Silhouettes of Dr Patrick Prendergast, TCD provost, and Pat Rabbitte, TD, Minister for Communications, at the Lighthouse Cinema in Dublin City for the showcase of research developed by the CTVR. Image by Paul Sharp/Sharppix
The Lighthouse Cinema in Dublin City was the scene this morning for a showcase of more than 50 exhibits of research around telecommunications that have been spawned from the CTVR, the Irish research centre that’s based at Trinity College Dublin. Five spin-outs from the CTVR also demoed their innovations.
Pat Rabbitte, TD, the Minister for Communications, Energy and National Resources, opened the event, which featured exhibits that researchers at the CTVR have been pioneering. Some of the researchers even worked with industry.
For instance, one of the exhibits is the fruit of a collaboration with Intel Labs Europe.
The researchers worked with Intel to use the ‘TV white space’ that has been freed up by the analogue TV switch-off in order to develop an environmental measurement system using remote sensors in Dublin City.
The idea is that such a system could measure noise, temperature, humidity and dust levels, offering the scope to enhance the lives of urban dwellers.
The information collated by the system is communicated to Intel’s Ambient Intelligence Platform using an 18-kilometre TV white space link.
Cracking telecommunications
Other exhibits on show this morning included solutions for providing low-cost rural broadband, technologies for future mobile networks, antennas for wireless communications and healthcare, plus solutions for cooling wireless and optical devices.
And, as well as the five CTVR spin-out companies, a number of licensed technologies were also open for viewing.
CTVR’s future plans
Prof Linda Doyle, director of the CTVR, described Ireland as playing host to a “vibrant” communications sector.
She said the CTVR orchestrates large-scale collaborations of this type between industry and academia.
Now the CTVR is planning to build a Future Networks and Communications Centre that takes these alliances to an even greater scale.
“The showcase provides an opportunity to show what has been achieved to date and what is possible for the future,” said Doyle.
Driving Ireland’s economy
Delegates from the likes of IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, Science Foundation Ireland, and ComReg, as well as academia, students and the general public, were at the CTVR showcase this morning.
Rabbitte spoke about how high-speed connectivity is one of the key drivers of economic activity in Ireland.
He said the research outputs of CTVR are all about ensuring that networks are designed to be able to provide the kind of connectivity that is needed in a low-cost and sustainable manner.
“This research demonstrates the critical links between research and enterprise that lead ultimately to job creation,” said Rabbitte.
