📣 Help Shape the Future of UKRI's Gateway to Research (GtR)

We're improving UKRI's Gateway to Research and are seeking your input! If you would be interested in being interviewed about the improvements we're making and to have your say about how we can make GtR more user-friendly, impactful, and effective for the Research and Innovation community, please email gateway@ukri.org.

Institutional Sponsorship for Durham

Lead Research Organisation: Durham University
Department Name: Physics

Abstract

Abstracts are not currently available in GtR for all funded research. This is normally because the abstract was not required at the time of proposal submission, but may be because it included sensitive information such as personal details.
 
Description Working with local farmers and academic life scientists we have advanced into a number of applications of the instrument developed. A main finding, perhaps as one might expect, is that in the UK using reflection measurements of sunlight from soil requires a different approach for calibration that that normally used in arid countries with frequently constant sunlight. To overcome the variability in the light level we have developed and now published new approaches.
Exploitation Route We are now looking to use the instruments developed for skin monitoring (healthcare) applications and more recently to image the retina looking for markers for long term diseases including complication of diabetes and dementia.
Sectors Agriculture

Food and Drink

Healthcare
 
Description By working with farmers locally they are gaining more insight into the type of soil across their fields without having to drive across sodden ground. This is important as it helps to provide localised information as to the state of the soil without damaging its structure by moving around on the soil. In particular in relation to selecting the best time to sow different areas of a farm. We are also now looking at potential uses in healthcare for skin disorders and potentially burning monitoring. This has formed a collaboration with a company based in Reading to develop a pre-clinical instrument for hyper spectrally imaging the back of the eye to look for markers for long term disease.
First Year Of Impact 2023
Sector Agriculture, Food and Drink,Healthcare
Impact Types Societal

Economic
 
Description Development of Retinal Hyperspectral Imaging System 
Organisation Occuity
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Private 
PI Contribution We bring the expertise in hyperspectral instrument design and precision diamond machined optics.
Collaborator Contribution Experience in developing commercially successful ophthalmic instrumentation.
Impact A trial instrument is under construction and a significant grant application has been submitted to EPSRC under a Healthcare scheme. The PDRA employed on the project is also developing Fellowship applications.
Start Year 2023
 
Title Data Analysis for multi-band cameras for UAV-based atmospheric monitoring 
Description first level analysis tools created for on-the-fly analysis 
Type Of Technology Software 
Year Produced 2022 
Impact This has led to multiple interactions with users of the software and these are developing into new potential collaborations, very often interdisciplinary outside the field of physics. The work relates to climate change and sustainable farming methods. 
 
Title Versatile multi-band cameras for UAV-based atmospheric monitoring 
Description A prototype was created, to TRL5. The camera is capable, and has been flown, on UAVs to look at spectral signatures of crops and other vegetation in several countries in Africa and Asia. 
Type Of Technology Physical Model/Kit 
Year Produced 2022 
Impact Further collaborations are now taking place with NGOs, charities and other UK and international funding bodies now that the method has been demonstrated. 
 
Description Online Materials for UK-Thai Knowledge Transfe 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Engagement activity & Research Tools: the material created by the post-doc has already been used, and will continue to be used as a teaching tool for gamma-ray astronomy in Thailand (and by extension SE Asia through its inclusion in workshops).
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022,2023