The Challenge of Widespread Ubiquitous Computing

普适计算（ubicomp）关注的是将计算嵌入和分布到我们周围的世界。在过去的六年里，诺丁汉大学的混合现实实验室（MRL）一直处于国际ubicomp研究的前沿，创造新的无处不在的设备，建立分布式软件平台，需要将许多这样的设备结合在一起，与外部合作伙伴合作，展示ubicomp的创新和创造性应用，并研究这些，然后将经验教训概括为新的设计概念和框架。大部分研究都是在EPSRC的赤道项目中进行的，这是一个为期六年、耗资1000万英镑的跨学科研究合作项目，由MRL领导，涉及八所英国大学。通过赤道和其他项目，我们已经成功地为一种新的跨学科方法奠定了基础，这种方法涉及将新兴技术从实验室带出，并在“野外”研究它们。通过这样做，我们使英国在这一领域处于世界领先地位。随着Equator项目的结束，MRL正在寻求平台资金来维持其研究能力，通过保留和进一步发展关键的跨学科研究人员，并通过开展投机性的新项目来规划ubicomp从目前由研究人员维护的孤立装置状态转变为由最终用户广泛使用和管理的主要新挑战。这一新兴议程的核心是探索ubicomp的时间、空间和材料扩展的三个研究挑战。这些将通过一项投机性试点项目、敏感性研究和研究挑战沙坑的方案绘制出来。此外，我们还将重点发展合作，与外部合作伙伴共同探索创意产业和日常生活这两个关键应用领域。最后，我们将利用平台资金加强我们的核心研究能力，发展我们的研究人员，改进我们的支持方法和软件工具。这一活动计划将使MRL能够在未来五年内继续塑造无处不在计算的议程，并使英国在这一快速发展的领域保持研究的前沿地位。

Ubiquitous computing (ubicomp) concerns the embedding and distribution of computing into the world around us. The Mixed Reality Laboratory (MRL) at the University of Nottingham has been at the forefront of international ubicomp research for the past six years, creating new ubiquitous devices, establishing the distributed software platforms that are required to knit many such devices together, working with external partners to demonstrate innovative and creative applications of ubicomp, and studying these and then generalising the lessons learned into new design concepts and frameworks. Much of this research has been carried out within EPSRC's Equator project, a six-year, ten million pound Interdisciplinary Research Collaboration that involved eight UK universities and that was led by the MRL. Through Equator and other projects we have successfully laid the foundations for a new interdisciplinary approach to ubicomp research that involves taking emerging technologies out of the laboratory and studying them 'in the wild'. In so doing we have placed the UK in a world-leading position in this field.Following the end of Equator, the MRL is seeking platform funding to sustain its research capacity by retaining and further developing key interdisciplinary researchers and by undertaking speculative new projects to chart out the major new challenges that will arise as ubicomp moves from its current state of isolated installations that are maintained by researchers to being widespread and managed by end-users. At the heart of this emerging agenda are the three research challenges of exploring the temporal, spatial and material expansion of ubicomp. These will be charted through a program of speculative pilot projects, sensitising studies and research challenge sandpits. This will be complemented by a focus on developing collaborations where we will work with external partners to explore two key application domains, the creative industries and everyday living. Finally, we will use platform funding to strengthen our core research capacity, developing our research staff and enhancing our supporting methods and software tools. This programme of activities will enable the MRL to continue to shape the agenda for ubiquitous computing over the next five years and the UK to remain at the forefront of research in this rapidly growing field.