Science of Sensor Systems Software (S4) Project
The universities of Glasgow and St Andrews are to share a £4.2M grant from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) to look at the delivery of more reliable sensor-based systems. CENSIS will also participate in the programme – which runs until 2021 – by providing access to expertise and resources from its office in Glasgow.
Led by Prof Muffy Calder of the University of Glasgow alongside senior staff from St Andrews and Liverpool universities and Imperial College London, the Science of Sensor Systems Software (S4) project brings together expertise across computing, engineering, and mathematics. It aims to develop new principles and techniques for sensor system software which is hoped will help development in a range of sectors, including the development of more robust water networks, air quality monitoring, reliable autonomous driving and precision manufacturing.
Muffy Calder said: “Although sensors are becoming ever more commonplace in all kinds of devices around us and in our everyday lives, sensors themselves and the environments in which they operate are very uncertain: we don’t have a unifying science to ensure that the systems and the information they provide is resilient, responsive, reliable and robust.
“By the end of the project the team will have answered a number of fundamental questions about how to design, deploy and reason about sensor-based systems, developing new principles, techniques and tools, alongside simulations and physical sensor testbeds for experimentation.”
CENSIS’ involvement in S4 includes business engagement with the sensor systems community to identify challenges and develop complex, multi-stakeholder collaborative projects, and provide access to specialist staff, including in-house engineering experts and project managers. A wider programme of events, outreach activity and skills development will help capitalise on opportunities and disseminate outcomes from projects.
Additionally, the new Connected Devices Development Centre which is already developing a range of capabilities to support the real-world test and evaluation of Sensor and Imaging Systems including Internet of Things devices, will be available for ‘drop-in’ use by members of the programme.
Mark Begbie, Business Development Director at CENSIS commented:
“The programme offers excellent alignment with CENSIS, tackling an area that many of our industry partners see as critical to the future growth of sensor applications.“
“There are significant synergies between the scientific excellence S4 will develop and the market focused engagement and commercially experienced support CENSIS has been set up to deliver. We welcome the opportunity to engage our business and engineering teams with S4’s researchers to ensure the maximum application and integration potential of the scientific breakthroughs is realised.”
Other companies and organisations involved in S4 include ABB, British Geological Survey, Freescale Semiconductor, Rolls-Royce, Thales and Transport Scotland.