UK launches IoT research hub
6 Jan 2016
A £23 million Internet of Things (IoT) Research Hub led by University College London (UCL) has been announced.
The Hub is part of IoTUK, a £40 million, three-year government programme that seeks to advance the UK's global leadership in IoT.
It will see a consortium of eight other UK universities work over a three year period to explore IoT-related issues in privacy, ethics, trust, reliability, acceptability, and security (PETRAS).
"By harnessing our world-leading research excellence this PETRAS research Hub will accelerate IoT technology innovation and bring benefit to society and business"
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) chief executive Philip Nelson said: “In the not too distant future almost all of our daily lives will be connected, in one way or another, to the digital world. Physical objects and devices will be able to interact with each other, ourselves, and the wider virtual world.
“But, before this can happen, there must be trust and confidence in how the Internet of Things works, its security and its resilience. By harnessing our world-leading research excellence this PETRAS research Hub will accelerate IoT technology innovation and bring benefit to society and business."
Aside from UCL, Imperial College London, University of Oxford, University of Warwick, Lancaster University, University of Southampton, University of Surrey, University of Edinburgh and Cardiff University will collaborate at the Hub, which will focus on five key themes:
- Privacy and trust (Lead Universities: Warwick, Oxford)
- Safety and security (Lead Universities: Imperial, Lancaster)
- Harnessing economic value (Lead Universities: Imperial, Oxford)
- Standards, governance and policy (Lead University: UCL)
- Adoption and acceptability (Lead Universities: Warwick, Lancaster)
According to the EPSRC, across the five themes, projects sharing core technologies will be linked in cross-cutting “constellations”:
- Infrastructure (Lead Universities: UCL, Cardiff, Warwick, Oxford)
- Health and care (Lead Universities: Imperial, Oxford)
- Control systems and supply chains (Lead Universities: Warwick, Lancaster, UCL)
- Ambient environments (Lead Universities: Lancaster, Surrey, Imperial, UCL, Edinburgh)
- Identification (Lead Universities: Warwick, Oxford)
- Transport and mobility (Lead Universities: Surrey, Lancaster, Imperial)
- Design and behaviour (Lead Universities: Warwick, UCL, Oxford)
The initial 17 projects include experiments at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park; the cyber security of low power body sensors and implants; understanding how individuals and companies can increase IoT security through better day-to-day practices; and ensuring that connected smart meters are not a threat to home security, the EPSRC said.
Funding for the Hub is provided via a £9.8 million grant from the EPSRC, while 'partner contributions' make up the remaining £13.2 million.
