Knowledge Glamorgan
SHOWCASING RESEARCH
Summer 2010 VOL 7
Highway to Hydrogen Turning Vision into Reality
Glamorgan
SHOWCASING RESEARCH
Introduction
Dr Louise Bright, Head of Research Office Welcome to this issue of Glamorgan Knowledge. I imagine you, like me, receive many publications from businesses and universities showcasing their wares. Why is Glamorgan Knowledge different and why should you turn the page to read more?
In researching what I could say for this introduction I read back issues of Glamorgan Knowledge and the answer to that question suddenly became clear. Research at Glamorgan tackles real-life problems with a view to providing real-life solutions. Solutions to problems that we can all relate to, and that may touch our lives at one time or another. For example, StoryWorks (page 9) has been helping cancer and dementia sufferers and their families to cope with the effects of their illnesses. The project has also had a positive impact on the staff at Velindre Cancer Centre, who have learnt, in a very real way, what it means to be affected by cancer. This edition also gives you a flavour of the work we have done in collaboration with the BBC Trust on how Wales is represented on TV, and the impact of both Doctor Who and Torchwood being filmed here. It also gives an overview of one of our newest spin-out companies, Glamex Security, which is developing a CCTV system that on detection of an intruder, calls the keyholder’s mobile with a high quality live video of the intrusion taking place. In difficult economic times it is pleasing to note that our world-leading research in hydrogen has generated 20 new highly-skilled posts thanks to £6.3million funding for the Sustainable Environment Research Centre. All of these projects have two things in common. The outcomes of these studies will improve our lives in one way or another. They are relevant to society and will have positive impacts both economically and socially. They are also the results of working in partnership with other universities or businesses. This approach ensures that our research leads to solutions of real-life problems. Each article has a contact point, so if you feel that there are future partnerships worth pursuing, please get in touch.
P4
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The Hydrogen Highway
Through P9 Improving Understanding
Induction P13 Magnetic Tomography
Transport P14 Rural Project
Representing
Wales
on the Small Screen According to research carried out by members of the University’s Centre for the Study of Media and Culture in Small Nations, it is vital that the BBC sustains its current commitment to the nations and regions.
Centre members Professor Steve Blandford, Professor Stephen Lacey, Dr Ruth McElroy and Dr Rebecca Williams completed a large scale study in collaboration with the BBC Trust and BBC Audience Council Wales entitled Screening the Nation: Wales and Landmark Television. The research considered the impact of Network television programmes on the perception of Wales and gave particular consideration to the impact of Doctor Who and Torchwood. The report was produced in the context of the Audience Council Priority for 2009/10, adopted by the BBC Trust in January 2009: “That the Trust should investigate ways in which the BBC might better portray the full diversity of the UK’s nations and communities in the regions of England, across its Network services, significantly enhancing the cultural representation of the English regions, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.”
Respondents completed an online, bilingual survey about Doctor Who and Torchwood which was designed to obtain information about the visibility of both series’ connections with Wales. Focus groups were then undertaken with a cross section of the community including school children, a group from an ethnic minority in Cardiff, Welsh language groups, a group representing the gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgender communities, and retired people.
members we talked to discussed the importance of seeing their local area on television screens or hearing accents from their own areas.”
Professor Steve Blandford, who led the research, said, “As licence fee payers, the public might expect to see themselves, their lives and experiences on-screen. As well as considering a range of portrayals of Wales on TV, the project used Doctor Who and Torchwood as a case study to investigate these issues. Given the enormous domestic and international success of these shows they have been credited by some with a significant alteration in the way that Wales is seen in the rest of the UK and world-wide. Many of the audience
The findings of the report were discussed at a seminar in Cardiff jointly hosted by the University of Glamorgan and the Audience Council Wales. Attendees included representatives from all four audience councils, Janet Lewis-Jones, BBC National Trustee for Wales, and BBC Trust Vice-Chairman, Chitra Barucha. Contact: Professor Steve Blandford sblandfo@glam.ac.uk
The research discovered that portrayal is not about quotas or more representation of specific minorities (such as Welsh characters) on TV in a tokenistic way. It is about the ways in which broadcasters engage audiences by representing the complex characteristics of a nation.
“The research discovered that portrayal is not about quotas or more representation of specific minorities (such as Welsh characters) on TV in a tokenistic way.” Pic © BBC Cymru Wales
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Highway to Hydrogen Turning Vision into Reality Science writer Nadya Anscombe writes for publications such as Nature and the New Scientist. She spoke to Jon Maddy, part of the University’s Hydrogen Research Unit, about the team’s research into hydrogen and the issues surrounding its use as an alternative fuel.
“We are aiming to create 63 permanent jobs in hydrogen energy as a direct result of the project,with the intention of making Wales a global centre for the hydrogen and fuel cell industry.”
Nadya Anscombe
About 30 miles away from the main University campus, a stone’s throw away from the M4 motorway, nestled between two lakes and a building with a huge solar panelled roof, is the University’s Renewable Hydrogen Research and Demonstration Centre. Part of the Hydrogen Research Unit, it is currently a relatively quiet place, with only a handful of staff on the site. This is all set to change, however, with the creation of 20 new research posts after the Cymru H² Wales project received £6.3 million funding from the University and the research and innovation theme of the EU Convergence Funding Programme. The project is also part of the University’s activities with the pan-Wales Low Carbon Research Institute. “Having established an international reputation in hydrogen research, we are now looking to employ a large number of experienced researchers to push forward areas the team are currently working on,” says Jon Maddy, “We want to attract people from major research groups around the world and need people from a variety of disciplines such as electrical, chemical, mechanical and control engineering, chemistry and biology.” This is because the Cymru H² Wales Project covers various aspects of hydrogen energy, from the manufacture of renewable hydrogen, to its storage, distribution and end use (see box). This research is aimed at tackling the many hurdles that need to be overcome on the road to the low carbon economy.
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Hydrogen is a clean fuel – only water is emitted when hydrogen is used in a fuel cell. Although hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe, producing it in a useable form is a challenge that Glamorgan’s Hydrogen Research Unit has been addressing for many years. “The vast majority of the hydrogen we use today is made from fossil fuels,” says Maddy. “But there are a large number of different ways to make hydrogen from renewable sources. We have a long track record of investigating several of these routes including using renewable energy to electrolyse water; a number of different bacteriological methods – particularly focusing on breaking down waste; and extracting hydrogen from chemical process streams. The Cymru H² Wales project will allow us to take some of the most promising production routes closer to being a commercial reality.” Once the hydrogen has been produced, storing large quantities in a small space is another challenge for hydrogen, particularly in the automotive sector. Hydrogen is most commonly stored in high-pressure tanks, but they are heavy and can be expensive and not best suited to use in a passenger vehicle. Several research groups around the world are working on finding new storage solutions. At Glamorgan, Prof David Antonelli is developing a new approach that involves the “Kubas interaction” binding hydrogen to a solid matrix, similar to a solid sponge. His approach uses novel chemistry to store large amounts of hydrogen, which can be released on demand.
The Cymru H2 Wales project has been organised into several work packages
The next challenge after storage is the fuel cell or combustion engine, where the hydrogen is used to power the vehicle or stationary power plant. Critics often use high cost, especially regarding the platinum catalyst, as an argument against fuel cell technology. But as fuel cell efficiencies increase and less platinum is used, costs are coming down and durability is increasing. Cymru H² Wales will enable researchers at Glamorgan to advance development of both fuel cells and hydrogen combustion engines for integration into vehicles and for stationary application. The Glamorgan team is also investigating other approaches to fuel cells, including the research and development of microbial fuel cells. The final, and perhaps the biggest, challenge is the creation of the refuelling infrastructure. Refuelling stations are not only expensive to build, but the lack of vehicles available means that they are unlikely to be a money-making business at present. However, to break this impasse the University is working closely with the Welsh Assembly Government and industry partners and has already invested in one of the UK’s most advanced hydrogen refuelling stations at Baglan. The University has also been awarded £240,000 for its South Wales Alternative Fuel Gateway project. This project is part-funded by the UK Department for Transport’s Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Grant Programme, managed by CENEX. The money will be used to build a new hydrogen, natural gas and biomethane vehicle refuelling facility
at the University’s Pontypridd campus as well as further developing the existing alternative refuelling facilities at its Renewable Hydrogen Research and Demonstration Centre. “These facilities will not only support the hydrogen and alternative vehicle drive train research and development work of the University, but will be the initial steps in the creation of a broader alternative refuelling infrastructure along the M4 corridor in Wales,” says Maddy. “Hydrogen has often been presented as a classic ‘chicken and the egg’ problem – no-one wants to invest in the infrastructure until there are more cars on the road; but no-one wants to buy a hydrogen car until they know there are sufficient filling stations. Working with industry and government and by setting up another filling station along the M4 we hope to help break this cycle and stimulate others to invest in the technology.” Maddy also hopes that Cymru H² Wales will be more than just a three-year university project, but rather an on-going long-term collaboration between the University and its academic and industrial partners. “While we initially plan to employ 20 researchers, we hope that the project will eventually stimulate additional funding and create new businesses,” he says. “We are aiming to create 63 permanent jobs in hydrogen energy as a direct result of the project, with the intention of making Wales a global centre for the hydrogen and fuel cell industry”.
The Cymru H Wales project has been ² organised into several work packages: Hydrogen energy storage development Hydrogen and methane vehicle and refuelling infrastructure development Industrial development of the biohydrogen and bio-methane processes Experimental development of the recovery and clean-up of product gas, intermediates and co-products Development of product gas, intermediate and by-product applications
Pictured left to right: Members of the team, Professor David Antonelli, Tim Patterson, Professor Alan Guwy, Jon Maddy, Professor Richard Dinsdale, Dr Sandra Esteves and Dr Iano Premier
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Tackling
Digital Exclusion The Digital Economy Bill was passed, some would argue hurriedly, before the dissolution of Parliament prior to the General Election. Certain points of the Bill caused controversy, stimulated much debate and continue to do so. However, some of the main points of the Bill will be vital in ensuring that the UK is equipped to fully exploit the economic and social benefits that digital technology brings. As part of the Bill, Ofcom will have to carry out an assessment of the UK’s communications infrastructure every two years, and there will also be investment in spectrum modernisation of mobile and wireless broadband. These points of the Bill are essential for Wales, where the terrain and scattered rural population present their own challenges to providing a digital infrastructure fit for today’s and tomorrow’s technologies. Infrastructure, though, isn’t the only challenge. Digital exclusion is still an issue in many communities across Wales. The University’s George Ewart Evans Centre for Storytelling (GEECS) is one of five partners involved in Communities 2.0: a Welsh Assembly Government project that aims to tackle this problem. An investment of almost £20m over six years, the project is helping community groups, social enterprises and voluntary organisations get the most out of digital technology. The other partners in the consortium include the Wales Co-op Centre, Novas Scarman, Carmarthenshire County Council and Pembrokeshire Association of Voluntary Services.
Pictured above : Professor Hamish Fyfe
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“Digital exclusion is still an issue in many communities across Wales.” The GEECS team, led by Professor Hamish Fyfe, is tackling digital exclusion through hands-on community based workshops around narrative and storytelling in a digital format, through digital photography, audio recording, digital video editing and DVD production. Karen Lewis a member of the GEECS team explains, “Digital Storytelling is about exploring ways of using modern technology to capture and curate our own memories and histories and to share those with others. It’s an ideal way of engaging people with technology, using their interest in family history, for example, to introduce them to the opportunities that digital media and the web has to offer, through a route that has genuine benefit and relevance to their lives.”
GEECS is also running a series of seminars around the area of digital inclusion with leading researchers and practitioners. Professor Hamish Fyfe said, “With the digital economy and digital participation very high on the Government’s list of priorities at the moment, Communities 2.0 allows us to engage with other key players in the field across the UK and to contribute fully to the national research and policy agendas.” For further information about Communities 2.0 or the work of the George Ewart Evans Centre for Storytelling, please visit http://storytelling.research. glam.ac.uk or http://cymunedau2dot0.org/
Improving access to Boost for Digital Games Archaeological Data Industry in Wales Accessing and linking findings from archaeological excavations will soon be easier, thanks to researchers at the University. Archaeology has seen increasing use of the web in recent years for data dissemination, yet data remains fragmented and search systems do not fully meet the needs of academic research and public inquiry. Tools are needed to improve search techniques and enable data to be linked more cohesively. The Hypermedia Research Unit has national expertise in this field and as a result has been awarded £110,000 from the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) for its Semantic Technologies Enhancing Links and Linked data for Archaeological Resources (STELLAR) project in collaboration with York University’s Archaeology Department, and English Heritage. STELLAR builds on outcomes and tools from the previous AHRC funded Semantic Technologies for Archaeological Resources (STAR) project, which in its turn extended semantic search techniques initially developed through the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) funded Faceted Access to Cultural Heritage Terminology project (FACET) in collaboration with the Science Museum. Professor Doug Tudhope who leads the project said, “Due to the current fragmentation of datasets, archaeological data is rarely reused and reexamined in light of evolving research questions and interpretations. STAR addressed these issues by developing semantic and natural language processing techniques to link digital archive databases and the associated grey literature. STELLAR aims to generalise and extend the data extraction tools produced by STAR and enable third party data providers to use them.” The extracted data will be represented in standard formats that allow the datasets to be cross-searched and linked by a variety of Semantic Web tools, following a linked data approach. Best practice guidelines and tools will be developed both for mapping and extracting archaeological data. Evaluation will consider both the mapping and linked data generation exercises, taking account of technical and pragmatic issues. http://hypermedia.research.glam.ac.uk/kos/stellar
Ensuring the Digital Games industry in Wales can compete with the rest of the UK will be the focus of a new knowledge transfer centre at the University. The Digital Games Content Laboratory (DIGiLab) will be established as the result of a successful funding bid to the Academics for Business (A4B) scheme for £422,555. The project aims to promote knowledge transfer between the academic centres of excellence to the computer games industry sub-sector. Led by Professor Peter Robertson, Dean of the University’s Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries, in collaboration with Swansea Metropolitan University, @Wales Digital Media, ELSPA, and TIGA (the UK computer games and video games industry associations), the project will provide a unique resource to support open innovation in the Welsh media industries. It is envisaged that the project will link to an overarching computer games development consortium with Abertay, Bath, and Bournemouth Universities. Professor Robertson, commented, “This sub-sector is a key part of the creative industries in the UK but in Wales, proportionally, there are few companies and approximately only 100 people employed, well below the UK sector average for employment.”
He continued, “Recent consultation with companies has highlighted a lack of expertise in computer games content development. The aim is to stimulate new product development of games content within existing media companies in Wales.” DiGiLab will aim to: • p roduce digital games prototypes to demonstrate the commercial potential to leading games publishers, such as EA, Sony Interactive, Sega, and Ubisoft; • b roker relationships between existing companies, academia, and games industry association, ELSPA/ TIGA, to promote open innovation; • p rovide work-based experiential learning opportunities for graduates to develop the next generation of games developers in Wales. The project is associated with the Faculty’s Media Lab initiative which has to date been given £908,293 of grant funding and will be formally opened by the First Minister for Wales in September.
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Europe’s
Enterprising Women The Women’s Entrepreneurship in the European Union (WEEU) project, led by the Women’s Entrepreneurship Hub, in the University’s Centre for Enterprise, focuses on business planning; creativity and innovation; social entrepreneurship; work life balance, and sustainability.
For 18 months, women’s entrepreneurship educators and leading women business owners in Wales, France and Lithuania have explored new approaches in women’s entrepreneurship teaching and learning. 212 women participated in the research phase and 44 in week long summer schools in each partner country, during which the transnational team piloted the new teaching materials. Partners from Advancia, Entrepreneurship School, Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Family Clinic Garliava (Lithuania) and Kaunas Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Crafts talked to Glamorgan Knowledge about their experiences:
To what extent has the WEEU project met your expectations? Antoine El Hage: I was interested to see what differences there would be in teaching women entrepreneurs. There are some similarities in teaching business planning – but all other aspects are different. I loved the first part of the project involving parallel focus groups with women entrepreneurs. Francoise Van Weddingen: I didn’t expect to meet so many women but it has been very good to meet women internationally! It has surpassed all our expectations.
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Asta Sileikiene: My role in the project is to represent women entrepreneurs. I had high expectations of it for myself and other women entrepreneurs too. I wanted something practical and I’m delighted that the results have exceeded my expectations.
What are the key benefits of the project to women’s entrepreneurship in your countries? AEH: Previously participants felt alone. Through the WEEU project they learned how to structure a business plan, to network effectively, discovered new ideas to inspire their creativity, developed self confidence and communication skills, completely restructured their business ideas, communications and IP strategy, fine tuned their offerings and some participated in business competitions and won prizes.
What have been the most positive aspects of the project? AEH: The discovery of the team; we now know each other very well so know who can work best on which aspect of the project. AS: The support that team members have given each other.
Rita Baidokaite: We amended the project slightly to allow us to team-teach the Women’s Entrepreneurship Summer Schools. This was really significant and an important learning point for us when we develop future projects.
What have you learned personally during the project? AEH: More about gender and entrepreneurship; it’s been very enriching. FVW: Important lessons about what makes this kind of project effective. It’s really important to allow time for team building activities at the beginning. The transnational meetings should be working meetings, not just reports. Most importantly, it is critical to recognise the value of social activities in building the team. They ensure creativity while the team continues to work, but in a more relaxed and reflective way. The project concludes with conferences in Wales on Tuesday 29 June 2010 and Paris on Thursday 16 September 2010 at which the Women’s Entrepreneurship in the European Union (WEEU) Consortium will be launched. For further information, please contact Christine Atkinson: catkinso@glam.ac.uk.
Improving Through
Understanding The Power of the Story Mention the word storytelling and, for many of us it conjures up images of children sat listening intently, enraptured by the words being read to them. We wouldn’t naturally think of it as a way to improve the services we use on a daily basis.
Yet as public services throughout the UK try to personalise what they offer, staff have started to realise the importance of seeing the world through the eyes of their patients and clients. The power of the story is being re-discovered… StoryWorks undertakes consultancy and research in the field of narrative and storytelling, with a particular focus on public services. It is a multidisciplinary collaboration between the University’s Welsh Institute for Health and Social Care and the George Ewart Evans Centre for Storytelling and draws upon a wide range of expertise in the fields of health, social care and storytelling. StoryWorks is led by Karen Lewis who joined from the BBC, where she was founder producer of the BBC’s award-winning digital storytelling project - Capture Wales. Karen is joined by Lisa Heledd Jones, who was a key member of the BBC’s Digital Storytelling team. Much of the work to date has been on gathering stories from patients and service users to feed back into staff development and raise awareness of the validity of listening properly to the voices of real people.
The project has a range of clients including Velindre Cancer Centre, Reach Supported Living, Bath University, Aneurin Bevan Health Board, Cardiff University, Age Alliance Wales, 1000 Lives Campaign, Care Council for Wales and The Fostering Network. StoryWorks was also successful in an application for funding to the Beacon for Wales project, to undertake a public engagement project with male foster carers. In May, StoryWorks and Velindre Cancer Centre hosted a symposium exploring the application of stories in health care settings. Around 70 people attended the event and the overwhelming response from delegates was extremely positive. The final session included a screening of some very powerful digital stories created by patients, followed by author Michelle Williams-Huw reading from her book My Mummy wears a wig does yours?, based on her experiences as a patient at Velindre. StoryWorks Associate Gilly Adams talked to Michelle about her experiences and motivation for writing her book, and her comments clearly chimed with other cancer survivors in the audience.
“The powerful stories that cancer patients at Velindre Cancer Centre have shared with us have offered a very human glimpse into the real experiences that lie behind the shocking statistics. When these stories were shared with staff at Velindre, there was a genuine sense of a different type of learning about what it means to live with cancer.”
For further details please contact Karen Lewis: klewis@glam.ac.uk
Stitched drawing by Georgie Meadows
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Operational
Effectiveness in times of
Disaster Tony McAleavy juggles his full-time job as a Senior Civil Contingencies Officer for County Durham & Darlington Civil Contingencies Unit at Durham County Council with a PhD in Disaster Management at the University. He spoke to Glamorgan Knowledge about the challenges and opportunities this presents.
“Disaster Management is becoming increasingly important as the UK has been afflicted by an unrelenting sequence of emergencies in recent years. These events have tested the emergency response community, highlighting a need to develop our understanding, through academic research, to ensure that we are able to mitigate future threats. This research need encouraged me to pursue a PhD to further my subject knowledge and develop professional-calibre research skills. I was impressed by the University’s track-record of innovative multidisciplinary research, and the new Disaster and Resilience Centre demonstrated its commitment to this. This ensured that the University of Glamorgan was the obvious choice of institution.
Pictured above: Tony McAleavy
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“I was heavily involved in planning for and responding to the H1N1 Swine Flu pandemic and severe weather and my supervisory team’s flexible and timely support ensured that I was able to maintain my research during a professionally challenging time.”
I opted for the part-time distance PhD programme as the synergies created by linking my career as a Senior Civil Contingencies Officer with a disaster management research programme far outweighed the benefits of being a full-time research student. My initial discussions with my supervisor (Pro-Vice Chancellor for Research, Professor Brian Hobbs) soon allayed any concerns I had about distance research as they fully understood the complexities of my chosen mode of study. I was heavily involved in planning for and responding to the H1N1 Swine Flu pandemic and severe weather and my supervisory team’s flexible and timely support ensured that I was able to maintain my research during a professionally challenging time. My PhD is based on challenging the concepts underpinning current international approaches to command and control, which is a critical part of disaster management. My initial findings have demonstrated that, despite being considered as the dominant model, command and control methods around the world vary greatly, validating my subject-area choice. Furthermore, my initial hypothesis formed the basis of a conference paper, which was presented at the Command and Control 2010 Conference, hosted at Whitehall by the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), one of the country’s pre-eminent think tanks specialising in Defence and Security issues.” For more information on the University’s research in disaster management and resilience go to www.glam.ac.uk/research
Glamex Security Ltd Professor Khalid Al-Begain and one of his research students, Alhad Kuwadekar, from the Faculty of Advanced Technology, have launched a spinout company based on technology that started as an MSc project in the next generation mobile application development laboratory. With support from the University’s Commercial Services Office, a business plan was developed, a management board set up and recently, the newly formed company successfully attracted the essential first stage funding to commercialise the already developed product. The research addressed problems related to building security and the use of Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) that has become a common feature of everyday life, particularly in the United Kingdom, which has the highest density of private and public CCTV surveillance cameras in the world. Businesses, local authorities and even schools increasingly use CCTV systems to observe and protect property and people. Most current remote video surveillance systems in the market provide only limited remote access to the images, even those using video over IP networks. This is typically because dedicated monitoring equipment or a PC is required to view the video images, particularly in real time. Those that claim video to mobile capabilities require special software to be installed on the phone or are viewed through a browser. Professor Khalid Al-Begain and Alhad Kuwadekar have been conducting a number of advanced projects on innovative applications of multimedia video and audio compression, and signalling techniques. Based on such applications, which were developed during the research, the spinout company plans to manufacture a product and deliver a service that enables live motion video from typical
IP cameras to be transmitted over the internet and delivered in real time to a mobile phone as a standard video telephone call. The key feature of the developed system is that when the CCTV camera detects an intrusion, the key holder will receive a normal 3G video call on the mobile. On answering the call, live video transmission will be received in sufficiently high quality to recognise the intruder. In cases of genuine intrusion, the keyholder can transfer the video stream directly to the police or a dedicated monitoring room by typing a special PIN on the mobile keypad. This process will eliminate false alarms, making it of particular interest to the police and the insurance industry. In addition, the system provides a number of innovative features such as automated and remote activation, and the definition of alternative, keyholders, in addition to the call-in monitoring capability. An advanced version of the system allows for both typical CCTV operation and live video security alarm system operation through the same set-up. The system is currently under review by the police and insurance companies for possible endorsement. The company launched the product in May in the presence of the European Managing Director of Panasonic and the Chief Technology Officer of Panasonic global, during the IFSEC show, the world’s leading annual global security event. www.glamex.co.uk Pictured above: Professor Khalid Al-Begain
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Harnessing
Intellectual Property The importance of universities to the UK’s road to economic recovery has been highlighted by many. Research carried out at higher education institutions has huge commercial potential, but it can often be a long and slow process getting the idea to the open market.
Now a project based at the University’s Centre for Enterprise, aims to change this by speeding up the process and increasing the success of research commercialisation. Dr Gary Packham and his team, in association with Xenos Business Angel Network, have been awarded an A4B (Academics for Business) grant to develop further an Intellectual Property (IP) Pipeline. Currently, university IP is often unable to cross the so-called Valley of Death. This is the gap between the creation of university research and successful exploitation of it in terms of commercial viability. In addition to the innovation and technical skill behind the initial university IP creation, other, perhaps more business orientated skills offered by Business Angels, are also often required to take university IP and guide it through the various obstacles to a point where it becomes commercially successful. Business Angels are more important than other finance providers because they supply capital in areas where others may perceive too much risk. These investments
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can be both early stage and expansion and can have a leveraging effect for other sources of funding, including bank loans and formal venture capital. In addition to providing finance, Business Angels are also generally actively involved in their investee businesses, providing access to business networks and markets, and expertise in contract negotiations. Dr Packham said, “Working with Business Angels and their networks can accelerate the commercialisation of intellectual capital. This project aims to create a process through which to promote early stage interaction between potential informal business investors, their networks, universities and academics in Wales.” The first in a series of events was held recently at the Glamorgan Conference Centre. It focussed on how working with Business Angels could give a hard-edged real-world commercial focus in order to accelerate the commercialisation of academics’ intellectual capital. The event included contributions from the project team (led by Dr Gary Packham), Nigel Woodruff from Innovation Partnership, David
Maas from the Xenos Business Angel Network, academics that have benefitted from working with Business Angels, and University Technology Transfer Officers. The day included: • Why academics and commercialisation staff should work with Business Angels and their networks • An explanation of the development and operation of the IP Pipeline being developed by the project team • Academics’ experiences of working with Business Angels • Various possibilities for interaction between academics with intellectual capital and Business Angels and their networks • What the project team needs next from commercialisation staff and academics to engage Business Angels with their IP. For further information on the project go to www.glam.ac.uk/ippipeline
Magnetic Induction Tomography
Detecting and monitoring cerebral haemorrhages could become easier as a result of the University‘s research into the use of Magnetic Induction Tomography (MIT). MIT is an imaging technique that uses the eddy current effect to image the electromagnetic properties of an object. Dr Stuart Watson and Dr Ralf Patz of the Medical and Electronical Signal Processing Unit are using MIT to pioneer the development of a device that can be used to image blood within the brain, in order to detect and classify cerebral stroke, and to allow doctors to monitor potential side effects produced by modern ‘clot-busting’ drug treatments. The device has been developed at Glamorgan over a number of years in collaboration with the Universities of Swansea, Manchester and Philips Research Laboratories, and the project has been the recipient of three Engineering and Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC) grants in excess of £1m in total. Dr Ralf Patz commented, “Unlike CT scanners, MIT doesn’t produce ionising radiation which means there is no safety limit on the amount of times a patient can be scanned, making the device suitable for bedside monitoring . Our device is
“We want to attract people from major research groups around the world.” inexpensive, and takes up much less space than CT and MRI systems, and we are developing it to be portable. We are hopeful that the MIT scanner will prove to be life-saving particularly in rural areas where people often live a long way from the nearest hospital. They could even eventually be stored in ambulances.” The team of electronic engineers at Glamorgan are working with Professor Huw Griffiths, a medical physicist at Swansea’s Singleton Hospital. They are hopeful that the first clinical trials of the device will happen before the end of the year. For further information about the project go to http://mespru.research.glam.ac.uk/projects/
Pictured above: Brian Wee, a PhD student in the Faculty of Advanced Technology working on Glamorgan’s MIT brain imaging system
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Rural Transport Project receives
National Reco Developed by the Wales Transport Research Centre at the University of Glamorgan, Bwcabus is a pioneering project that is helping to improve transport links in rural communities. Since its inception in 2009 the scheme has carried over 8000 passengers across rural West
Stephen Pilliner, Transport Manager, Carmarthenshire County Council said, “It has been a privilege to be able
Wales. Now, in recognition of its achievements the project has been nominated in the Most Innovative Transport Project category in the UK-wide Transport Times National Awards, and recently won the partnership category at the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) Cymru awards.
to work as part of a multidisciplined team to take this innovative project from concept to delivery. It is an example of how collaborative working between academia, the public and private sectors can deliver schemes that revolutionise passenger transport to improve access to services for rural communities, thereby reducing isolation and reliance on the motor car.”
Funded by the European Regional Development Fund through the Welsh Assembly Government, Bwcabus is a brand new on-demand fully accessible local bus service, tailored to the needs of the passengers and operating in response to pre-booked requests. Passengers don’t need to look at a timetable; they need only to phone in advance of when they want to travel to book a journey. The project is run by Carmarthenshire County Council in partnership with Ceredigion County Council.
Owen Clarke, Research Fellow at the Wales Transport Research Centre, added, “Making it into the top ten alongside some of the UK’s most notable schemes is a huge achievement and reflects all the hard work of the partners in getting Bwcabus from concept through to delivery and the huge success of the scheme to date.” For more information go to www.traveline-cymru.info/bwcabus/
“Making it into the top ten alongside some of the UK’s most notable schemes is a huge achievement.”
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ognition
Professorial
Inaugural
Lectures 2010 - 2011 Lectures are held on a Tuesday evening in the Glamorgan Conference Centre unless otherwise stated and start at 6pm. Refreshments are available from 5.30pm. All lectures are free and open to members of the public. Brazilian gold, Cuban copper and the frontier of British anti-slavery Professor Chris Evans Professor of History Tuesday 12 October 2010 A journey through war and genocide: a personal odyssey Professor Alan Hawley Professor of Disaster Studies Tuesday 9 November 2010 Analytical science...your life in our hands! Professor Tony Davies Professor of Analytical Science Tuesday 14 December 2010, Glyntaff Campus Deterioration modelling and repair of concrete bridges Professor Abid Abu Tair Professor in Civil Engineering Tuesday 11 January 2011 Creative industries – an economic miracle or myth? Professor Peter Robertson Dean of the Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries Tuesday 8 February 2011, ATRiuM Campus, Cardiff Knowledge organisation systems and information discovery Professor Douglas Tudhope Professor of Information Science Tuesday 8 March 2011 Mental health research: what are the risks of that happening? Professor Paul Rogers Professor of Forensic Nursing Tuesday 12 April 2011, Glyntaff Campus From despair to where? The many faces of economic development policy Professor David Pickernell Professor in Economic Development Policy Tuesday 10 May 2011 The miner’s canary, may it fly Professor Anthony Beddow Visiting Professor, Faculty of Health, Sport and Science Tuesday 14 June 2011, Glyntaff Campus To book your place please call 01443 483345 or email jgarrett@glam.ac.uk
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www.glam.ac.uk/research University of Glamorgan, Pontypridd, Wales, UK CF37 1DL