Intel and NTU jointly established a research center to tackle challenging problems posed by machine to machine (M2M) communication technology

No. 1 / April 2011

Intel, the top semiconductor company in the world, and National Taiwan University, the top university in Taiwan, jointly established the Intel-NTU Connected Context Computing Center on Jan.26, 2011. Intel researchers will work closely with the professors and graduate students from NTU to tackle the challenging problems of M2M (machine-to-machine) communication technology, which is expected to be the leading technology in the next decades. In addition, the center will also invite many famous M2M overseas scholars and experts to participate the exciting projects of the center. 

A report from Harbor Research predicts that “M2M will drive the largest organic growth opportunity in the business history.” The so-called M2M or Internet of things (IOT) is the technology to enable machines to connect and interact with each other without human intervention. In the past decades, the internet, which connects people to people, has changed the life of human beings tremendously. It can be easily imagined that how the world will be greatly improved in many aspects, such as energy saving, intelligent transportation, health care, food production, environment monitoring, anti-terrorism, and smart living space, if every object can be connected to each other. Clearly, the scale of the IOT or M2M will be several orders of magnitude larger than that of the current Internet. Furthermore, these trillions of objects or machines are expected to have wisdom, i.e., they can learn from the past (aware of the context), work together (connected), predict and take action (computing) for the future, posing serious challenges to researchers and industries in the next decades. In view of this, Intel and NTU jointly establish this research center on NTU campus to explore new M2M technologies for the future.

Professor Liang-Gee Chen, director of the center, pointed out two special features of this center: (1) conduct leading edge research with great industrial impact； (2) focus on multi-disciplinary technology and integration. All the research projects are selected thoroughly so that the breakthrough technical achievements not only can be presented at top conferences but also impact industry naturally. This center is team-up with four special interest groups (SIG) to take on four challenging research directions in M2M: Green Sensing Platform (SIGGSP), Autonomous Reconfigurable Connectivity (SIGARC); Context Analysis and Management (SIGCAM); and Smart Sensing and Applications (SIGSSA). The SIGGSP intends to address the technology, design, implementation, and optimization issues of smart sensor nodes (in contrast to so-called dust nodes) for high-end sensor-network applications. Specific research topics include: (1) Coding and Analysis Subsystems of Distributed Video Sensors; (2) Energy Harvesting Techniques and their Applications; (3) Low-Power Circuits for Intelligent Sensor Nodes; (4)Heterogeneous Sensor-on-chip in M2M Networks. SIGARC targets at developing technology to facilitate effective connectivity realizing machine (Vehicle)-to-machine (Vehicle) (M2M) communication. Specific research topics include: (1) Infrastructure Design of New Inter-vehicle Networks; (2) V2V and V2I Networking and Applications; (3) Flexible Spectrum Management; (4) Heterogeneous Information Fusion and Inference. SIGCAM aims to provide analysis and management technologies at system level for processing the immense amount of data generated in the M 2M era, as well as several other crucial challenges across all layers such as management and security. Specific research topics include: (1) M2M Security; (2) Modeling and Analysis of Large-Scale Heterogeneous Data; (3) Device manageability. SIGSSA tackles at research challenges that future M2M technologies will bring from an application's perspective such as Intelligent Transportation Systems energy saving and Health Promotion. Specific research topics include: (1) Spatiotemporal Smart Sensing for Intelligent Transportation Systems; (2) Applying M2M Technologies to Persuasion for Health Promotion;(3)M2M-Based Context-Aware Energy Saving System in Pervasive Environments.

It is expected that Intel and NTU can overcome the technical barriers of M2M communications very soon via this novel cooperation mechanism. Moreover, through the wide-spread applications of the new technologies, M2M will become great economic thrust to Taiwan as well as the world and at the same time improve the lives of all mankind.

Opening Ceremony of Intel-NTU Connected Context Computing Center
From left to right, Cheng-Hong Chen (Deputy Minister, NSC), Vida Ilderem (Vice President, Intel),
Si-Chen Lee (President, NTU), Liang-Gee Chen (Director, Intel-NTU Connected Context Computing Center)
(1.26.2011)