- £10 million will support six innovative engineering networks addressing key strategic challenges and supporting future growth.
- Of the six funded projects, The University of Sheffield is leading on the UK Open Multimodal AI Network (UKOMAIN) and is involved The Digital Design Network plus: designing faster and better with less (D2N+)
- The funded projects are part of a broader strategic response by EPSRC that aims to address the recommendations of Tomorrow’s Engineering Research Challenges (TERC)
Researchers working to tackle some of the key challenges facing engineering are to receive a multimillion-pound funding boost. Six transdisciplinary research projects based at UK institutions will each receive a share of a £10 million investment.
The initiative is being led and funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). It is intended to help them address the challenges identified in the 2022 Tomorrow’s Engineering Research Challenges (TERC) report Tomorrow’s Engineering Research Challenges – UKRI
Long-term vision for engineering research
TERC involved extensive engagement with the UK’s engineering community and set out a long-term vision for engineering research. In the UK, engineers have long been at the heart of technological revolutions and to this day continue to transform the way that we live our lives. These new projects, led by teams that combine appropriate expertise and experience, will help ensure the UK is equipped to face future challenges and contribute to economic growth, social wellbeing, and the transition to net zero. .
Professor Haiping Lu in the School of Computer Science at the University of Sheffield is the Director of the UK Open Multimodal AI Network (UKOMAIN) project. Also in the team at Sheffield are Professor Nicola Morley in the School of Chemical, Materials and Biological Engineering, who is Deputy Director, and Nataliya Tkachenko (visiting researcher from Lloyds Banking), who is the Lead for Industry and Public Engagement. The Sheffield team will be working with colleagues from the University of Cambridge, University of Glasgow and University College London on UKOMAIN.
Multimodal artificial intelligence (AI) integrates diverse data types, such as text, images, and sound, to transform scientific discovery and enhance our interaction with technology. It plays a crucial role in addressing tomorrow’s engineering challenges, spanning health and wellbeing, transportation systems, robotics, materials discovery, space research, nature-based engineering, global engineering solutions, and responsible engineering. The UK Open Multimodal AI Network aims to connect stakeholders and solutions across disciplines to drive sustainable impact and growth.
Professor Lu, Professor of Machine Learning in the School of Computer Science and Head of AI Research Engineering at the Centre for Machine Intelligence at Sheffield, said: "The UK Open Multimodal AI Network represents an exciting opportunity to harness the power of multimodal artificial intelligence for addressing tomorrow's engineering research challenges. By integrating diverse types of data such as text, images, and sound, we aim to build an open and inclusive research ecosystem that bridges disciplines and connects stakeholders to drive impactful innovation across areas like health and wellbeing, transportation systems, materials discovery, and space research.
“Through this collaborative effort, we are committed to advancing research that promotes sustainability, inclusivity, and real-world impact. By fostering open research practices and engaging academia, industry, and policymakers, we aim to transform ideas into deployment-ready solutions that address critical societal and economic needs while empowering a vibrant and dynamic community."
Professor Nicola Morley, Deputy Head of the School of Chemical, Materials and Biological Engineering said: " I am really excited to be involved in this project, which aims to bring multimodal AI to new research areas including materials, energy, space and security. I am looking forward to working with the different communities to see how multimodal AI can advance their research"
Professor Ashutosh Tiwari, Airbus / RAEng Research Chair in Digitisation for Manufacturing, from the School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering, is also part of the project team for The Digital Design Network plus: designing faster and better with less (D2N+), led by Queen's University Belfast and working with the University of Bristol and University of Strathclyde.
This Network Plus will create an active digital design community that will define, set and prioritise key engineering design challenges and viable solution pathways that will exploit digital design technologies and help UK engineering transition to net zero faster. It will ensure industrial engineering design processes fully adopt and leverage emerging capabilities – such as generative design tools – to create faster, better and more environmentally-friendly systems.
Tackling engineering research challenges
The funded projects are part of a broader strategic response by EPSRC that aims to address the recommendations of TERC. In early 2023 UKRI launched a responsive mode pilot scheme to specifically accommodate cross-disciplinary ideas. The projects funded included those that are tackling engineering research challenges.
In addition, to encourage more engagement with interdisciplinary challenges, physical sciences and engineering Strategic Advisory Teams were recently brought together. This approach was to better understand the interfaces between the disciplines and promote greater translation between science and engineering.
A thriving future
Jane Nicholson, Executive Director for Research at EPSRC said: “Engineering is the cornerstone to a more sustainable, successful and thriving future for the UK. From developing renewable energy solutions to creating smart cities, engineering innovations are driving progress in every sector.
These new networks will address the strategic challenges outlined by the TERC report. Together, these researchers present a hugely ambitious, thoughtful response to the economic, environmental and social challenges we all face.”