Sensor Signal Processing

The fundamental challenges for signal processing are: how best to sense; how to distribute the processing and communication of the data within the network to maximize performance and minimize cost; how to analyze it to extract the salient information. Signal processing is the glue which holds together much of modern technology. The algorithms underpinning mobile communications, medical imaging, image rendering for games and many other technologies were all developed within the global signal and image processing research community. Today the world is an environment of pervasive interconnected sensing with the associated requirement to extract useful information from the large volumes of data that arise. In applications of defence, homeland security and environmental monitoring there is a need to collect and combine data from a range of sensors of widely differing complexity (e.g. from satellite imaging to ground based motion detectors) to achieve persistent wide area monitoring of a scene of interest. This can assist in the assessment of threats, e.g. the planting of improvised explosive devices, the long-term ecological effects of deforestation, or the monitoring of time critical events such as devastation by fire or flood. On the roads the external monitoring of traffic flow by closed circuit television networks, junction-based pressures sensors and GPS create an opportunity when combined with on-vehicle sensors (e.g. lidar, radar and video) to provide driver assistance and ultimately automatic driving systems. This Platform proposal seeks funding for a foundation for our research team in addressing these challenges.

Actions we propose within our Platform to deliver impact are as follows:

(i) Enable a range of research projects to be undertaken, specifically:

a. Exploratory projects will allow risky but potentially ground-breaking ideas to be explored.
b. Reactive projects which permit a rapid response to exciting and unexpected new approaches that arise from our own research or from international groups;

Both of the above approaches provide a pathway to delivering impact to our academic community.

c. Proof of concept studies with our industrial partners to explore early implementation of our algorithms;

The above allows us to accelerate the uptake of our research by industry by working directly with them to implement our algorithms in systems, if successful this would offer significant opportunities for economic impact.

(ii) Provide continuity and bridging funds to retain key postdoctoral researchers and exceptional graduating PhD students thus allowing longer term career planning;
(iii) Facilitate strong interaction with other research communities for application-specific sensing challenges via interdisciplinary workshops with industrial and academic collaborators, (outputs could highlight research trends, develop position papers and initiate short-term feasibility studies;
(iv) Develop and enhance our collaborations via two-way exchanges with industrial and international research teams via extended stays (1-month) in major international laboratories for our researchers.

All of the above ensure that our PDRAs have superb opportunities to develop their careers by offering them stability in their career at a critical time, presenting opportunities to interact with colleagues in the international research community, and also to engage with industry to see their algorithmic research implemented in potential products.