by credit card (Visa, MasterCard, and Amex), check or money order drawn on a U.S. bank in U.S. dollars, payable to ENGINEERING CONFERENCES INTERNATIONAL. Checks or money orders in any other currencies are NOT ACCEPTABLE. Payment must be made on the web site except for those who are sending payment by wire transfer or have a purchase order from their company/institution.
WIRE TRANSFER PAYMENT: If you are planning to make payment by wire transfer, please contact Kathy Chan for the bank information. You must add $30 to cover ECI bank charges. Please reference your full name and the conference title. Please email a scanned copy to Kathy Chan. This is very important – otherwise it is extremely difficult to trace your payment and you may not receive a receipt prior to the conference.
Cancellation Policy: Cancellation must be received by ECI in writing at least 28 days prior to the start of the conference in order for a full refund (less a processing fee) to be considered. The ECI auditors require that refunds for all conference cancellations be processed after the conference so that the necessary back-up information (e.g., hotel list of those in-house) can be attached to the refund request and ECI can verify that the hotel has not charged a cancellation fee.
Cancellation fees:
- Cancellations received more than 28 days prior to the conference start date are subject to a processing fee of 4% of the total fee, plus any direct expenses incurred by ECI.
- Cancellations received 15 – 28 days prior to the conference start date are subject to a $250 cancellation fee plus any direct expenses incurred by ECI.
- Cancellations received 8 – 14 days prior to the conference start date are subject to a $500 cancellation fee plus any direct expenses incurred by ECI.
- No refunds will be issued for cancellations received less than 7 days prior to the conference start date.
- No refunds will be issued due to inclement weather or travel disruptions/cancellations.
Registrations may be transferred without incurring any penalty or cancellation fee.
Denied or delayed visa
If a participant is forced to cancel due to a denied or delayed entry visa, ECI will issue a full refund if ECI has been notified of a potential visa issue at least four weeks prior to the conference start date.
Change of payment method
If an attendee who has already paid the conference fee with a credit card requests that the fee be refunded to that card so that it can be paid in a different manner (e.g., charged to an alternate credit card, or paid via check or bank transfer), a processing fee of 4% of the total fee amount will apply.
Disclaimer
It may be necessary for reasons beyond the control of ECI to alter the content and timing of the program or the identity of the speakers. In the unfortunate circumstance that an event is cancelled, ECI is not liable for any costs incurred by participants in connection with their attendance.
Smoking is prohibited at ECI conferences and conference functions.
Should you have specific questions regarding your registration, please contact Kathy Chan.
Pre and Post Conference Reservation Form
If you are arriving early or staying after the conference and wish to extend your stay in the conference hotel, please download and complete the Pre/Post Conference Reservation form posted below and send it directly to the conference hotel. ECI does not guarantee or pay for rooms reserved before or after the conference – you must reserve extra nights directly with the hotel and you are responsible for paying the hotel directly for any extra nights.
Call for Abstracts
All prospective attendees are invited to submit abstracts on their work to be presented in several oral and poster sessions during this 4-day conference. All paper submissions are carefully peer-reviewed to ensure a high-quality program on emerging topics. The abstract should include both the significance of the research as well as results that will be discussed in order to allow a scientific assessment of the work by the organizers.
Please prepare your abstract according to this template: docx or doc.
All abstracts should be submitted electronically at this link.
Oral Abstract Submission Deadline: CLOSED
Poster Abstract Submission Deadline: OPEN
Sponsor Packages
Package A: $2,000
- Name of Company on Sponsor List in Program
- Company Logo displayed on screen between sessions
Package B: $3,500
- Name of Company on Sponsor List in Program
- Company Logo displayed on screen between sessions
- Half-page ad in digital program
- Company logo and link on conference website
Package C: $5,000
- Name of Company on Sponsor List in Program
- Company Logo displayed on screen between sessions
- Full page ad in digital program
- Company logo and link on conference website
- Company information packet available in attendees’ registration materials
Package D: $7,500
- Name of Company on Sponsor List in Program
- Company Logo displayed on screen between sessions
- Full page ad in digital program
- Company logo and link on conference website
- Company information packet available in attendees’ registration materials
- Sponsor a scientific session with oral introduction
- Table to display company information
ECI Associate Director Kevin Korpics (kevin@engconfintl.org) (+1-212-514-6760) may be contacted for invoicing and other questions.
Please note that none of the sponsor packages include any free or discounted registrations for attendees from sponsor companies.
Venue Information
Situated in the geographic center of Portugal, Tomar (about 135 km northeast of Lisbon) was founded by the notorious Knights Templar in 1160. The Templars were part monks, part warriors and plotted crusades from Tomar for centuries. They established the beginnings of the Convento de Cristo, Tomar’s most famous landmark, on a hill overlooking town. The Convento combines architectural styles from the 12th through 17th centuries. An ornate octagonal canopy protects the high altar of the Templo dos Templares, modeled after the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, and the grounds of the convent contain eight cloisters embracing a variety of styles.
The Templars earned a reputation as ferocious fighters, and won the admiration and trust of both rich and poor. They served as protectors and transporters of Christian kings, power brokers and pilgrims and grew famous as bankers. The Templars acquired great wealth, but made many enemies in the process. Pope Clement V accepted accusations of heresy, blasphemy and sacrilege leveled against the Templars by Philip the Fair, king of France, and many Templars were imprisoned or executed. King Dinis of Portugal allowed them to regroup their forces under the new aegis of the Order of Christ. Prince Henry the Navigator became Administrator after the Templars became the Order of Christ and he used much their wealth to finance his explorations.
Tomar is divided by the River Nabão, the banks of which are dotted with weirs and wheels once used to water vegetable gardens and orchards. The irrigation techniques illustrate the Muslim tradition of hydraulic engineering. Most sights, accommodations and shops lie on the west bank of the river and the lush Parque Mouchão straddles the two banks. The ancient yet functional Ponte Velha (Old Bridge) connects the two. Tomar’s main shopping thoroughfare is rua Serpa Pinto, known locally as Corre Doura. Outlets for folklore, pottery, copperware and wrought iron highlight it. Tascas and bars are scattered throughout the city, with some offering live music.
Hotel dos Templários
Situated near the heart of Tomar’s Old Town, the Hotel dos Templários is the largest hotel in the district. Many rooms offer views of the Convent of Christ and the public areas, including lounges and terrace-view dining rooms, are spacious. The hotel offers room service, laundry, a barbershop, a beauty parlor, a billiards room and baby-sitting. There are wide sun terraces, indoor and outdoor pools, a tennis court and a greenhouse. The hotel also has large gardens. Rooms have air conditioning, private bathrooms, televisions and minibars. Free parking is available.
For more information on the area, please visit these web sites:
http://www.golisbon.com/portugal/cities/tomar.html
http://www.sacred-destinations.com/portugal/tomar.htm
www.ezportugal.com/tomar-portugal
Transportation to Tomar from Lisbon
By train from Lisbon:
The trip from Lisbon to Tomar takes approximately 1½ hours. Upon arrival at the Tomar train station, taxis are available for the short (about one or two kilometer)r trip to the Hotel Dos Templarios.
By automobile from Lisbon:
The rental car companies will provide maps and driving instructions. Allow between 1-1/2 – 2 hours for the trip, depending on traffic. The hotel provides free parking.
More detailed information will be available when registration opens.
Sponsors
General Information about ECI
Engineering Conferences International (ECI) is a not-for-profit, global engineering conferences program, originally established in 1962 that provides opportunities for the exploration of problems and issues of concern to engineers and scientists from many disciplines.
The format of the conference provides morning and late afternoon or evening sessions in which major presentations are made. Poster sessions will be scheduled for evening discussion as well. Available time is included during the afternoons for ad hoc meetings, informal discussions, and/or recreation. This format is designed to enhance rapport among participants and promote dialogue on the development of the meeting. We believe the conferences have been instrumental in generating ideas and disseminating information to a greater extent than is possible through more conventional forums.
All participants are expected both to attend the entire conference and to contribute actively to the discussions. The recording/photographing of lectures and presentations is forbidden. As ECI conferences take place in an informal atmosphere, casual clothing is the usual attire.
Smoking is prohibited at ECI conferences and conference functions.