Distributed Estimation and Control under Communication Constraints. Sensor networks will be an important technology for Australia's future. Applications range from monitoring water quality to controlling complex defence systems. This project will lead to a better understanding of the fundamental limits of wireless sensor networks. Above and beyond the creation of new theory and algorithms, the national and community benefits will include: (i) enhancement of Australia's reputation for innovative ....Distributed Estimation and Control under Communication Constraints. Sensor networks will be an important technology for Australia's future. Applications range from monitoring water quality to controlling complex defence systems. This project will lead to a better understanding of the fundamental limits of wireless sensor networks. Above and beyond the creation of new theory and algorithms, the national and community benefits will include: (i) enhancement of Australia's reputation for innovative Engineering research through quality publications and international collaborations; and (ii) improvement of the research and development capability in the information and communications technology sector through high level training of postgraduate students and postdoctoral fellows in this important technology.Read moreRead less
Emerging technologies for enrichment in old age: A critical perspective. This project aims to generate knowledge about older adults' experiences with emerging technologies used for social and emotional enrichment. Technologies like virtual reality are said to offer social benefits for those in advanced old age, but we have limited knowledge about the issues that can impede older adults’ experiences with these technologies and even cause harm for vulnerable users. This project seeks to identify e ....Emerging technologies for enrichment in old age: A critical perspective. This project aims to generate knowledge about older adults' experiences with emerging technologies used for social and emotional enrichment. Technologies like virtual reality are said to offer social benefits for those in advanced old age, but we have limited knowledge about the issues that can impede older adults’ experiences with these technologies and even cause harm for vulnerable users. This project seeks to identify empirically informed strategies for good practice in the design and deployment of emerging technologies for enrichment in old age. This should inform the future ethical design and use of emerging technologies to benefit the social and emotional well-being of older Australians.Read moreRead less
Overcoming barriers to effective Internet use by community sector organisations. Providing adequate Internet access for rural and regional Australia is an important priority for governments at all levels. For communities in these areas to benefit from the information economy and realise a continuing improvement in their social, economic and environmental wellbeing, such access must be both affordable and sustainable. Community organisations make an important contribution in these areas and this ....Overcoming barriers to effective Internet use by community sector organisations. Providing adequate Internet access for rural and regional Australia is an important priority for governments at all levels. For communities in these areas to benefit from the information economy and realise a continuing improvement in their social, economic and environmental wellbeing, such access must be both affordable and sustainable. Community organisations make an important contribution in these areas and this research will examine the questions how they adopt such innovations, and how they make use of the Internet to further interaction with their community. It will identify and examine barriers to such use, relating the barriers to both their root causes and the benefits / behaviour on which they impact.Read moreRead less
Location-Based Personalisation in Mobile Commerce (M-Commerce). M-commerce, though playing an important role in future competitiveness of Australia, suffers a low user demand. While location-based services have taken off in Europe, they are still at their infancy in Australia. In terms of IT access, Australia is ranked lower than many Asian countries. Our work gains an understanding of users' concerns and expectations of location-based services, which leads to better application designs and thus ....Location-Based Personalisation in Mobile Commerce (M-Commerce). M-commerce, though playing an important role in future competitiveness of Australia, suffers a low user demand. While location-based services have taken off in Europe, they are still at their infancy in Australia. In terms of IT access, Australia is ranked lower than many Asian countries. Our work gains an understanding of users' concerns and expectations of location-based services, which leads to better application designs and thus a wider adoption. An examination of users' attitude towards personalised content and concerns about data privacy provides insights to Australian legislation in relation to telemarketing and data-driven marketing. National benefits will stem from a balance between telemarketing efficiency and users' benefits.Read moreRead less
Growing old and staying connected: touch screen technology for ameliorating older people’s experience of social isolation. Social isolation affects many older people. This project investigates novel technologies to prevent and to ameliorate social isolation experienced by older adults. This project will implement and trial a software application over an 18 month period, using a 3G connected touch-screen tablet, and evaluate its impact on alleviating social isolation.
Development of a novel photonic reticulation system for cost efficient delivery of high bandwidth communication services to regional communities. The R&D and commercialisation of the DWDM-lite will have a significant impact on the efficiency of Australia's telecommunications industry with consequent flow-on effects to the productivity and competitiveness of Australian telecommunications industry. The availability of broadband telecommunications services to regional communities at service and ser ....Development of a novel photonic reticulation system for cost efficient delivery of high bandwidth communication services to regional communities. The R&D and commercialisation of the DWDM-lite will have a significant impact on the efficiency of Australia's telecommunications industry with consequent flow-on effects to the productivity and competitiveness of Australian telecommunications industry. The availability of broadband telecommunications services to regional communities at service and services levels to those of metropolitan customers is a recognised national priority. It lies at the core of the Australian Government's recently announced Connect Australia plan directing at regional community benefits in improved availability and affordability of broadband telecommunications services. The product will enhance Australian participation in the global equipment supply industryRead moreRead less
Designing for scale: understanding the value of information and communication technologies for individuals, communities and movements. This project will build an understanding of how we can design information systems to have a positive, significant impact at different human scales: individual, community and society at large. Using software that advises individuals on how much water to use in their gardens, the project will question how this vehicle can effect large-scale change in our communitie ....Designing for scale: understanding the value of information and communication technologies for individuals, communities and movements. This project will build an understanding of how we can design information systems to have a positive, significant impact at different human scales: individual, community and society at large. Using software that advises individuals on how much water to use in their gardens, the project will question how this vehicle can effect large-scale change in our communities.Read moreRead less
Ageing Bodies, Embodied Interactions and Social Inclusion. This project aims to design and investigate innovative technologies to establish meaningful social connections between older people who are constrained by limited mobility. Older adults who participate in social activities benefit from enhanced wellbeing, but social groups are often inaccessible for those in advanced old age, especially if living in rural areas. Emerging technologies, such as depth cameras and body tracking, can be used ....Ageing Bodies, Embodied Interactions and Social Inclusion. This project aims to design and investigate innovative technologies to establish meaningful social connections between older people who are constrained by limited mobility. Older adults who participate in social activities benefit from enhanced wellbeing, but social groups are often inaccessible for those in advanced old age, especially if living in rural areas. Emerging technologies, such as depth cameras and body tracking, can be used to augment limited bodily movement via avatars. These can be represented in virtual communities to foster social inclusion. The expected outcome of this project is a new technology that uses whole-body interactions and representational avatars to improve social inclusion for older adults in rural and urban settings.Read moreRead less
Efficient Prediction of Application Metrics for E-Services. Application Service Providers (ASPs) are one of the fastest growing classes of e-services and operate on the principle of renting software applications. This project aims to develop prediction techniques to estimate quality of service metrics for ASPs. The efficient prediction of the service levels that can be ensured is challenging given the dynamic nature of the Internet and the semantics of application metrics not being formally defi ....Efficient Prediction of Application Metrics for E-Services. Application Service Providers (ASPs) are one of the fastest growing classes of e-services and operate on the principle of renting software applications. This project aims to develop prediction techniques to estimate quality of service metrics for ASPs. The efficient prediction of the service levels that can be ensured is challenging given the dynamic nature of the Internet and the semantics of application metrics not being formally defined. The project will result in the development of a prototype system to support prediction of service levels. This system will be accessible to the Australian e-services industry via a web interface.Read moreRead less
Towards the 'Semantic Web': Standards and Interoperability across Document Management and Publishing Supply Chains. At a critical point in the development of the information economy, this project sets out to address the fundamental challenges of electronic standards and interoperability in the text and graphic media industries. These industries are a source of enormous and growing employment in Australia; their products also touch every person's life in profound ways. This project will develop ....Towards the 'Semantic Web': Standards and Interoperability across Document Management and Publishing Supply Chains. At a critical point in the development of the information economy, this project sets out to address the fundamental challenges of electronic standards and interoperability in the text and graphic media industries. These industries are a source of enormous and growing employment in Australia; their products also touch every person's life in profound ways. This project will develop an extensive industry-focussed knowledge base, and take this knowledge back to industry and the broader community through its proposed publications, conferences and workshops.Read moreRead less