Vanodhya Warnasooriya

Professional Experience

Electronic Engineer

Vega Innovations (Pvt.) Ltd. | Jan 2024 – Present

Developed an anomaly detection model for facial recognition using Depth and IR cameras
Configured RFID antenna systems for electronic toll counter lanes
Designed a LoRa-based smart farm sensor network with LLM integration
Developed PV harvest monitoring tools for electric three-wheelers

Research Associate (Audio-Visual)

GCRF One Health Poultry Hub | Jan 2024 – Mar 2024

Analyzed audio-visual content and created video outputs for the project team

Awards & Achievements

First Place, Undergraduate Thesis Project Competition 2023

First Place, IEEE Innovation Nation Sri Lanka Central Province Competition 2023

Second Runners-Up, Hack:AI Competition 2022

8th Place, International Rover Design Challenge 2021

Global Finalist, NASA EO Dashboard Hackathon 2021

Publications

Sum Rate Maximization in STAR-RIS Assisted Full-Duplex Communication Systems

P. P. Perera, V. G. Warnasooriya, D. Kudathanthirige, H. A. Suraweera

Published in IEEE ICC 2022

DOI: 10.1109/ICC45855.2022.9838477

Damage Assessment after Natural Disasters with UAVs: Semantic Feature Extraction using Deep Learning

M. M. Viduranga, N. S. Hewawiththi, V. G. Warnasooriya, T. Fernando, H. A. Suraweera, S. Sridharan, C. Fookes

To be submitted to IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing

Notable Projects

Smart Garbage Disposal System (2023)

Developed a prototype for incentivizing proper garbage disposal through rewards

Sendie - Communication Device (2022)

Designed a half-duplex communication system using ESP-NOW wireless protocol

Development of an ICU Ventilator (2021)

Led HMI design and control system programming for an ICU ventilator

High-Altitude Balloon Project (2020-2021)

Electronic design team lead for Serendib 1.0 and 2.0 missions

Extracurricular Activities

Producer of upcoming TV series "Last Man"

Professional Drone Pilot - Aerial Cinematography

Award-winning Photographer

Amateur Radio Operator (4S6VNO)

Tabla Player - University Music Group

Research Experience

Damage Assessment after Natural Disasters with UAVs (2024)

Supervisors: Dr. Tharindu Fernando, Dr. Himal A. Suraweera, Prof. Sridha Sridharan, Prof. Clinton Fookes

Proposes a novel semantic extractor for machine learning downstream tasks in identifying critical data for decision-making. The system operates onboard in real-time, optimizing data transmission to ground stations.

Semantic Segmentation Deep Learning Visual Question Answering

Identification of Attention Level by Gaze Recognition (2023)

Supervisors: Dr. Himal A. Suraweera, Prof. Maheshi B. Dissanayake

Enhanced video conferencing through gaze estimation and head pose detection for attention scoring, implementing semantic communication principles with GAN-based video reconstruction, achieving 80% bandwidth reduction.

Semantic Communication GANs Signal Processing Image Processing

Leadership Roles

Member - Advisory Board

SEDS Sri Lanka (2021 – Present)

Chairperson

IEEE Student Branch, University of Peradeniya (2022 – 2023)

Vice Chairperson

IEEE Student Branch, University of Peradeniya (2021 – 2022)

Voluntary Work

Lighting Design for dramas and stage performances

Photographer, Google Developers Group - Sri Lanka

Creative Producer, IEEE Sri Lanka Section Congress

Mathematics Tutor and Student Mentor, Sasnaka Sansada

Conducted astronomy lectures for school students

References

Dr. Himal Suraweera

Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Engineering

University of Peradeniya

himal@eng.pdn.ac.lk +94 71 216 6088

Prof. Maheshi Dissanayake

Professor, Faculty of Engineering