Communications Media

Plans to develop protocols and devices that link together all the audio and video gadgets that clutter homes, handbags and briefcases will unleash an incredible array of new, personalised and location-based services.

Imagine your alarm wakes you up an hour early because it knows you’re flying abroad, and there’s a traffic jam on the way to the airport. Your coffee maker turns on an hour early too, while the alarm clock gives you the latest headlines about your destination

The new standard for broadcasting digital video to future mobile phones, PDAs and laptops, DVB-H, is now almost complete. The next step is to begin testing the technology, and here the INSTINCT project will continue its key role.

Many industry observers see the broadcasting of video to mobile phones as the next logical development for the Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB) standard. Broadcasting digital video over the existing wireless telecom networks brings a number of technica

The European CAPANINA research consortium, led by the University of York, has made a significant step forward in perfecting a revolutionary broadband system following high altitude trials in northern Sweden.

Carlo Gavazzi Space, one of the Italian consortium members, co-ordinated the trials at the Swedish Space Centre at Esrange and took care of the High Altitude Carrier – a stratospheric balloon.

Trials using radio and optical communications equipment were carried out, u

A powerful new platform that delivers high computing power and high channel capacity could help meet consumer demand for multimedia content via PCs, interactive TV and mobile phones.

The FULL SPEED project that developed this platform created an innovative solution based on USB high-speed communication techniques. This smartcard connectivity uses the high-throughput channel USB 2.0.

FULL SPEED’s capability permits the direct embedding of critical applications in smartc

Boffins at the University of Bradford will be looking into ways of improving computer modelling and animation used in such films as Shrek, Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc. and Jimmy Neutron.

Dr Hassan Ugail and Dr Ian Palmer from the University’s School of Informatics have been awarded a grant of around £300,000 to carry out fundamental research into developing new techniques for computer-based modelling and animation.

The grant, which has been awarded by the Engineering and

Imagine being able to communicate in your own handwriting with your mobile phone, PDA, laptop or PC without any cables. The VPen does just that. It looks like a space age pen, but works like a mouse, pen, keyboard or graphic tablet.

Dealing with cables during mobile working can be awkward. VPen, developed by partners in the IST programme-funded VIPDATA project, is wireless, yet features a long talk and standby time of several days. It is a convenient little device the size of a s