research

education

Why Go Into Research ?

The funding process &
sources of funding.
How to apply for funding ?
How to manage
a funded project ?
Dr. Marek Rebow

inno

vati

on

skills

e nt

is
r
p
er

Faculty of Engineering
Research in a Nutshell
School
Schoolofof
Electrical
Electrical
Engineering
Engineering
Systems
Systems

School
Schoolofof
Manufacturing
Manufacturingand
and
Design
Engineering
Faculty of
Design Engineering

Engineering

FACULTY
FACULTYOF
OF
ENGINEERING
ENGINEERING

School
SchoolofofCivil
Civiland
and
Building
Services
Building Services
Engineering
Engineering

School
Schoolofof
Electronic
Electronicand
and
Communications
Communications
Engineering
Engineering

School
Schoolofof
Mechanical
Mechanicaland
and
Transport
Transport
Engineering
Engineering

Faculty of Engineering Research in a Nutshell

POSTGRADUATE RESEARCHERS as on 1st NOVEMBER 2008
School
Whole Time

Civil & Build. Manufac &

Services
Design
7
5

Mech &
Trans.
7

Electrical
Eng. Sys.
12

Electronic &
Comm.
15

Part Time

Over Run

11

Submitted

Temp
withdrawn

16

11

16

30

39

TOTAL:

112 (25 faculty)

CONTRACT RESEARCHERS as on 1st NOVEMBER 2008

SFI STOKES Professor:

SFI STOKES Lecturer:

Research Assistants:

Postdoctoral Fellows:

10

Research Associates/Managers:

TOTAL: 22

Faculty of Engineering Research in a Nutshell

POSTGRADUATE RESEARCH SUPERVISORS
as on 1st NOVEMBER 2008
School of Electrical Engineering Systems:

16

School of Electronic and Communications Eng.:

10

School of Manufacturing and Design Eng.:

School of Mechanical and Transport Eng.:

School of Civil and Building Services Eng.:

Internal supervisors from the Faculty & DIT:

TOTAL:
RESEARCH INCOME:
Research income in 2007:
Research income by October 2008:
Value of research proposals under evaluations:
Value of research proposals not approved in 2008:

52
3,500,000
1,800,000
8,083,000
3,317,000
4

DITs Graduate Research School

The recently established DITs Graduate Research School (GRS) is
the new 'virtual' entity designed to support and develop graduate
research education across the organisation and to define the DIT
community of research students and research student supervisors.
The GRS enables the provision of generic skills training to all
researchers to meet the challenge of interdisciplinary research, in
addition to providing transferable skills modules which help PhD
students to develop the skills required to effectively manage their PhD
research project and improve their future career prospects.
The following R&D training blocks are available:
research environment,
research techniques / methodology,
personal effectiveness,
research management,
specific skills,
communication,
team work,
career management,
induction/personal development plan.

DITs Graduate Research School

As part of the new research students induction programme,
students will be asked to complete a Skills Needs Analysis Report.
The aim of this report is to assist students in identifying the key
skills that they already have and those they will need acquire to
effectively manage their research project. The information
provided in this skills analysis exercise will be used by the student
and supervisor to establish the students personal development plan.
Under the Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF), Cycle 2 DIT has been
awarded significant funding to establish the Dublin Regional Higher
Education Alliance (DRHEA), including Graduate Education
programme training and sharing of modules among IoTs and
Universities.
6

DIT International
Collaborative Research

25 Countries in the EU
China
India
USA
South America

Research Groups/Centres/Institutes
within the Faculty of Engineering
Audio Research Group (Centre of Excellence)
Applied Optoelectronics Centre
Centre for Elastomeric Research
Communications Network Research Institute (CNRI)
Antennas & High Frequency Research Group
Dublin Energy Lab
Electrical Power Research Group
Biomedical Engineering, Assistive Technology and Health Informatics
National Institute for Transport Logistic
8

Biomedical Engineering, Assistive

Technology and Health Informatics
The Biomedical Engineering, Assistive Technology
and Health Informatics research group TeaPOT,
consolidates its members' ongoing research into
technology that interacts with humans and the
human body - People Orientated Technology (POT).
The group's activities include research and teaching
in biomedical signal processing, human-computer
interfaces, assistive technology, rehabilitation
engineering and health informatics. TeaPOT
(http://teapot.dit.ie) is involved in collaborations
with Enable Ireland, the National Rehabilitation
Hospital (NRH), St. James' Hospital, the Central
Remedial Clinic (CRC) and Age Action Ireland.
The Group consists of 6 faculty, 1 postdoctoral
fellow, 3 PhD researchers and collaborates closely
with biomedical engineering group in Bolton St which
encompasses 8 faculty and 6 PhD researchers.

Audio Research Group

(Centre of Excellence)
The Audio Engineering and Speech Processing
research group has had a number of significant
achievements in sound source separation, time scale
modification, and automatic music transcription. They
are lead partner to a European Commission FP6 funded
project EASAIER and an Enterprise Ireland
Commercialisation project IMAAS. Sound source
separation, a novel method for extraction of an
instrument from a recorded ensemble (ADRess:
Azimuth Discrimination and Resynthesis, by Dan
Barry) has resulted in a successful patent and
subsequent licensing agreement with a leading audio
research company
(http://www.audioresearchgroup.com/)
The Group compromises: 1 PI, 1 senior researcher, 2
faculty, 1 postdoc, 7 PhD/MPhil researchers
10

Photonics Research Group

The Photonics Research Group is within the Applied Optoelectronics
Centre. The Group is undertaking research in a number of areas of
photonics and optical fiber communications. The Centre was founded in
1996 by Dr. Farrell, who is the Centre Director. The Centre is located in
the School of Electronic and Communications Engineering in the Dublin
Institute of Technology on the Kevin St. Campus. The group consists of 6
Ph.D. graduate students, 2 post-docs and
2 members of the academic staff, under the leadership of the Principle
Investigator, Dr. Gerald Farrell.
Inexpensive Disposable Fibre Temperature Sensor
Researchers of this group have invented a single-loop,
single-mode fibre sensor that is one tenth the cost of
a FBG sensor. To analyse the sensor data, a simple
Ratiometric Power Measurement (RPM) technique is
used which costs significantly less than traditional
tunable laser based or interferometric interrogation
techniques.

11

Communications Network
Research Institute (CNRI)
The CNRI has origins in the School of
Electronic and Communications Engineering and
is headed-up by Dr. Mark Davis. The research
staff complement currently stands at 3
Postdoctoral Fellows, 1 Research Assistant,
3 PhD and 3 MPhil full-time candidates.
The CNRI is funded under a SFI Multi-Investigator Award and under
an Enterprise Ireland Informatics Initiative project.
The CNRI is undertaking research in the area of wireless networks and
specifically the IEEE 802.11 family of wireless LAN standards.
The main focus of the work is in radio resource management for quality
of service (QoS) provisioning. QoS provisioning is a critical element in
the delivery of real-time services such as Voice over IP (VoIP) and
video streaming over wireless networks
12

Antennas & High Frequency

Research Group
Antenna & High Frequency Research Group specialises in the
analysis, design and measurement of RF and microwave
devices for wireless communications and medical
applications.
Current research themes include Multiband & Wideband
Antennas for Portable Communications, Base-Stations
Antennas, Hyperthermia Antennas and Antennas for
Sensor Networks. Equipped with a comprehensive range of
analysis methods, manufacturing equipment and a
measurement laboratory, the team can rapidly expedite
ideas to qualified prototypes.
This multi-national group of researcher is directed by Dr
Max Ammann in the School of Electronic & Communications
Engineering and comprises personnel who range from MSc
studentships to post-doctoral levels.
13

Dublin Energy Lab

The Dublin energy lab (DEL) is a leader in science and
engineering energy research in Ireland with an associated
staff of 24 academics, 4 full time researchers, 18 full
and part time PhD researchers and MPhil researchers.
DEL conducts research across a range of disciplines with
key efforts organised into themes of
o electrical power
o energy policy

Electrical Power Research Group

o low carbon buildings

o solar energy
o sustainable energy technologies
14

Electrical Power Research Group

The Electrical Power Research Group aims to
develop a world class energy interface facility
to advance leading research in power quality
conditioning and in integration of wind and
solar energy to the network.
The group comprises two principal researchers,
four academics and four PhD research students (
www.eleceng.dit.ie/eprg/).
They collaborate with the Power Quality Laboratory
at Texas AM University and have established an
international research consortium in fuel cell
engineering. The fuel cell team has entered into
partnership with colleagues from other centres at
DIT and is partner to a Leonardo Da Vinci project in
fuel cell engineering (www.fuelcellknowhow.com).

15

Centre for
Elastomeric Research
The Centre for Elastomeric Research led by
Dr Stephan Jerrams offers FEM modelling
and equi-biaxial dynamic testing of
hyperelastic and viscoelastic materials
(fatigue, swelling, stress softening and
relaxation), including magnetorheological
elastomers, through their unique DYNAMET
system, funded by Enterprise Ireland. This
research group comprises principal and
advisory researchers, 2 postdoctoral
researchers, 3 PhD students and has
developed strong collaborations with German
Institute of Rubber Technology (DIK), the
universities of Dundee, Portsmouth, London,
Lyon and Warsaw.
(http://www.dit.ie/research/centres/nlmrg/).
16

National Institute for

Transport Logistic
National Institute for Transport & Logistics (NITL) has establish its
expertise in supply chain management (SCM) and logistics throughout
a number of research funded projects and close research links with
several leading logistics/SCM research organisations, including
Heriot-Watt University, University of Hull, Cranfield University
Transport Engineering Research Group, including low noise / low cost
solutions for night deliveries, flight related deep venous thrombosis
and application of behavioural decision theory to the Irish road
freight industry. Members of this group are also involved in a number
of EC FP6 projects (BESTUFS, SCILENSE, NICHES, POLIS,
Interreg IVB BAPTS) and collaborations with Dublin City Council,
SenterNovem Netherlands, Noise Abatement Society UK, Bombardier
Aerospace and VENTAC. The project manager, Roisin Byrne and lead
researcher, Hugh Finlay, have been recently appointed to the EC
experts group on Transport Research (http://www.nitl.ie/)
17

Research Signature Areas

Faculty of Engineering
o Biomedical Engineering, Assistive Technologies &
Health Informatics
o DSP: Audio & Speech Processing, Bio-imaging
and Computer Vision Systems, Cryptology and
Information Security
o Sustainable Energy & Transport Systems
o Wireless Communications
o Engineering Education
o Optical Sensing
o Characterization of Elastomers and Smart Materials

18

Definition of research
A standard, textbook definition of scientific research is:
Scientific research is the systematic, controlled, empirical
and critical investigation of natural phenomena guided by
theory and hypotheses about the presumed relations among
such phenomena.
(Kerlinger 1986, page 10)
This definition can be simplified to:
Scientific research is asking questions in a systematic way
to obtain answers that will be meaningful and can be
replicated.
19

Research is, by its nature, cyclical

Mathematical
or/ and
numerical
modeling
Validation

InterInterpretation
pretation
of data
data
of

Problem
Problem

Research is
a cyclical
process

Collection
Collection
of data
data
of

Goal
Goal

Experiments

Paul Leedy,
"Practical Research:
Planning and Design"

Hypothesis
Hypothesis

SubSubproblems
problems

20

Grand challenge problems

Grand challenge problems are areas where the
problems are demonstrably hard to solve, suggesting
that our capabilities to solve the problem(s) will require
improvements of several orders-of-magnitude.
Grand challenge problems are of economic and social
importance. Most grand challenges are interdisciplinary
in that they substantively consider
1) the inherent complexity of nature and society,
2) the consequent desire to explore basic research
questions at the interfaces of disciplines,
3) the need to solve societal problems, and
4) the power of new technologies
(National Academies, Facilitating Interdisciplinary Research, 2004).

21

$25 Million Virgin Earth Challenge

Sir Richard Branson and Al Gore have set up a new global
science and technology prize -? The Virgin Earth Challenge which will award $25 million to the individual or group who are
able to demonstrate a commercially viable design which
will remove at least 1 billion tons of atmospheric carbon
dioxide per year for at least ten years without harmful
effects. The removal must have long term effects and
contribute materially to the stability of the Earths climate.
It is the largest science and technology prize ever offered.

The Board of Electricity Supply Board (ESB) - 4 Billion

Recently, The Board of Electricity Supply Board (ESB) in Ireland approved a
Strategic Framework to 2020 that will see major company investment in
renewable energy, the halving of its carbon emissions within 12 years, and
the achievement of carbon net-zero by 2035. Fifty percent of the overall
investment package is geared towards investments in our renewable future.
4bn of this will be directly invested in renewable energy projects and
6.5bn will be spent facilitating renewables including smart metering
and smart networks.
22

Emerging research signature areas ?

Disruptive Civil Technologies
Six Technologies with
Potential Impacts on US
Interests out to 2025
o
o
o
o
o
o

Biogerontechnology
Energy Storage Materials
Biofuels and Bio-Based Chemicals
Clean Coal Technologies
Service Robotics
The Internet of Things

23

"Since we cannot be universal and know all

that is to be known of everything, we
ought to know a little about everything.
For it is far better to know something
about everything than to know all about
one thing.
B. Pascal (1623 - 1662)

Can we know all about everything ?

Interdisciplinary research group

24

Model(s) of research groups/teams ?

External Research
Infrastructure,
(Tyndall National SMEs
Institute, ICHEC) outsourcing

Technical/
Administrartion
Staff
Community
Engagement

International
Collaboration/
Sabbaticals

y
r
5PGina
l
p
i VS
PIsc
i
d
r 1T 3PD
e
t
In

RESEARCH TEAM

Proposal

EU Training Courses/
IUTAM Summer Schools

OUTPUTS
Graduates research experience
Research outputs
Innovation outputs
Visible research strengths
Partnerships with extended
knowledge actors & stakeholders

Filter on the basis of

quality (peer review)

Workshops/
Seminars

Internal funding:
e.g. Abbest, CaBS
External funding:

Critical
Mass

Priority research
area

RSU,
OGS&R

Information/
Support

Funds

7FP
COST
RFP
UREKA

QUALITY
The quality of the outputs
in turn impacts on the
ability of the Faculty to
attract research income

25

Examples of open problems in computer

science
H
C
R
A
E
ESkey cryptography
If one-way functions do not exist then
R
public
is impossible
!
R
!
!
O
F a computation
Ein various architectures
To what degree can one speed
R
up
S
E
M
H
E
L
W
B
Y
a single processor,
grid, distributed
network, etc. ? Amdahl's law ?
R
O
E
R
V
E
What is anP
optimal unit-execution-time
(UET) scheduling algorithm for
E
R
A
3 processors with precedence constraints ?
Electrical & Electronic & Software Engineering
- exciting research fields.
There are many opportunities for innovation, creating new technology, and
designing and developing new research prototypes and products, in areas
ranging from the most mathematical and theoretical to the most experimental.
Researchers are members in a community of scholars and innovators. The
research community contributes much that is important and valuable to society,
and a career as a researcher can be enormously and personally
satisfying.
26

Researchers attributes
Are you
curious about the whys and hows of things ?
persistent in your approach ?
an independent thinker and worker ? YES
creative and innovative ?
disciplined and focused when you need to be ?

You can
undertake
postgraduate
research

The value of a research qualification

Can enhance your job prospects
Allows in-depth study of a particular subject of interest
Enables you to develop highly transferable skills, such as:

autonomous learning and project management

in-depth critical appraisal abilities
well honed analytical and research skills
creativity, problem solving and lateral thinking
the capacity to spot patterns and trends
commercial awareness
After Dr. Gerald Farrell

27

Your career ?

28

Values of the twenty-first century engineer

After A. Pais

29

Values of the twenty-first century engineer

Twenty-first century engineers should be well-rounded, well-balanced
individuals who are capable of relating to people from a variety of
backgrounds. They should not be driven by monetary reward alone but
by the pride, satisfaction and enjoyment that comes from doing things that
are particularly useful. Although their day-to-day work might involve solving
very specific technical problems, they should be aware that their work is part
of a bigger picture.
In philosophy, the concept of holism encompasses the idea that the whole
is greater than the sum of its parts. The modern engineer will be able to
see connections between seemingly disparate components and
integrate them so that their combined value is greater than the sum of the
values of the individual components. This ability will be acquired by an
accumulated knowledge and creativity developed over time as a result of an
interest in not only engineering but also other fields such as arts,
science, humanities and commerce.
30

Scientists and Engineers Job Satisfaction

31

Building the Knowledge-based Economy in Europe

European Union
Research Policy
Lisbon Strategy
Building
Irelands
Research
The Report
of
the
Expert
DIT Targets for Research
Knowledge
Economy
(2004)
andFuture
Scholarship
by 2010
Group on
Skills
Needs said that by 2010 we
will require an increase in the
Growth
Irish research
population from
and Jobs
10,200 (measured
in 2003) to
18,300 (in 2010).
The output of PhDs will rise Innovation
Education
from 450 per annum in
2002/2003
to 900 per annum
The Knowledge-based
Economy:
in2013.
knowledge as a product
knowledge workers

The generation of
PhD and research
degrees as a key for
success in knowledge
economy !
target for R&D: 2.5% GNP by 2010,
ranking in top six countries in scientific
publications and citations,
researchers as proportion of total
employment
doubling,
60 new research
posts,
30% of academic
staff are research
a doubling
of enterprises
performing
active,
R&D500
and
of sales/exports from
peer reviewed papers pa,
products/processes,
600 research students (400 PhD),
50 postdoctoral
appointments
university
patenting,
spin-out and
licensing activity comparable to
norms of leading US institutions

32

European Labour Market for Researchers

A Time of Transition
Labour Intensive,
low value-added activities

Knowledge Intensive,
high value-added activities

After Martin Cronin, Chief Executive, Forfs

33

R&D the new Manufacturing ?

34

Competing on Knowledge
Innovation
Innovation

Research
Research

Knowledge&Technology
Knowledge&Technology
Convertedto
Convertedto

Convertedto
to
Converted
Knowledge&
&Technology
Technology
Knowledge

IntegratedValueChain
Innovation/
R&D

Production of
Goods/Services

After Martin Cronin, Chief Executive, Forfs

Sales
&

Marketing

35

Value Added in Manufacturing

36

Value Added in Tradable Services

37

Salaries and Career Progression

38

Destinations after Graduation

39

40

41

Guidelines for Contract Researchers Salary Scales 2007

42

Tomorrows Skills.
Towards a National Skills Strategy

43

Employment in Ireland by Sector 2005-2020

44

The chain-link model of innovation

Source: Kline and Rosenberg (1986)

(C) a central chain of innovation

involving the identification of a
potential market followed by design
and testing of the idea, leading to
market entry.
(f) feed-back loops to depict the
trial and error nature of the process.
(F) the most important source of
feed-back is from testing the idea in
the market.
(K) the existing stock of knowledge
(R) research - new knowledge,
(1) & (2) the problem might be
solved by reference to the existing
stock of knowledge
(3) research undertaken
(4) outcomes of research is uncertain
as the problem may be insoluble.

45

The chain-link model of innovation

Although the transmission of knowledge is critical to social
and economic development, general advancement of
knowledge comes through research-based acts of
discovery. This is why the research function of the
university matters. It is through research that universities
add to the shared stock of human knowledge. Research
efforts can be problem-directed in their nature, taking as
their starting point issues and concerns emerging from
everyday life. Research efforts can also be curiosity
driven, motivated primarily by the interests of researchers
who might gain their inspiration from a variety of questions
or puzzles, and who approach their research using concepts
and methods, representing the accumulation of knowledge
in their given disciplines or fields of inquiry (Strandburg,
2005).
46

A general model of the research process

Michael Mintrom,
Managing the research function of the university: pressures and dilemmas
Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management
Vol. 30, No. 3, August 2008, p. 231244

47

Options for managing the research function

48

Options for managing the research function

49

Intellectual Property (IP) Policy

The US Constitution is a relatively short
document, but protection of discovery
and innovation was thought important
enough to be included:
Congress shall have power to promote
the progress of science and useful arts,
by securing for limited times to authors
and inventors the exclusive right to their
respective writings and discoveries.
[Article I, section 8]
As Thomas Jefferson, the father of
the US patent system put it,
He who receives an idea from me,
receives instruction himself without
lessening mine, as he who lights his
taper at mine, receives light without
darkening me.

Contact details: Tom Flanagan

Head of Commercialisation
DIT Hothouse, Aungier St
P: +353 (1) 402 7028
E: tom.flanagan@dit.ie
50

DIT New Intellectual Property Policy

At DIT we are leading the way with our new IP policy said President
Norton. It is unique in Ireland and most of Europe. The fact that the
creator can own their own IP encourages staff and students to be
innovative. It makes DIT an attractive place to work for leading
researchers, authors and inventors, and enhances our reputation for
excellence and industry relevance.
In addition to the new policy, DIT set up Hothouse the Innovation
and Technology Transfer Centre at DIT, to help inventors and
authors protect and commercialise their IP. Tom Flanagan leads the
Hothouse team and has successfully negotiated licences for DIT
technologies with SONY, Sherman Williams, General Paints, ABB etc
and many more are in the pipeline.

51

DITs new Intellectual Property (IP) policy

The following table shows the distribution of net revenue received for
licences or equity sales made by DIT for IP that is assigned to it:

Where the owner assigns their IP to DIT to commercialise then DIT will return
65% of net proceeds to the inventor, whereas most IP firms will only return 10-20%.
Where IP was developed using substantial DIT resources and is commercialised
by the inventor or author, only 10% of Net Revenues will be claimed by DIT.
Inventors can also ask Hothouse to assign back IP that was originally assigned to
DIT and in these cases DIT will only claim 10% of any net revenues received.
52

A spin-out company:
research, technology transfer and company growth
Some industrialists believe that academics never deliver what they
promise, and some academics believe the objectives of all
industrialists is to steal their ideas. Of course, these preconceptions
are misconceptions, and the challenge for the technology transfer staff
is to help correct the misconceptions. If the intermediary can persuade the
academic that he will not allow the industrialist to steal the academics
ideas, and can persuade the industrialist that this academic does deliver
on promises, then, quite often, the antagonists discover the inaccuracy of
their initial prejudices. The industrialist finds that the academic is, in fact,
quite hard working and does, in fact, deliver. The academic finds that
industrialists are, on the whole, honest and often have some very useful
resources.

53

A spin-out company:
research, technology transfer and company growth

54

Which Route: Taught ME or

MPhil or PhD by Research ?
Taught programmes offer well defined route but less research
experience.
MPhil takes 18-24 months, less well defined but greater
independent research experience.
PhD takes 3-4 years, demands not just more time but greater level
of originality.
Route depends on aptitude/circumstances; can start out then
progress higher.

Which Route: Full-time .V. Part-time?

Part-time research degrees are increasingly popular with engineers
in employment
Employers may provide support, but may require lock-in contract
Research may relate to work, but caution may be needed with
conflicts relating to timing and IP
Route depends on circumstances and employer support
After Dr. Gerald Farrell 55

56

Source of Funding
DIT internal research funding
1. Abbest PhD Scholarship
2. STRAND I (HEA) MPhil, PhD
3. Capacity Building Scheme (CaBS) for Strategic Research (old)
4. STRAND III (HEA)
Two of the major routes for external funding are:
Employment as a research assistant by research programmes
funded by bodies such as Science Foundation Ireland (SFI),
Entreprise Ireland (EI) or EU 7th Framework Programme
Postgraduate stipends under the Embark Programme administered
on behalf of the Government by the Irish Research Council for
Science, Engineering and Technology (IRCSET)
57

DIT ABBEST PhD Scholarship Programme

aimed at exceptional candidates who have an exciting
or innovative idea for Doctoral research
grants 16,000 p.a., plus 2,000 towards research
expenses and fees
duration 3.5 years
applicants formulate their own research proposal,
closing date May 2009

58

IRCSET: Postgraduate Research Funding

Terms and Conditions
Open to those commencing a research degree for the 1st time in Ireland in
the Autumn of the year of application
Qualifications: normally 1st class results, few upper 2nd class honours degree
& other factors
PhD funding: 3 years, Masters funding 1 year, extensions are possible
Two calls per year: closing April (up to 150 scholarships ) &
July (up to 30 scholarships)
Total Value: 24,000 max per annum
16,000 goes directly to the student with the remainder available to fund other forms of support such as
fees, appropriate travel and other expenses. A social insurance contribution is also provided for, in
addition to the above
The exact amount will vary depending on individual circumstances, but for a typical single person with
only standard tax credits it is equivalent to approximately 18,900.
Scholars encouraged to participate in appropriate conferences
Scholarship paid to Research Body in quarterly instalments
Review of progress: yearly reports

59

IRCSET: Postgraduate Research Funding

The Application Process
Practise writing your personal statement and get this up to scratch.
Talk it over with your careers advisors.
Look into project areas that interest you
Approach potential referees
Assessment:

10% Research project: need to show focus, discuss this with

potential supervisor
30% Academic Career: your CV
30% Personal Statement: need to show that research is a considered
career path,
30% References: get the referees to comment on just how fabulous you are!
This will also include your position in class.

60

The Microsoft Research European

PhD Scholarship Programme
The programme supports students in computing and those
working at the intersection of computing and the sciences.
Areas of interest:
Computational Biology,
Computational Ecology and Environment Science,
Computer-Mediated Living (including Integrated Systems,
Sensors and Devices, and Socio-Digital Systems),
Constraint Reasoning, Machine Learning and Perception
(including Applied Games, Computer Vision, Information Retrieval,
and Machine Learning),
Natural Computation,
Programming Principles and Tools (including Security),
Systems and Networking (including Distributed Systems, Networking,
and Operating Systems).
61

The Microsoft Research European

PhD Scholarship Programme
Terms and Conditions
Applications will only be accepted through a students institution,
Any student who has been accepted by a university in Europe to
start a PhD or who will have completed no more than one year of
their PhD by October 2007 is eligible.
Two strong letters of recommendation (preferably not from the supervisor)
Each Microsoft scholar will be awarded a bursary of up to 33,000 euros
per year up to a maximum of three years,
Awards will be made by 1 July 2007
At the end of the second year of their PhD, some of the scholars may be
offered in Microsoft Researchs sole discretion an internship in one of the
Microsoft Research laboratories
At the end of the first year of their PhD, scholars will be invited to Microsoft
Research Cambridge for a summer school that includes a series of talks
of academic interest and a poster session, which will give the scholars
the opportunity to present their work to Microsoft researchers and a number
of Cambridge academics

62

Research Funding Agencies

The Irish Government pursues a carefully planned, integrated R&D strategy
encompassing all of the key elements necessary to achieve world-class
R&D. Government agencies have developed a range of new initiatives to
encourage pooled projects and attract world-class scientists to carry out
research in Ireland. This inclusive way of bringing together industry and
academia has led to a boom in research projects. More than 10,000
researchers are working on cutting edge R&D projects in Ireland.
Flexible funding mechanisms are available for research by industry and by
academics, individually or in collaboration.
Funding programmes are implemented by the following agencies:
IDA Ireland
Enterprise Ireland
Higher Education Authority
Science Foundation Ireland
Environmental Protection Agency
Sustainable Energy Ireland

63

IDA Ireland (Industrial Development Agency)

Incentives for Industry

Irelands intellectual property laws provide companies with generous

incentives to innovate. The Irish tax system offers huge support to turn
brilliant ideas into the finished article. A highly competitive corporate tax
rate of 12.5% is a major incentive. No tax is paid on earnings from
intellectual property where the underlying R&D work was carried out
in Ireland.
Schemes:
Feasibility and Training Support. Support for first time research and
development activity
RD&I Support: Support for companies with existing research and
development activity
Collaborative R&D projects
The Innovation Partnership Initiative
EU Framework Programme
R&D Tax Credit
Stamp Duty on Intellectual Property
http://www.idaireland.com

64

Science Foundation Ireland

Industry Research Partnership
Industry involvement with SFI Investigator Programmes
SFI strongly encourages research collaboration between SFI funded
scientists & engineers and industry. Such interactions can lead to SFI
scientists & engineers becoming more informed about industrial
priorities and research needs; and lead to industrial collaborators being
informed about important new science and engineering research
developments in Ireland.
http://www.sfi.ie/

65

R&D within your Enterprise

R & D Funding
Enterprise Ireland's R&D funding supports market-led innovation in
manufacturing and services companies.
Innovation Vouchers
A new initiative to boost innovation in small companies by building links
between your company and the Research community.
New to R&D?
Through our R&D awareness initiative, we can help companies that
have not previously been involved in R&D to get started.
R & D Management
We support training on R & D techniques and Innovation under our
Innovation Management Initiative
Technology Acquisition
Acquiring technologies developed by others is an effective way to
enhance your company's performance.
http://www.enterprise-ireland.com/ResearchInnovate/

66

Commercialisation Fund

We provide support in three phases:

Proof of Concept Phase - 50,000-100,000 over a 12 month period
Technology Development Phase - 100k to 400k; 18-36 months.
Business Development Phase - CORD
Under this phase we also offer support through our Enterprise Platform
Programme - EPP

http://www.enterprise-ireland.com/ResearchInnovate/

67

Innovation Partnerships
R&D Support

RESEARCH PROJECT
Maximum Grant
190,000 (EI contribution)
Duration 6 Months - 2 Years
Variable Grant Rate (50% - 75%)
Key Features / Benefits
Dedicated researcher & research facilities
Access to up-to-date science /
technology
Duration 6 to 24 months
Skills availability post-project
Reduced R&D costs to company

68

Innovation Partnerships R&D Support

Company
25-50%

6 wks

Company

Innovation
Research

College PI

New
Product
or
process

Outline
proposal

Technical
Assessment
Full
Proposal
Max 190K EI
grant

Feasibility

90%
OK

NRSFB

Funded
Project

Commercial
Assessment

EI
Assessment

Enterprise Ireland
50-75%

Max 9K EI grant

69

Planning a grant application

Imagine a proposal that is due on June 5th. A great deal must occur
before the application deadline. The hypothetical schedule below for the
typical grant proposal assumes a concentration of effort in the final
month.
Be prepared to:

During/By:

Think
Outline
Seek advice
Rethink
Write
Prepare a draft budget
Revise
Ask colleagues to review draft
Revise
Finalise budget (with research accountant)
Solicit final review by colleagues
Revise and proofread
Submit for internal sign-off
Package
Submit to funding agency

September-December
January
Early February
Mid February
March
March
April 1-15
April 15-30
May 1-10
May 12-14
May 15-30
June 1-8
June 2
June 4
June 5

70

How to apply for funding ?

Science Foundation Ireland (SFI)
Research Frontiers Programme (RFP)
Objectives:
o To support innovative, cutting-edge and internationally
competitive research in a broad range of disciplines in
Science, Mathematics and Engineering.
o To establish a mechanism of looking forward to allow for
changes in strategic areas in the future.
o To provide a broad base of support to underpin the
strategic areas of Biotechnology, Information &
Communications Technology, and Sustainable Energy &
Energy-Efficient Technologies.
o To provide advanced education and training for young
researchers in a wide variety of areas.
71

How to manage a funded project ?

72

How to manage a funded project ?

Gantt Chart

73

How to manage a funded project ?

Work package 1:
Duration: months 1-24
Project Management and Communication
Aim: Overall management and communications for the EAOS project
Activities:
Overall management of the research project and its activities
Project communications
Ensure on-time delivery of all project scientific and technical deliverables.
Organise meetings of the project partners as required plenary meetings of the
project partners every four months
Co-ordinate activities of the partners in acquiring further funding support for
the research
Together with WP6 co-ordinator ensure maximum impact of project outputs by
Milestones
& Deliverables:
appropriate
dissemination.
Milestone:
1.A successful demonstration of optical sensing in each of the three application areas.
Deliverables:
1.End of Year 1 report on the project to DIT
2.Final report on the project to DIT
3.EAOS workshop organised
4.Project meetings organised

74

How to manage a funded project ?

Work package 2:
Solutions for Optical Sensing Applications

Duration: months 1-24

Aim: Research to develop application specific optical sensing solutions for Fast Measurement of Low Strain
Values, using a common sensor interrogation system
Activities:
Optimisation of the bend loss filter design and characteristics to achieve a high sensitivity to low
values of strain
Development of a high-speed interrogation technique for analysis of multiple sensors
Calibration of the sensor interrogation system for operation in a real world conditions, separation
between temperature and pressure effects, temperature stabilization etc.
Embedding of fibre optic sensors within a working environment for each of the specific applications,
e.g., sensor
mounting, protection etc.
Milestones
& Deliverables:
Milestone:
1.Optimal bend loss filter specification (optical and mechanical) for high speed, low strain value sensing.
2.Versatile calibration technique which can deal with a variety of different application areas and sensor
conditions
3.Understanding of the protection requirements for optical sensors in the three different application
areas
4.Reliable application specific techniques for sensor attachment and/or embedding
Deliverables:
1.A fast and accurate sensor interrogation system which can be adapted to suit the requirements of each
of the three named application areas in the EAOS project
2.Journal and conference publications on fast low strain interrogation of optical sensors (see WP6)

75

How to manage a funded project ?

Work package 6:
Duration: months 1-24
Dissemination for the EAOS project
Aim: To disseminate knowledge of the project and its outcomes to a broad audience of
fellow academics, students and industry
Activities:
Preparation of joint publications in journals and at conferences
Development of a dedicated web presence for dissemination
Preparation of joint publications in trade and other relevant magazines
Workshop organisation
Milestones & Deliverables:
Milestones:
1.An interim dissemination report at the end of Year 1
2.A final dissemination report at the end of the project.
Deliverables:
1.At least four joint international journal papers and six joint conference papers with high
impact factors per year.
2.Dedicated dissemination web page,
3.Promotion of the project outcomes on the web sites of the Applied Optoelectronics
Centre (http://www.aoc.dit.ie/) and the Faculty and DIT websites.
4.Presentation of research reports for DIT and other student research seminars;
5.Two appropriate articles in industry trade magazines
76
6.An article in the Enterprise Ireland publication Technology Ireland describing the

How to manage a funded project ?

Gantt Chart

Months
WP1: Project Management
and Coordination
WP2: Solutions for
Optical Sensing
Applications
WP3: Strain sensing for
robotic surgical
instruments

D4
M1

WP6: Dissemination for

the EAOS project
WP7: Teaching and
Learning Impact of the
EAOS project

10

M2
M3

M4

12

14

16

D1
D4

D4

18

20

22

M1
D2
D4

D3
D4

D4

D1

24

D3
D2

M1

M2

D1

D2

D4

D3
M1

WP4: Strain sensing of

noise fields
WP5: Strain and
Temperature
Measurement for
Functionally Graded
Materials

D1

M2

D2

D3

D4
M1

M2

D3

D4

D1, D2
D2

D3

D5
D7

M1

D6

M2

D1, D4
M1
D1, D2, D3

D4

M2
D5

77

"Aeroplanes are not designed by science,

but by art in spite of some pretence and
humbug to the contrary. I do not mean to
suggest that engineering can do without
science, on the contrary, it stands on
scientific foundations, but there is a big
gap between scientific research and the
engineering product which has to be
bridged by the art of the engineer .
- British Engineer to the Royal
Aeronautical Society, 1922
78

No to PowerPoint Poisoning

Dr. Marek Rebow,

Head of Research, Faculty of Engineering
Dublin Institute of Technology
Bolton Street, E-Block,
Dublin 1, Ireland
Phone: 00 353 (0)1 402 2970 / 8013
Mobile: 00 353 (0)87 9412766
E-mail: marek.rebow@dit.

Thank You !!! Questions ?

79