May 2018

Get paid to do a Masters with the Centre for Global Eco-Innovation at Lancaster University (The Sunday Times’ University of the Year 2018) and Digital Rail Ltd.

 

The Project

Transport is one of the fastest growing contributors to climate change. Rail travel produces lower carbon emissions than travelling by car and offers an efficient alternative for those looking to reduce their carbon footprint. This project will work to understand and increase the efficiencies of railway networks to improve this even further.

This project will utilise Artificial Intelligence (AI), data analysis and modelling techniques to identify and predict problem areas of the UK rail network. These are areas which do not have the resilience and capacity to withstand common problems which lead to train service delays. The associated economic and environmental cost of this is huge, with the need for additional rail services, replacement buses and network maintenance. This project will identify indicators of concern and build a prediction model. This will allow Digital Rail Ltd to work with rail networks to increase efficiencies and direct resources to the most appropriate areas.

This project would suit a graduate with a background in engineering or computer science who is capable of coding and developing advanced APIs.

 

Enterprise and collaborative partners

This Masters by Research is a collaborative research project between Lancaster University, with supervision by Dr Paul Rayson, and Digital Rail Ltd.

Digital Rail is a business that develops products for railway safety and resilience using advanced technologies in machine learning. It owns intellectual property and patents on several products such as Machine Vision and Big Data analytics. Digital Rail Ltd also provides services and training to railway clients including Independent Safety Assessment (ISA).

 

1 Year Enterprise-led Funded Masters by Research, Ref. No. 90

• Get paid £15,000 tax-free
• Have you tuition fees reduced. Your partner company pays £2,000 towards your fees, meaning UK/EU students pay £2,260, and International students pay £15,945.
• Be part of the multi award winning Centre for Global Eco-Innovation with a cohort of 50 talented graduates working on exciting business-led R&D.
• The Centre is based at Lancaster University, so you will gain your Masters from a Top Ten University, recognised as The Sunday Times University of the Year 2018.
• Finish in a strong position to enter a competitive job market in the UK and overseas.

 

Apply Here

To apply for this opportunity please email graduate-applications@cgeinnovation.org with:

• A CV (2 pages maximum)
• Application Form
• Application Criteria Document
• Reference Form

This project is part funded by the European Regional development Fund and is subject to confirmation of funding. For further information about the Centre for Global Eco-Innovation, please see their website.

Application deadline

Midnight Tuesday 19th June 2018

Start: October 2018

Digital Rail partnered with CRITICAL Software to conduct the independence safety assessment of the vehicles, track system and interfaces of the Shanghai Metro Line 8 Phase III Automated People Mover.

These vehicles will provide safe transportation in airports and dense urban areas all around the world. They are fully automated, able to cope with the bands of transporting millions of passengers each year.

Our assessment covered project plans, specifications, design tests and supplied products, as well as installation, commissioning and operations of the vehicles, the infrastructure and interfaces communication with other systems. Our work helped to achieve high safety levels in line with international standards.

 

 

Digital Rail have 3 main groups for research, development and deployment: Data Fusion Group, Autonomous Vision Group and Intelligent Systems Engineering Group.

These research groups are generating world class research and platforms for data analytics. We have various licenses and patent applications which we are always looking to discuss and expand.

Data Fusion Group (DFG)

Big Data Analytics on railway data for safety and performance optimisation. This will use mostly open source analytic tools.

The idea is to develop a platform for data fusion which is user-friendly, web-based, fully supported with annual licenses available. Applications will initially include rail vehicle diesels engine monitoring, driver behaviour monitoring and accident data.

Clients currently include Siemens and TfGM.

Team: Dr Peter Garraghan Lancaster University, Dr Howard Parkinson DRL, Dr Rhian Davies DRL, Damian Borowiec DRL, Dr Gary Bamford Advisory, James Bamford Advisory. Eddy Crompton DRL.

 

Autonomous Vision Group (AVG)

This group will primarily research, develop and market the Platform Train Interface (PTI) autonomous vision system. The AVG business plan will explain how this will happen. This will require further significant investment and patent costs. We have prototype at TRL 3 and a patent application that is successfully registered.

Team: Prof Angelov Lancaster University, Dr Howard Parkinson DRL, Dr Rhian Davies DRL, Dr Chris Johnson MMU, Marie Nolan & Nick King Lancaster University, Dr Gary Bamford Advisory.

 

Intelligent Systems Engineering Group (ISEG)

The task is to develop a platform for systems engineering including requirements process and models. This will be based around the WEFACT workflow management from the Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT). This is being undertaken in collaboration with the AIT.

The platform will also include optional plug-in Natural Language Processing (NLP) applications that bring intelligence and machine learning into systems engineering. The platform will be suitable for railway, nuclear, automotive and aerospace applications. The ISEG business plan explains how this will happen.

Team: Dr Paul Rayson Lancaster University, Clive Osman DRL, Eddy Crompton DRL, Dr Howard Parkinson DRL, Willibald Kern AIT, Dr Christoph Schnitter AIT, Dr Gary Bamford Advisory, New MSc by RES Person DRL.