WirelessLAB Launched @ NovaUCD

 Ireland's Wireless Technology Community Link with Cambridge as All-Island Network  is Launched 

WirelessLAB, the first all-island innovation network for Ireland's wireless technology community, has been formally launched at an event held at NovaUCD. The launch brought together Irish companies and institutions working in the wireless technology sector who are looking forward to an exciting future .

The guest speaker was Dr David Cleevely, Chairman of Cambridge Wireless, a renowned wireless cluster located at St John's Innovation Centre, Cambridge, who signed an alliance agreement with WirelessLAB.

The WirelessLAB.ie network has been established to foster and stimulate the development of an innovation environment for Ireland's wireless technology community. It intends to promote Ireland as a centre of excellence for wireless technology; to double employment in the sector within five years and to establish extensive international links such as the one with the Cambridge  researchers.

Dr Cleevely of Cambridge Wireless said: "We are delighted to form an alliance with a like-minded technology community in Ireland. It opens up opportunities to promote an open-innovation environment in Britain and Ireland,  and strengthens our ability to compete in a global market."

Network members already include Alcatel-Lucent, BiancaMed, DecaWave, Ericsson, FMG Electronics, Socowave, Taoglas, The Institute for Micro and Wireless Systems at NUI Maynooth and The Institute of Electronics, Communications and Information Technology (ECIT) at Queen's University Belfast.

Joe Moore, founder of the technology start-up Socowave, is the driving force behind WirelessLAB and  the network's first chairman. WirelessLAB will be initially located in NovaUCD, the Innovation and Technology Transfer Centre at UCD where Socowave is headquartered.

 Moore said, "Underpinning Ireland's ability to compete in the expanding global wireless market is its range of existing technology companies and the quality of the designers and engineers graduating from Irish universities. However we need to expand this talent pool to support the establishment of a centre of excellence that competes globally."

"I am excited about our formal links with the highly successful wireless cluster, Cambridge Wireless which offers WirelessLAB an instant international dimension," Moore concluded.

 The establishment of special interest groups (SIGs), or industry-led technical forums is a key collabortive activity for WirelessLAB. SIG topics are selected to address significant technology challenges facing the industry and are championed by  member companies.   The network will run SIG events  which are designed to be engaging, to keep members up-to-date with the latest developments in key areas and to assist them in exploring new business opportunities.

The first two WirelssLAB SIG topics, Green Wireless Networks and Body Centric Communications were announced at the launch.The Green Wireless Networks SIG will address the need for major improvements in wireless network architectures, protocols and hardware that will be needed to stabilise and reduce the power consumed per user. The Green Wireless Networks SIG is being championed by Bell Labs Ireland and will explore the opportunities opened up by the international GreenTouch Initiative.

The Body Centric Communications SIG is being championed by ECIT, Queen's University Belfast. It will focus on all aspects of systems and applications where the user is a key component of the wireless network and  bring together wireless and software companies and researchers working on advanced, highly interactive applications such as augmented reality and man-machine interfacing.  

In addition to access to WirelessLAB's SIGs and networking events, members will also be able to participate in its alliance partner Cambridge Wireless' networking and SIG events in areas such as wireless healthcare, games development and wireless sensing. WirelessLAB members will alsobe able to  participate in networking events designed to share information and encourage co-operation between members.

The other members of WirelessLAB's founding board include Professor Tony Fagan of the  UCD School of Electrical, Electronic and Mechanical Engineering, and  Dr Conor Hanley, co-founder and CEO of BiancaMed. 

Other founders on the board  include Dr Sam Samuel, Executive Director of Bell Labs Ireland and UK, Alcatel Lucent and Professor William Scanlon,  of the ECIT at  Queen's University Belfast.

Membership of WirelessLAB is offered at full, start-up and associate levels with differing benefits available at each level. Membership fees have been set on a sliding scale depending on company headcount.

WirelessLAB has been set up to foster  innovation in Ireland's wireless technology community. It aims to develop a collaborative network which encourages interaction between members and drives the development of a wireless centre of excellence in Ireland.

NovaUCD is responsible for the commercialisation of intellectual property arising from UCD research and for the development of co-operation with the industry and business communities. NovaUCD is funded through a unique public-private partnership that includes AIB Bank, Arthur Cox, Deloitte, Enterprise Ireland, Ericsson, Goodbody Stockbrokers, UCD and Xilinx.

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