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A number of trimaran ocean-going ships, based on original designs conceived by UCL researchers, are currently in use. RV Triton, the demonstrator trimaran, is presently employed as a patrol vessel to provide Australian Customs and Border Protection with increased capability and lower fuel consumption compared to a monohull. The Independence Class of littoral combat ships currently entering service in the US Navy offers improved military capability and one-third lower fuel consumption, with the ensuing benefit of creating almost 2,000 jobs at the shipbuilder, Austal. Similarly, trimaran ferries with their inherent stability have improved passenger comfort and their reduced fuel consumption has lowered operating costs.
A new form of personal rapid transit has been developed from research which began at the University of Bristol in 1995 and has since been commercialised by a University spin-out company. The ULTra system is now in operation at Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 and constitutes a world first for the UK. Since opening in 2011, passengers have benefited from a personal, fast, reliable and low cost driverless transport system, that has removed the queuing and inefficiencies associated with bus transfers to the terminal. The Heathrow pods completed a million miles of fully driverless operation within two years of the system opening and have the highest satisfaction rating of any passenger service at Terminal 5, which itself is rated as the best in the world. The success of the system has led to a plan to extend it to Terminals 2 and 3.
There are about two million visually-impaired people (VIP) in the UK, over four times the number of wheelchair users. Research performed in Reading's School of Construction Management and Engineering has brought significant improvements to the quality of life and safety of VIP by developing a better measurement of their visual contrast sensitivity and putting this measurement into practice. For someone with a visual impairment, the ability to distinguish between different objects and surfaces is crucial for assessing the surrounding environment and navigating it accurately and safely. The research has defined a measurable contrast difference (30 points on a 1-to-100 light reflectance value (LRV) scale) between surfaces of any colour that can be confidently identified by 80% of VIP in the UK. This new contrast standard offers a significant breakthrough in understanding and simplifies the concept of LRV. It provides designers and product manufacturers with a useful yardstick by which urban environments and public transport systems can be made more accessible and safer for VIP to use. The new definition has effectively replaced the previously used concept of luminous reflectance in this arena and is now in widespread use, thanks to the establishment of an internationally recognised method of surface colour measurement (BS 8493) in 2009 that draws on the Reading work. The research has led to improved national and international standards and national regulations on building and accessability product design, among other things, and continues to enhance the quality of life and employment prospects of people who are visually impaired by providing clear guidance for designers and manufacturers.
The research has explored the value of making in developing knowledge and the role of haptic cues and their design application in improving usability of products. The research has informed the design of TacMap whose primary beneficiaries are blind and partially sighted users. Resulting impact of research has been 1) a spin out company TacMap Ltd. 2) greater independence and dignity for blind and partially sighted people who through the use of `TacMap' can move more easily around interior and exterior spaces. 3) more inclusive and compliant services for businesses in relationship to the Equality Act 2010 agenda.
Peter Jones' research developed new principles for urban street planning and design, which have been incorporated into Department for Transport (DfT) and Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) national guidelines. The methodology has been used in the Mayor of London's Roads Task Force report; Transport for London (TfL) now requires boroughs to use the classification for all new submissions for funding for street schemes. It underpins the specification of an £650m PFI highway maintenance contract with LB Hounslow, and has been used by other UK local authorities. Internationally, the approach has been applied in Australia and included in draft regulations for urban planning in Beijing.
Vehicle and mobility design research carried out at the Royal College of Art (RCA) since 1993 has resulted in industrial innovation in vehicles and transport, both nationally and internationally, enhancing industry's ability to provide commercial, societal and environmental benefits between 2008 and 2013. The areas in which we are claiming impact include accessible, user-centred transport (Impact 1); future visions of public service vehicles and systems (Impact 2); and innovation in vehicle design for changing technologies (Impact 3). These impacts are produced through design and consultancy. Corroboration of impact takes the form of public records of achievements, and authentication by manufacturers.
This case study describes the impact of the work at the University in the field of rail and road vehicle aerodynamics, which has primarily been through the integration of research into UK and EU standards and codes of practice. This has resulted in impacts on practitioners and professional services in the field of rolling stock and infrastructure construction and operation, and has also provided information for industrial testing work and for use in expert witness work. Specifically the work has been incorporated into the following codes and standards.
The methodology in these codes is widely used by the railway industry in the UK and Europe in train and infrastructure design, and indeed in some situations their use is obligatory. The work has also directly informed recent testing work for Network Rail and HS2 (via Arup) that have addressed fundamental issues associated with major electrification projects for the former and basic track spacing determination for the latter. It has been used in two court cases that were concerned with lorries blowing over.
Human-computer usability research within the university's Sensory Disabilities Research Unit (1993-2002) led to the construction of accessibility guidelines that are widely used, with an estimated reach to a maximum of 30 million people in the EU. PAS 78: Guide to Good Practice in Commissioning Accessible Websites and BSI BS8788 Web Accessibility Code of Practice met 2010 web accessibility law in the UK and subsequent EU legislation. Similarly, BS EN 15823:2010: Braille on Packaging for Medicinal Products met UK, EU and International Standards for Braille on medicine packaging. Further research resulted in award-winning guides for blind users of Windows software that improves accessibility to work.
The Technology Management Group (TMG) in the Department of Space and Climate Physics (also known as the Mullard Space Science Laboratory, or MSSL) at UCL has developed a range of professional training courses for industry that promote a forward-looking approach to the management of technology projects. Industrial customers have invested almost £2.4 million on the training within the REF impact period, greatly valuing its impact in helping their staff deal with the challenges of modern, complex projects, such as achieving high reliability in network-enabled systems that need to perform in the harshest environments. The training has improved engineering capability and organisational effectiveness for its customers, helping them to deliver excellent performance — to budget, on time and with the quality and functionality required. The TMG has also contributed to a systems engineering competency framework that is being used worldwide in the professional certification of systems engineers.
HDM-4 is the most widely used system for road investment appraisal and decision making, generating improvements in public policies and services. Economic development and road agencies in developing countries are major users of the tool. HDM-4 has become the de facto standard used by the World Bank for its road investment appraisals and has been used to assess more than 200 projects since 2008, with some $29.5bn of World Bank loans, credits or grants drawn-down to fund these. Uptake of the tool has led to the commercial success of HDMGlobal, a consortium which manages the distribution and development of the software under exclusive licence from the World Road Association-PIARC, with revenues of £1.6m generated since 2008. HDM-4 has also been utilised for economic assessment and road systems investment management in the UK.