ITT Dublin awarded €218,000 by EI


2 May 2007

A research project at the Institute of Technology, Tallaght (ITT Dublin) has been granted funding of €218,000 by Enterprise Ireland.

The research focuses on the ZigBee platform for wireless communications for access control equipment in the security industry

The funding comes under EI’s ‘Innovation Partnerships’ scheme, which allows companies to tap into the expertise and facilities of a third-level institution.

The funding was granted to the Department of Electronic Engineering at ITT Dublin to carry out the research for a private company over the next 18 months.

ZigBee is the name of a specification for a suite of high-level communication protocols using small, low-power digital radios based on wireless personal area networks. ZigBee is targeted at radio frequency (RF) applications that require a low data rate, long battery life and secure networking.

The research project will investigate methods that will lead to an extended operating range for Zigbee wireless devices. An experienced RF engineer and a supporting software engineer will be engaged for the duration of the research.

James Wright and Brian Keogh will lead the research team. The overall research will contribute to a national competence in the entire area of RF design.

Pat O’Donnell, industrial liasion manager at ITT Dublin, commented: “We are delighted to have received this substantial funding from EI. This is the largest research project funded under the innovation partnership scheme to date at ITT Dublin and while it is unusual for EI to fund a start-up company to this extent under this scheme, this is an indication of the quality of the research proposal.”

ITT Dublin was also successful in the first round of the latest cycle of funding being provided by the Programme for Research in Third-Level Institutions (PRTLI).

Under this programme, 40 higher educations institutions were invited by the Higher Education Authority to submit proposals to avail of €190m that is being made available in Cycle 4 of the government-funded PRTLI. The funding will be provided up until 2010.

O’Donnell remarked: “We have made an application to the PRTLI to amalgamate five existing Institute Research Centres and two Institute Research Groups to create a Centre of Applied Science for Health on the campus at ITT Dublin. We are delighted to have made it through the first round of this scheme and are currently working on our final submission for the funding.”

ITT Dublin is a market leader for research, innovation and enterprise development and in this area alone has over 80 academic and technical staff, a growing number of full-time research professionals, 70 registered postgraduate students, postdoctoral fellows and research assistants.

By Niall Byrne