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Research at Newcastle University on formal methods for the design of computing systems has had a major impact on the delivery of new high-dependability products by industry. The methods (VDM and Event-B), to which we have made significant contributions, have been embodied in tools (VDMTools, Overture, Rodin) and applied in industry. The reach of the work extends to industries in Europe (e.g. in the rail sector by Siemens, 2011) and Japan (e.g. in firmware design by Sony, 2008). Significance is seen in reported improvements in defect detection rates of up to a factor of 5 over previous processes and the cost-effectiveness of design processes. The "Mobile FeliCa" chip developed using VDMTools is now incorporated into over 200 million mobile phones worldwide. Our approach to disseminating research has engendered lively international and online end-user communities further developing and using the tools today.
Analytical methods and nanotechnology developed and patented since 1994 by the University of Sunderland, for healthcare, forensic and environmental monitoring applications have been exploited for their commercial and healthcare benefits. The patents were out-licensed to a University spin-out company for the production of a `sniffer' device to detect raw material air contamination in a manufacturing environment. The proof of concept project resulted in significant commercial benefits, such as inward investment, new industry, specialist training, and >20 new jobs for a range of skilled workers, both in the UK and overseas, development of health and welfare protection, exploitation of technology to meet new industry regulations, and improved efficiency in the manufacture of active pharmaceutical ingredients and products for household goods.
UCL spinout company, Senceive Ltd, has established itself as an innovative provider of wireless enabled remote condition monitoring solutions. The company provides a robust, scalable, safe and highly cost-effective infrastructure monitoring capability for railway and construction industry applications, with customers including Amey, Costain, Network Rail and Tubelines. Recent deployments on projects such as Crossrail have been recognised by industry bodies as delivering significant product innovation and cost savings in excess of £1 million compared to use of a wired monitoring solution.
Building on excellent computer science research, carried out in a number of applied research centres, the University has taken a leading role in the establishment and development of the software sector in the North East. This has resulted in a regional strategic approach, which has delivered significant social and economic benefits, with impacts including the creation of jobs, SME growth, cluster establishment and inward investment. Sunderland's applied computing research has also resulted in an increase in innovation and research in software SMEs and has impacted on the perception of Sunderland as the heart of a regional software cluster.
Research into the operational characteristics and applicability of biological reaction networks, carried out at the university in collaboration with groups at Caltech and Sony Systems, revealed the pressing need for a standard format that could be used for storage and exchange of mathematical models of such systems. Hertfordshire researchers played a crucial role in the initial design, dissemination and early exploitation of the Systems Biology Markup Language, SBML, now recognised as the de facto standard format for this purpose. Several major scientific publishers operating across academic boundaries require their authors to use SBML, and 254 software tools, including MATLAB and Mathematica, are now SBML-compliant. Online forums testify to a sizeable, international user-developer community that encompasses engineers, biologists, mathematicians and software developers.
Glyndŵr researchers designed and developed ambient user interface devices and middleware (known as the `E-servant'), and evaluated the completed system, on an FP6 project developing near-to-market-ready prototypes of advanced kitchen appliances. Functionality included sensors in refrigerators that communicated if the door had been accidentally left open; in washing machines, RFID chips identified laundry and automatically selected correct programmes; other appliances, along with further sensors (e.g. smoke alarms) communicated their status via the E-servant to personalised user interfaces. Users could control the appliances, monitor them, and receive timely notifications. Impact relates to benefits to industrial partners and public engagement with research.
Lancaster University's pioneering research on Quality-of-Service (QoS) architecture has led to significant impact on the development of TETRA (Terrestrial Trunked Radio) — the digital radio standard used by emergency and public safety services globally. The route to impact was via UK projects on Mobile and Emergency Multimedia. It involved the transfer of QoS technology and know-how to HW Communications Ltd (HWC), a Lancaster-based SME. HWC became instrumental in developing the outcomes of our collaboration in TETRA's Multimedia Exchange Layer (MEX) standard and its specification for TETRA II (or TETRA Enhanced Data Services, TEDS) — a new version of TETRA that enables multimedia data services. MEX was adopted as a new clause in the TETRA II release in 2010. The impact is that vendors of TETRA equipment manufactured after 2010 can implement MEX in their products, thereby leveraging Lancaster's pioneering QoS research to enable applications to obtain the best possible level of service in a standardised way — which is absolutely crucial for the public-safety and related applications for which TETRA is being used.
Research in information modelling at Newcastle University's School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape, supported by research grants and industry funding, led to the development of a software prototype and subsequently to a market software application (NBS Scheduler). This product is particularly targeted at SMEs in the construction industry with a design capability and for them it has become best-practice software. The product — developed and marketed by National Building Specification (NBS, an arm of the Royal Institute of British Architects) — has transformed the organisation, writing and formatting of non-drawn information for refurbishment and smaller new-build projects. It has made a significant contribution to developing accurate building project information with subsequent commercial and societal benefits through the lowering of transaction costs and prices. Scheduler has also underpinned the development of another product (NBS Create), which also leads its field through the creation of Building Information Modeling (BIM)-compliant building specifications.
This case study describes the impact of the EnCore microprocessor, and the associated ArcSim simulation software, created in 2009 by the Processor Automated Synthesis by iTerative Analysis (PASTA) research group under Professor Nigel Topham at the University of Edinburgh. Licensing to Synopsys Inc. in 2012 brought the EnCore and ArcSim technologies to the market. Synopsys Inc. is a world-leading Silicon Valley company. It is the largest Electronic Design Automation (EDA) company in the world, and the second largest supplier of semiconductor IP. EnCore is achieving a global impact through this worldwide channel. The commercial derivatives of the EnCore technology provide manufacturers of consumer electronics devices with an innovative low-power, high-performance microprocessor that they can customize to their specific application requirements, enabling the next generation of electronic devices.
This case study describes impact from the Newcastle-led research project to construct the world's first dedicated single-crystal diffraction synchrotron beamline for chemistry and materials science at Daresbury Laboratory Synchrotron Radiation Source (SRS). The result was an innovative and productive facility that has served as the model for the development of other facilities internationally, especially at Diamond Light Source (UK) and the Advanced Light Source (USA). The original Newcastle University research has helped produce scientists now employed by industry and public service sectors around the world. Major new and beneficial drugs and catalysts have been developed with the aid of the synchrotron beamlines and work conducted at these facilities has been critically important for the advancement of the global chemical and pharmaceutical industries and US Government energy development programmes.