| EPSRC Reference: |
EP/H02204X/1 |
| Title: |
Design Innovation Research Centre |
| Principal Investigator: |
Whyte, Professor J |
| Other Investigators: |
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| Researcher Co-Investigators: |
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| Project Partners: |
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| Department: |
Construction Management and Engineering |
| Organisation: |
University of Reading |
| Scheme: |
Standard Research |
| Starts: |
01 January 2010 |
Ends: |
30 June 2015 |
Value (£): |
1,034,893
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| EPSRC Research Topic Classifications: |
| Building Ops & Management |
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| EPSRC Industrial Sector Classifications: |
| Construction |
Environment |
| Education |
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| Related Grants: |
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| Panel History: |
| Panel Date | Panel Name | Outcome |
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12 Aug 2009
|
Challenging Engineering Interview Panel
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Announced
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Summary on Grant Application Form |
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Design is located between the crafts of making and the experiences of using. Digital models currently isolate the designer in the closed digital world, taking attention away from these important connections. A new mode of design is necessary in the UK construction industry for it to sustain its competitiveness and address major 21st century issues such as climate change. Engineering research is often focused on tools, either those to add increasingly detailed data to a finite set of building components; or those to encode algorithms for simulating processes and behaviours. Yet Dr Whyte found that the introduction of integrated models on major projects and programmes has not improved effectiveness, but has instead had unintended and negative consequences. In some instances these include generating too much data; making work progress harder to track and displaying designs in ways that make them look reliable before they have been fully tested. There is a need to transform the research field by focusing on effective visualization of design data in both digital and physical design environments.Rapid developments in visual interfaces, largely driven by the gaming and entertainment industries, provide an opportunity to develop more intuitive interfaces, taking 3D digital models out of the 2D screen and making them visible within physical design environments. The aspiration is to make digital models central to the conversation between engineers, manufacturers, fabricators, assemblers, clients and users. There is the potential to sit around a model; to walk around it together; to overlay and interrogate multiple environmental simulations and to compare and contrast design intent with scanned as-built models. The proposed Design Innovation Research Centre (DIRC) will develop new ways of visualizing data for shared design inquiry. The team will scientifically study design activities; and develop novel engineering solutions. DIRC's scientific study team will capture best-practice on major international projects. DIRC's engineering solutions team will create new tools and processes for design innovation. As an open and networked laboratory, the Centre will be the hub of intellectual activity, spanning across disciplines with a virtual and physical presence and nodes in both university and industry. Through inter-disciplinary research and its strong connections with industry, DIRC will be able to react quickly, will operate at the forefront of the research area and will add value by developing skills that are needed within academia and industry. Challenging Engineering funding enables the applicant to bring together and develop a multidisciplinary team of researchers (from engineering, design, ICT, building science and management) to address the challenges of design in the digital economy. The Centre will extend Dr Whyte's trajectory of work, recognizes the importance of shared 3D visualization in decision-making and the need for flexible solutions that do not lock designers into particular approaches too early in the design process. It will thrive through strong research and through deep engagement with industrial partners and associate members. At the end of the Challenging Engineering funding period the Centre will be an internationally-excellent, sustainable, and actively-disseminating, centre of excellence in the UK for 21st century design innovation.
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Key Findings |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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Potential use in non-academic contexts |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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Impacts |
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| Description |
This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk |
| Summary |
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| Date Materialised |
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Sectors submitted by the Researcher |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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| Project URL: |
http://www.reading.ac.uk/designinnovation/ |
| Further Information: |
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| Organisation Website: |
http://www.rdg.ac.uk |