Dr. Zhang is currently working as a GIO / Chief Solution Architect in Spatial Front Inc. His research interests focus on spatial dynamic mechanism, GIS, and various remote sensing technologies (multispectral, hyperspectral, SAR, LiDAR, and Photogrammetry) used in urban management, digital mapping, environmental monitoring, ecological change, and land use/cover change detection. One of his main research interests is developing a theory and methodology that can bridge driving factor and land use/cover change by defining a chain spatial dynamic mechanism and establishing a spatial dynamic model with the use of remote sensing and GIS. Dr. Zhang earned his Ph.D from the State Key Laboratory of Resources and Environmental Information System (LERIS) at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. During his Ph.D study, he was involved in the State Key Laboratory’s “Integrated Systems of Natural Disaster Monitoring and Assessment with Remote Sensing and GIS" project during an Eighth Five-Year-Plan Period in China. He subsequently accomplished his post-doc program at the University of Illinois at Chicago and the University of Rhode Island. As the lead scientist, he has been involved in 3 NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) funded remote sensing research projects as well as 7 other federal government sponsored research projects as part of his post-doctoral researcher position. As the senior Geospatial Architect and Remote Sensing Scientist at Fugro Inc, Dr. Zhang led the R&D team to design and develop the enterprise SAR factory -- an automatic radar data processing system and Fugro’s PanoramiX solution – a comprehensive, efficient oblique mapping from multiple viewing angles combining with powerful 3D mapping and visualization software for easy analysis of imagery. Dr. Zhang has also been involved in 28 large-scale remote sensing and photogrammetry projects such as electric corridor mapping with LiDAR, the Tennessee State-wide mapping project which utilized photogrammetry and LiDAR, NOAA Coastal Geospatial Services with airborne digital and hyperspectral imagery, LiDAR, and IFSAR, and Alaska’s State-wide GeoSAR mapping project which used a combination of IFSAR and LiDAR. As the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) in Data Enhancement Services, LLC, Kevin led numerous national and state -wide GIS, photogrammetry and LiDAR projects such as the State of Delaware NHD development using LiDAR and remote sensing. As the GIO in Spatial Front Inc, Dr. Zhang is currently leading the R&D on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in remote sensing data processing, digital mapping, urban build-up inventory and feature extractions. In addition, Dr. Zhang led 15 enterprise application, system integration, GIS and remote sensing projects contracted by various organizations in the Public and Private Sectors. Additionally, Dr. Zhang has published 28 papers in peer-reviewed professional journals, 3 book chapters, and has held 25 presentations in both national and international conferences. Dr. Zhang's articles appeared in the top international journals in remote sensing and GIS fields such as Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing and Ecological Modeling, and his book chapters were published by the top academic publishers such as Science China Press and Taylor & Francis Group. Furthermore, he has received numerous honors, which include the prestigious ESRI Award (First Place) for the Best Scientific Paper from the American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, the Elide Award (First Place) from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Presidential Scholarship (Second Place) from the Institute of Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences. |
