From Broadband to Networks - Melbourne Networked Society Institute

From Broadband to Networks
A report to the State Government of Victoria on the
Institute for a Broadband-Enabled Society /
Melbourne Networked Society Institute
networkedsociety.unimelb.edu.au
Welcome and Acknowledgements
Welcome to the report From Broadband to Networks. This report provides an outline of the
activities of the Melbourne Networked Society Institute, formerly the Institute for a BroadbandEnabled Society in accordance with the University of Melbourne’s agreement with the
State Government of Victoria’s Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and
Resources for the period 2010–15.
As the Institute reflects upon the past five years, I am excited by the opportunities that
technology continues to bring and for leading-edge research to be able to further innovation and
increase our understanding. We live in a rapidly evolving technology landscape that is driving
economic growth, reducing poverty and supporting new and unique ways to interact. Looking at
the past five years there has been rapid change – the National Broadband Network commenced
its rollout in 2009, the first iPad was released in April 2010, the Microsoft Kinect was launched
in 2010 and 4G data services started appearing in Australia from 2011.
Today, increased interconnectedness between people, places and things is transforming the
economy and our communities. This interconnectedness is defined as the networked society.
I am excited about the prospect of realising the network society and the opportunities it
presents.
I would like to acknowledge the generous support provided to the Institute by the State
Government of Victoria, which has been integral to the Institute’s success.
Sincerely thank the Institute staff and researchers for their hard work and effort. I would
also like to acknowledge the contribution to leadership and advice provided by the Institute’s
Executive Committee and Advisory Board who have been integral to shaping the strategic
direction of the Institute.
Additionally, I thank all of our partners for their contribution in resources, technology, knowledge
and personnel who have actively collaborated with researchers to support our shared future.
I would like to make special mention to partners Alcatel-Lucent, Huawei, Cisco, Juniper,
Microsoft and Google who have made a substantial contribution to the Institute’s work.
The Institute is one of five interdisciplinary research institutes at the University of Melbourne
and acknowledge the leadership provided by Professor Liz Sonenberg, Pro-Vice Chancellor
(Research Collaboration) and Professor Jim McCluskey Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) and
their commitment towards building an interdisciplinary research culture, which is essential if we
are to tackle society’s grand challenges. I am thankful for the support of the Melbourne School
of Engineering and the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering in hosting the
Institute.
Finally, I would like to thank and acknowledge the tireless work and effort by Melbourne
Laureate Professor Emeritus Rod Tucker, who was the foundation Director of the Institute. I look
forward to collectively building upon his, and the Institute’s successes.
Professor Thas Nirmalathas
Institute Director
From Broadband to Networks
2
Contents
Welcome and Acknowledgements.....................................................................
Institute Overview..........................................................................................................
2
4
Victorian Government Investment..........................................................................
4
Return on Investment....................................................................................................
4
Research...............................................................................................................................
4
Postgraduate Students.................................................................................................
4
Engagement.........................................................................................................................
4
Creating the Broadband-Enabled Society................................................... 5
From Broadband to Networks............................................................................... 6
Victoria’s Investment......................................................................................................
6
Benefits of the Institute............................................................................................ 6
The Networked Society............................................................................................... 7
Research................................................................................................................................. 8
Building an Interdisciplinary Research Culture................................................. 8
Findings.................................................................................................................................. 9
Engagement.......................................................................................................................... 9
Selected Events............................................................................................................... 10
Research Infrastructure and Enablement..................................................... 11
Australian Broadband Applications Laboratory................................................ 11
C-Lab......................................................................................................................................... 12
Partnerships......................................................................................................................... 13
Using IPTV for Education.............................................................................................. 14
Reducing the Energy Consumption of the Internet...................................... 16
Intervening to Support Children on the Autism Spectrum....................... 18
Putting Telework on the National Agenda......................................................... 19
Developing New Ways to Interact with Technology..................................... 20
Communicating Trusted Information in Indigenous Communities........ 21
Appendices........................................................................................................................... 22
Research Projects ........................................................................................................... 22
Annual Reports and Publications........................................................................... 25
Channel 7 Sunrise filming a story about teledentisty January
2013
From Broadband to Networks
Improving data capture via the Microsoft Kinect
3
Institute Overview
Victorian Government Investment
Our achievements have been built on the $5 million investment from the
Victorian Government
Return on Investment
We have received $31.5 million in cash and in-kind contributions from
the University of Melbourne and $19.5 million from grants and Industry
Partners, delivering a return on investment of 10.2
Research
$4.2 million invested across 96 projects involving 406 researchers, or 79
Full-Time equivalent positions at the University of Melbourne along with
111 external collaborators from 104 organisations
Postgraduate Students
We have trained the next generation of leaders in the networked society
supporting 27 PhD Students and 15 Interns
Engagement
We have hosted 84 seminars, workshops and lectures, published 281
academic papers, and received coverage in 341 media articles
From Broadband to Networks
4
Creating the Broadband-Enabled Society
The Institute for a Broadband-Enabled Society emerged at a
unique time in Australia’s telecommunications history. The
central catalyst was the then Rudd Labor Government’s
policy decision to rollout the National Broadband Network
comprising fibre-to-the-premises to 93% of the Australian
population. The network promised to dramatically increase
download speeds available to users to 100 Mbps and more
in urban areas served by the fibre-to-the-premises network
and to 25 Mbps to users in rural and remote areas.
Institute Logo (2009 – 2014)
With ubiquitous and universal access becoming available to all Australians, key questions
were and still are, how best to make use of high-speed broadband, and how to support the
development of applications and services for the benefit of society? These questions were the
focus of the Institute’s activities.
As Foundation Director of the Institute (2009 – 2013), I was fortunate to be able to work with
talented researchers and colleagues from across the University on a variety of innovative
initiatives. The support of the State Government of Victoria, the University and the Institute’s
industry partners were essential in enabling the Institute’s research effort.
As Director of the Institute, I found it very rewarding to help get interdisciplinary projects off the
ground and to watch them flourish.
A highlight of my time as Director was in building strong engagement with industry,
government and the wider community to demonstrate the potential of high-speed broadband to
benefit society. Being able to host a wide range of speakers and events at the University helped
to form, shape and develop new ideas.
While I was Director, the Centre for Energy-Efficient Telecommunications (CEET), a partnership
between the University of Melbourne, the State Government of Victoria and Alcatel-Lucent’s
Bell Labs. CEET was established under the umbrella of the Institute. A key activity of the Centre
was as a partner in GreenTouch, a global consortium that successfully demonstrated that it is
possible to reduce the energy consumption of the Internet by 98%.
Finally, the biggest highlight of my time leading the Institute was working with the people in the
Institute. From the administrative staff and researchers through to the Executive Committee
and Advisory Board, the Institute’s success has been built upon the strength and dedication of
its people.
I am excited to watch the Institute evolve as it commences a new chapter. The National
Broadband Network is moving forward, albeit in a different form, and the Institute continues
to work on innovative interdisciplinary research on how to realise the benefits of a networked
society.
Laureate Emeritus Professor Rod Tucker OAM
Foundation Institute Director (2009 – 2013)
From Broadband to Networks
5
From Broadband to Networks
The Institute’s focus has evolved in step with technological developments. The title of this
report, From Broadband to Networks captures the transition of the Institute, which was
established as the Institute for a Broadband-Enabled Society in 2009. The Institute had a
mission to support research and development on broadband applications and services. The
context for this research was the rollout of high-speed broadband by the Commonwealth
Government via the National Broadband Network. To achieve this goal, the Institute brought
together interdisciplinary researchers from across the University of Melbourne,industry
and external partners to undertake innovative research projects. The research projects were
supported through access to advanced infrastructure allowing research teams to actively
engage with future technologies.
As broadband became a standard fixture in the socio-technological landscape key questions
emerged in relation to the impact of the connectivity across society. This shift from a question
of speed and capacity to one of connectivity and ubiquity marked a transition in the research
focus of the Institute to the networked society.
Victoria’s Investment
The State Government of Victoria invested $5 million to support the activities of
the Institute. This investment complemented support provided by the University of
Melbourne and was instrumental in positioning the Institute as a leader in information and
communications technology research. By investing in the Institute, the State Government
set key performance indicators relating to number of jobs created, PhD Students and return on
investment. The performance of the Institute is captured on the previous page. The Institute has
surpassed its targets and delivered a 10.2 return on the State’s investment.
Benefits of the Institute
The Institute has had a number of benefits for the University of Melbourne, the state of Victoria
and the community. Central to the Institute’s vision has been that networks, or broadband,
must deliver outcomes that have social benefits. This guiding approach has allowed the Institute
to support collaboration and innovation, which are essential to driving gains of the future
economy.
Support from the Victorian Government has been instrumental in the Institute’s success. The
Institute has established itself as a leading research Institute playing a key role within the
dynamic and evolving information and communications landscape. The work of the Institute
adds to Victoria’s knowledge economy and supports the development of the ICT landscape.
From Broadband to Networks
6
The Networked Society
The Melbourne Networked Society Institute represents the natural evolution of the
Institute’s research. As connectivity increases many key elements of society are undergoing
transformative change. This transformation is seeing a reorientation of society where networks
that transmit data, information and commands are integral to the existence and operation of
people, places and services.
The networked society is altering the technological and social landscape, presenting challenges
and opportunities for research, industrial development and innovation. Pervasive ambient
computing environments produce massive volumes of information permeating every aspect
of existence. The data generated by these technologies can be converted in near real time to
support decision making. This enables the fusing of intelligent mapping of real and social worlds
at a local, city, or even global scale. A range of augmented reality and wearable devices is
changing how fundamental tasks are performed, driving potential for massive improvement in
the quality of life.
Many sectors of the economy face significant disruption as a result of the networked society.
Automated processing of information through ambient computing environments and their
capabilities will transform the provision of services. The ubiquity of transaction monitoring has
reduced the cost of data collection, driving changes in service delivery. Additionally, the nature
of work is changing with the blurring of boundaries between business and personal life. This will
transform future work place arrangements, enable productivity gains, drive economic growth,
and provide significant opportunities for government policy development.
The networked society also presents many challenges. There are key issues in relation to how
information is obtained, processed, stored and used when networks transcend jurisdiction.
The growing amount of personal data transmitted across networks has privacy and security
implications. Additionally, the networked society is transforming cultural and social practices
through the use of communications technologies allowing greater connectivity between people.
This requires a rethink in understanding information security and integrity from societal, cultural,
legal, and governance perspectives.
Launch of the Melbourne Networked Society Institute, May 2015
From Broadband to Networks
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Research
The core activity of the Institute is research. The Institute has developed a strong research
program and brought together a diverse range of researchers from across the University of
Melbourne and external organisations to undertake interdisciplinary research.
The Institute has provided funding for a number of seed funded projects to further
interdisciplinary research. The Institute has supported 96 projects across a broad domain
bringing together researchers from a wide variety of disciplines along with external
collaborators. The Institute has supported 27 PhD students and 15 Master’s students as Interns.
Building an Interdisciplinary Research Culture
Society faces many problems that require complex solutions. Research is essential to address
these problems. Therefore, as the challenges transcend discipline boundaries so to must the
research. However, research is only effective if it is conducted in a holistic manner. To be able to
tackle the grand challenges facing society researchers must work together and collaborate. The
key to this collaboration is to enable researchers to work outside their disciplinary boundaries.
The Institute has enabled this by developing a strong interdisciplinary research culture. This is
firstly achieved by all projects requiring an interdisciplinary team in order to be considered for
funding. The second is by developing a program of engagement and events that can support the
dissemination of thoughts and ideas across disciplines.
The interdisciplinary research approach is unique as it allows for the establishment of diverse
teams to explore and analyse problems. The benefits of an interdisciplinary approach have been
recognised through the ability of projects to establish a track record and receive competitive
research grants. By supporting diverse teams, the Institute’s research aims to tackle problems
holistically. For example, a software engineer, clinician and anthropologist all have a different
understandings and ask different questions as a result of their training, education and
background. Collectively, these collaborations have allowed for knowledge to be shared in a way
that is attuned towards the research project in question.
Prof Gregor Kennedy
From Broadband to Networks
Annual Symposium 2012
Steve Wood, Chair Advisory Board
8
Findings
The key research findings from the Institute have centred around developing and increasing
awareness about the application and use of technology across the networked society. The
Institute has disseminated its results widely in a number of publications, both internal and
external.
The Institute has supported 102 research projects. The interdisciplinary nature of the projects
has resulted in projects that transcend traditional disciplinary boundaries providing novel
approaches towards the problems facing the networked society. Projects have involved the
breadth of research at the University including projects from health, education, engineering,
media and communications, cultural studies, anthropology and indigenous studies. The projects
have sown the seed for further innovations by leveraging $6.7 million in Commonwealth Grants.
The project findings have been published in books, journals and as conference papers.
Additionally, the Institute has published a suite of publications arising from research projects in
order to disseminate findings to a wide audience. Selected publications include:
•
Participatory Sensing: Enabling Interactive Local Governance Through Citizen
Engagement
•
SeeCare IPTV: Broadband Technology for Improved Health Literacy
•
Telling Our Stories: Aboriginal Young People in Victoria and Digital Storytelling
•
Framing the NBN: Public Perceptions and Media Representations
•
Hear Me Out! Enhancing Social Inclusion and Wellbeing for Deaf and Hearing Impaired
Teens Through an Online Peer Support Program
•
Uni TV: Trialling IPTV for Education
•
Free Wi-Fi and Public Space: The State of Australian Public Initiatives
•
Telework, Productivity and Wellbeing
•
Keeping Intouchable: A Community Report on the Use of Mobile Phones and Social
Networking by Young Aboriginal People in Victoria
A full list of publications is included in the appendix of this report.
Engagement
The Institute has established itself as a thought leader within its domain of expertise. The
Institute has hosted 84 seminars, workshops, symposia, fora and public lectures to increase
engagement and awareness around broadband and the networked society. Events play an
important role in extending the Institute’s reach and bringing together stakeholders from across
industry, government, academia and the community. Public events provide the opportunity
to disseminate research and support networking activities that will seed the next wave of
innovation.
From Broadband to Networks
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Selected Events
•
A 21st Century Infrastructure? Broadband, Daily Life and Australian Digital Economy,
public lecture by Genevieve Bell, Intel – 16 March 2010
•
Content Futures Workshop (co-hosted with the Australian Interactive Media Industry
Association (AIMIA) – 25 October 2010
•
ICT Forum: Australia’s Role in a Global Environment: Broadband and the Digital Economy
(co-hosted with Asialink) – 10 March 2011
•
More Like Us: Computing Transformed, public lecture by Craig Mundie, Chief Research
Officer, Microsoft – 28 March 2011
•
The Revolution will be Webcast, Youtubed and Tweeted, public lecture by Dr Tim Williams
– 25 August 2011
•
Disruptions and Dividends: A Fast Broadband Australia, public lecture by Mark Scott,
Managing Director – Australian Broadcasting Corporation – 20 September 2011
•
Telework Congress – 12 November 2012
•
The National E-Health Initiative, public lecture by Peter Fleming, CEO – National E-Health
Transition Authority (NEHTA) – 20 September 2013
•
Telework Congress 2013 – 19 November 2013
•
The Fourth Paradigm: Data-Intensive Scientific Discovery, public lecture by Tony Hey, VicePresident Microsoft Research Connections – 5 December 2013
•
The Future of Mobile, public lecture by Rick Costanzo, Executive Vice President and
General Manager of Global Mobility Solutions, SAP – 21 August 2014
•
Putting the Audience First, public lecture by Mark Scott, Managing Director – Australian
Broadcasting Corporation – 13 October 2014
•
Social Equity in a Post-Broadband Society: Insights from Disability for a TechnologyEnabled Citizenship, public lecture by Gerrard Goggin – University of Sydney – 13
November 2014
•
Institute Launch and Public Forum: Metadata in the Networked Society – 14 May 2015
Craig Mundie, Microsoft
From Broadband to Networks
The Hon Stephen Conroy at ICT Forum
Prof Glyn Davis, Vice-Chancellor at Telework
Congress 2012
10
Research Infrastructure and Enablement
Australian Broadband Applications Laboratory
The Institute has developed key infrastructure to support the research and development of
advanced technologies and applications that make use of broadband and support the networked
society.
To support research and development activities the Institute has developed a laboratory that
provides access to a wide range of state of the art technology. The Laboratory has evolved with
the research focus and direction of the Institute.
Prof Rod Tucker shows Prime Minister the Hon Julia Gillard equipment at the launch of the Australian Broadband Applications Laboratory
The first incarnation was as a Test-Bed environment that replicated the capabilities of a highspeed broadband fibre-to-the-premises installation. The Test-Bed allowed researchers to
experience first-hand the impact of fast broadband speeds.
The test-bed environment evolved into the Australian Broadband Applications Laboratory
(ABAL), which sought to extend the work of the lab from a test-bed environment to one that is
focused on the development of broadband applications and services. ABAL was announced by
the Minister for Technology, Gordon Rich-Phillips on 27 September 2011 and launched by the
Prime Minister, the Hon Julia Gillard on 29 September 2011.
The Hon Malcolm Turnbull watching a teledentisty demo in 2011
Channel 7 Sunrise filming a teledentisty demo
ABAL played an integral role in a number of the Institute’s research projects, providing technical
knowledge and expertise supporting the uptake and development of broadband applications
and services. ABAL hosted many technology tests and demos and provided a foundation
for interdisciplinary research bringing together researchers from technical, health and social
domains. As increasing value and opportunities were arising in software development, the lab
commenced another transition to remain relevant to its key stakeholders.
From Broadband to Networks
11
C-Lab
As part of the transition of the Institute, the lab was rebranded
as C-Lab, ‘C’ for connectivity. The C-Lab builds upon the
infrastructure established to ensure that the Institute is ready
to embrace the connected future.
The C-Lab provides a space to bring together researchers and
industry together. It is there to nurture and develop innovation
by improving access to Internet and network technologies. The
C-Lab’s fundamental role is in the development of prototypes,
providing technical proof-of-concept demonstrators and transforming research outputs into
intellectual property for innovative start-ups. It also provides practical training and hands-on
experiences for students and early career researchers in the best digital innovation environment
in Australia.
C-Lab plays an essential role in the training and development of the next generation through its
internship program, which enables talented Masters students at the University of Melbourne to
work on cutting edge technical research projects under the supervision of Institute staff.
C-Lab has evolved, moving from being a pure telecommunications environment to a laboratory
that embraces software and services to support new and emerging applications. C-Lab
continues to evolve into an innovation centre for the Internet of Things, and as the central node
in an emerging living lab initiatives to be rolled out in 2016.
Institute interns Semester One 2014
(L-R): Gursharan Singh, Shuo Zhou and Anurag Kulkarni
Dr Julien Ridoux gives a demonstration in the lab
Zaher Joukhadar and Robyn Garnett in the lab
Members of the House of Representatives Infrastructure and Communications Committee at a technology demonstration (2011)
From Broadband to Networks
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Partnerships
The Institute has been fortunate to be supported by a wide range of industry partners ranging
from large multinational organisations to small not-for-profit enterprises. The Institute at its
inception developed an Industry Partner Program, which kick-started engagement with industry.
Twenty-one organisations joined the Industry Partner Program including: Alcatel-Lucent, Cisco,
Huawei, Microsoft, Juniper, Ericsson, Google, AARNet,
Throughout the life of the Institute, the Institute has worked closely with partners and
collaborators. Partners provide three essential elements for the Institute: resources, knowledge
and technology. Each of these allows the Institute to further its research agenda for example:
through the funding of a research centre, collaborating closely with researchers on a research
project, or the provision of technology to support research, development and education
activities.
The Institute prides itself on the breath of engagement. It is not a one-size fits all model. Six
case studies are presented below, detailing the various ways that partners have collaborated
with the Institute. The case studies are:
•
Using IPTV for Education
•
Reducing the Energy Consumption of the Internet
•
Intervening to Support Children on the Autism Spectrum
•
Putting Telework on the National Agenda
•
Developing New Ways to Interact with Technology
•
Communicating Trusted Information in Indigenous Communities
Ericsson Staff Colin Goodwin, Natalie Hollier and Kursten Leins stand in front of Uni TV at the Institute
From Broadband to Networks
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Using IPTV for Education
Ericsson Australia Pty Ltd, LivBetter Group Pty Ltd, Diabetes Australia Vic,
AARNet, Wadeye community
In its most familiar guise Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) utilises broadband data networks to
deliver live sports and pre-recorded entertainment channels as well as video-on-demand (VoD)
to consumers. However, in a series of collaborations in recent years with Ericsson Australia Pty
Ltd, a member of the Industry Partner Program, the Institute has explored the use of IPTV for
educational purposes as students (of all ages and types) increasingly expect to have access to
alternatives to campus-centric models which provide them with more flexibility. Often they want
to fit their learning around other commitments, such as jobs and family, and want to access
educational services in multiple ways. IPTV can provide the necessary 24/7 access via multiple
screened devices such as tablets and smart-phones as well as domestic TV’s. The result is
blended learning where students receive their education in a mix of situations of face-to-face
and online experiences.
The Hon Gordon Rich-Phillips, Minister for Technology switches
on UniTV at the Rural Clinical School Shepparton April 2013
Uni TV in Operation
Starting from a pilot lab-based proof-of-concept called Uni TV (pdf) the IPTV platform was proven
to be well suited to the provision of educational services. These ranged from traditional lectures,
tutorials and fact-based programming, but also in more forward-looking implementations for
eLearning such lectures filmed in 3D at the University and delivery of expert clinical tuition via
‘broadcast’ from surgical simulators. With the aid of the Victorian Government’s Broadband
Enabled Innovation Program funding, Uni TV was rolled out by the Melbourne Dental School
(MDS) in 2013 to various sites across Victoria via both the National Broadband Network (NBN)
and Australia’s Academic and Research Network (AARNet) infrastructure, including local and
remote campus locations in Melbourne and Shepparton, as well as home use in the first wave
NBN build area of Brunswick.
The MDS was an interesting test case for IPTV’s real-world efficacy in an educational setting: as
well as lecture and tutorial capture cameras, the School’s pre-clinical and clinical areas between
them have a range of specialist cameras and simulation tools as part of their daily teaching and
patient treatment activities. There are microscope cameras which can be monocular (2D) or
stereo (3D) according to the type of beam-splitters used; podium cameras which look down on
the clinical-tutors’ hands as they demonstrate complex procedures; wide angle cameras that
capture dentist-patient interactions; 3D haptics (physical feedback) simulation work-stations;
intra-oral dental cameras which can be used for tele-dentistry with the confined elderly, and
remote patients.
From Broadband to Networks
14
The IPTV collaboration extended over time to other universities and industry partners with a
health services interest. LivBetter Group Pty Ltd, formerly known as SeeCare, had an existing
web-based tool to provide online access to care and personalised health information to diabetes
(and cancer) patients as well as to the carers in their support network. The personalisation
is achieved from the details entered both by their health professional and themselves: the
patient can set the necessary permissions for family members or friends to access information
about their condition. This service was integrated with Ericsson’s IPTV platform to provide
personalised and trusted health video content from another project industry partner, Diabetes
Australia Vic, creating the SeeCare IPTV platform (pdf). The IPTV middleware seeks only the
relevant health information from the SeeCare server to enable it to select the appropriate
material for view by the currently logged in viewer. It then provides a list of content based on
these parameters to ensure the patient or carer receives exactly the right material based on
their current status in the comfort of their own home.
IPTV is also being currently used in low cost, easier to maintain forms in further independent
collaborations with Kanamkek Yile Ngala Museum and the Thamarrurr Regional Authority
Aboriginal Corporation in Wadeye in the Northern Territory, and the University’s Centre for
Health Equity. The MNSI funded project investigated how culturally significant and endangered
audio-visual material might be most effectively and appropriately preserved and made
accessible for present and future generations. The delivery of locally relevant content in local
languages offers hope to communities seeking to maintain their language, lore, customs, and
cultural heritage. But, given the complex technical issues relating to the digitised world it has
become clear over time that the speed of information technology developments and lack of
capacity in Australian Aboriginal communities can often lead to information and knowledge loss.
The project explored new technologies that would make it possible for Wadeye community
members to view historical audio-visual footage, add information about the people and events
recorded, and to produce contemporary audio-visual histories via broadband technologies.
A further positive outcome was the obtaining of funds to establish a local narrowcast television
station in Wadeye. This is due for launch in December 2015. This will enable local community
access to local language content and delivery of community messages.
Mark Crocombe, Kanamkek-Yile Ngala Museum, watches Wadeye IPTV
From Broadband to Networks
SeeCare IPTV Trial Participants
15
Reducing the Energy Consumption of the Internet
Alcatel-Lucent
Alcatel-Lucent is a multinational
telecommunications equipment vendor.
The company is home to Bell Labs, a
leading research and scientific development
organisation. Through the Industry Partnership
Program Alcatel-Lucent was able to develop a
strong working relationship with the Institute,
and understand the University’s research strengths to develop an engaged and meaningful
partnership.
The Internet currently consumes up to 2 percent of the world’s energy supply. The increased
use of connected services is resulting in increased power consumption. Therefore, reducing
the energy consumption of the Internet is essential to reduce the impact of ICT on the
environment.
Seeing the research potential of the projects, and the depth of research talent at the University
of Melbourne, coupled with a need to curb the Internet’s energy consumption to ensure
sustainability, Alcatel-Lucent partnered with the University to establish the Centre for EnergyEfficient Telecommunications (CEET).
The Hon Gordon Rich-Phillips Launches the Centre for Energy-Efficient Telecommunications
Launched by the Hon Gordon Rich-Phillips, Minister for Technology in March 2011, the Centre
is a $10 million partnership between Alcatel-Lucent, Bell Labs, the University of Melbourne
and the Victorian State Government. In addition to providing resources to support research
activities, the Centre also provides a connection between researchers at the University of
Melbourne with industry researchers at Alcatel-Lucent’s Bell Labs. This collaborative approach
ensures continued engagement between researchers and industry.
The Centre’s research program focuses on measuring and modelling the energy impact of
the cloud, content delivery services and the Internet of Things, energy efficient wireless and
developing low energy access technologies. The Centre is also investigating the impact of the
National Broadband Network (NBN) on the national economy and energy consumption and
developing energy consumption models for Internet services.
From Broadband to Networks
16
The Centre is a key member of GreenTouch a global consortium of telecommunications
organisations dedicated to showing how telecommunication networks can reduce their energy
impact by a factor of 1000x. In June 2015 GreenTouch announced that it had successfully
developed a roadmap for reducing the energy consumption by 98% even with the overall
traffic in the network increasing 12-fold between 2010 and 2020. During the lifetime of
GreenTouch, CEET has been a key contributor to the technology roadmap by participating in 3
Working Groups on 5 key projects and contributing to white papers and technical reports. CEET
representatives held positions on the Executive Board and Technical Committee and hosted the
10th GreenTouch global consortium in Melbourne.
The Centre was recognised as an effective
partnership building a strong collaboration
between industry and research by receiving
the Business and Higher Educational Round
Table (B-HERT) 2012 award for Outstanding
Achievement in Collaboration in Research
and Development and in 2014 awarded the
Victorian International Education Awards
for Excellence in Innovation in Industry
Partnerships.
Receiving the B-HERT Award
(L-R): André Gygax, Chris Leckie, Kate Cornick, Chris Evans, Kat Franks, Tim Marshall &
Simon Harriss
CEET is located within the Department of
Photo credit: B-HERT, Leisa Hunt
Electrical and Electronic Engineering at the
University of Melbourne. 23 researchers and 19 collaborators from Alcatel-Lucent and Bell Labs,
along with 10 Postgraduate students have been part of CEET. The Centre has published 77
publications and conference papers and filed 3 patents.
Final GreenTouch Members Meeting, June 2015, New York
From Broadband to Networks
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Intervening to Support Children on the Autism Spectrum
Clear Messages Pty Ltd
Clear Messages Pty Ltd, a private Victorian speech-pathology practice based in Ballarat
contacted the Institute to scope opportunities for online delivery of their services, otherwise
known as telepractice. Following some initial discussions with Institute staff and researchers
a collaborative research project was developed that received funding via the Institute’s
competitive research seed funding round.
Many experts believe that accessing intervention as early as possible
may help minimise the impact of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
related disorders on later life functioning and accumulating evidence
is demonstrating the effectiveness of early intervention for children
with ASD. To ensure inclusive access to timely early intervention
services there is a need for innovation in service delivery models and
individualisation of interventions to more fully meet the needs of this
heterogeneous group of children.
The provision of interventions must be flexible in order to meet the
diverse needs of families seeking services. For this reason, a pilot
project was developed to determine the feasibility and value of
migrating ASD specific, parent intervention training from traditional
face-to-face delivery to an ICT-enabled format, using readily available
technologies. The viability of this telepractice delivery model was then
tested via the real-time provision of online group training sessions.
Additionally, telepractice based individual skills coaching sessions were
provided, involving parent-child interactions in participants’ homes.
Such innovative ICT-enabled services can allow more children with
ASD to access intervention earlier, or may allow access for families
who would not traditionally have been able to participate due to factors
such as distance, transport, cost, child care or lack of availability of
suitably trained professionals.
3D (top) and 2D (bottom) representations of parent
child interaction
Thanks to its technical expertise and resources MNSI was also able to offer Clear Messages Pty
Ltd an innovative approach to clinical assessment: the Microsoft Kinect sensor from the Xbox
gaming platform was identified as a potential tool for remote analysis of social communication
in young children with ASD. Software development occurred as a ‘proof of concept’ project
involving collaboration between speech pathologists and software engineers.
This resulted in the development of an automated tracking and analysis system providing
meaningful statistics on the quality of parent-child interaction via a highly automated real time
user interface. A prototype dashboard display uses Kinect sensor output, displaying both realtime and cumulative interaction measurements alongside avatar skeleton figures.
It is envisaged that the Kinect system has potential to support the remote assessment of
children with ASD for the purpose of intervention planning and evaluation of progress. The
toolbox could be used in future iterations as a portable and readily available ‘expert system’ to
provide early intervention support to families, especially those in underserved rural and remote
areas. This system could not only benefit children with ASD, but be applied more broadly to
other client groups.
From Broadband to Networks
18
Putting Telework on the National Agenda
Cisco
Telework allows people to conduct their work remotely. Advances in information and
communications technologies allow people to easily conduct their work outside of the
traditional office environment, such as in the home. Cisco engaged with the Institute to
undertake research focusing on the connection between telework, productivity and wellbeing.
Researchers interviewed 28 employees across six organisations to gain the perspectives of
management and employees about telework in terms of productivity and wellbeing. Some
participants also completed daily logs of their activities to allow a comparison across telework
and non-telework days.
The research, published as Telework, Productivity and Wellbeing (pdf), found that telework is a
viable alternative to face-to-face work, which can yield productive outcomes for both employers
and employees. The research formed the foundation of a larger project supported by Cisco and
conducted in partnership with the New Zealand Work Research Institute, Auckland University
of Technology, investigating telework, productivity and wellbeing in Australia and New Zealand,
with the results published in the Trans-Tasman Telework Survey (pdf) in 2013.
To build and increase engagement around telework, Cisco partnered with the Institute,
the Commonwealth Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy,
Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA), Ai Group, and Telstra to support the Telework
Congress the opening event of the Commonwealth Government’s National Telework Week,
12–16 November 2012.
The Telework Congress brought together over 350 leaders from government, academia and
industry to explore the potential of telework and to highlight the benefits to employees,
employers and the community. The Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, delivered a keynote
presentation via Telepresence from her office in Parliament House to the University of
Melbourne. The Telework Congress also featured keynote presentations from Ministers Shorten
and Conroy, while the US Ambassador joined the event via Telepresence from Perth.
The success of the Telework Congress, resulted in a follow-up event occurring in Telework Week
2013, with the Australian Human Resources Institute joining as a partner. The Congress focused
upon the leadership and management challenges of effective telework. The event was opened
by the Hon Malcolm Turnbull, Minister for Communications.
The Hon Malcolm Turnbull, Telework Congress 2013
From Broadband to Networks
Prof Rod Tucker, Telework Congress 2012
The Hon Bill Shorten, Telework Congress 2012
19
Developing New Ways to Interact with Technology
Microsoft
Microsoft joined the Institute’s Industry Partner
Program in 2010 with Craig Mundie, Microsoft
Chief Research and Strategy Officer visiting
the Institute in March 2011. The University of Melbourne has an established research profile
in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) within the Department of Computing and Information
Systems, with many researchers working on a number of the Institute’s seed funded projects
focused on how people interact with devices in a variety of ways.
A key part of the research is understanding how digital technologies, such as the Microsoft
Kinect Sensor, are used in society that allows for new ways to interact with technology to
understand social problems. Through the Industry Partnership Program, Microsoft was able
to work with the University of Melbourne to develop a research program focused upon social
natural user interfaces.
Microsoft, in partnership with the University of Melbourne and the Victorian State Government
established the Microsoft Research Centre for Social Natural User Interfaces (SocialNUI) an $8
million academic–industry research centre located within the Department of Computing and
Information Systems at the University of Melbourne. The Hon. Gordon Rich-Phillips, Victorian
Minster for Technology in December 2013, launched SocialNUI at the University of Melbourne.
SocialNUI is a place of collaborative research for creating and understanding innovative
NUI that facilitates human communication, collaboration and social interaction. SocialNUI’s
research agenda addresses new forms of human-computer interactions offered by emerging
technologies beyond those with keyboard and mouse, in particular those supporting gesture,
gaze, movement and voice. The research within the centre broadly addresses four domains of
the home, public spaces, education and health.
The Centre allows for close collaboration between researchers at the University and Microsoft
Research. SocialNUI has developed an innovative suite of projects that are pushing the
boundaries of how people interact with technology. A notable project was Encounters, an
interactive digital art installation involving close collaboration between SocialNUI researchers
and artists from the Victorian College of the Arts to create an interactive, immersive experience
during Melbourne’s SummerSalt and White Night festival in 2015. The Centre also works closely
with Microsoft Australia, with work featured in Microsoft’s Parliamentary Technology Showcase
in March 2014.
The Centre involves the work of 5 full-time SocialNUI funded staff, 10 in-kind contributing
researchers from the University of Melbourne, 10 Graduate students and 10 collaborators. Since
the research program commenced in August 2013, SocialNUI has supported 10 projects, with
the research resulting in 7 publications.
The Hon. Gordon Rich-Phillips launching
SocialNUI
From Broadband to Networks
Ed Husic MP, Pip Marlow, Microsoft and Frank Vetere at Microsoft’s Parliamentary
Technology Showcase
20
Communicating Trusted Information in Indigenous Communities
Hitnet Pty Ltd
Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders living in remote communities can experience
significant disadvantage. Health communication can positively influence behaviour but those
materials designed for mainstream society are often not culturally appropriate and/or fail to
address low literacy levels.
Hitnet Pty Ltd is a small company, under 10 employees, which operates an Australia-wide
network of around 50 interactive touch-screen kiosks located in public buildings and clinics
in indigenous communities. The kiosks provide access to a series of multimedia modules on
health and well-being commissioned by various health promotion agencies and produced by
Hitnet in a co-creation model with the communities themselves.
Using and creating media content for indigenous communities
Hitnet identified a strategy of partnering with academic institutions and in 2014 was a partner
on two research grants awarded by the Institute: one an anthropological study of kiosk use in
association with researchers from the University’s School of Population and Global Health, the
other an ICT specific project to develop a proof of concept based on upgrading the kiosks as wifi hubs to enable local content uploading and enhance potential services on offer.
The Institute supervised and managed the technical expertise for these projects which was
additionally sourced as interns from the University of Melbourne’s Masters of IT (MIT) courses.
The Institute enjoys an excellent collaborative relationship with all faculties at the University
of Melbourne and, in particular, the University’s Department of Computing and Information
Systems. This relationship allows their research for higher degree students to tackle practical
and interesting industry-focussed projects under the mentorship of Institute staff.
The MIT interns successfully produced two key components of the Hitnet collaboration: an
overarching, future-looking ICT architecture and design study which considers potential threats
from alternative technologies and operators, as well as a smartphone app to enable the upload
of new content from community members via authenticated data transfer to the kiosk over
local wi-fi then via broadband to the Hitnet server.
The collaborations are ongoing and Hitnet is keen to build upon and implement solutions like
these in their future technology upgrades and releases.
From Broadband to Networks
21
Appendices
The following appendices provide additional information about the work of the Institute over
the period 2010–15. Details include Research Projects, Annual Reports and Publications, and
Financial Statements.
Research Projects
2015
•
Aboriginal Young People in Victoria and Digital Storytelling (ARC)
•
Active Defence: A Novel Risk Management Approach to Network Infrastructure Protection
•
Crowdsourcing of Mobility Hazards to Enhance the Safety and Independence of the Vision-Impaired
•
The Digital Vineyard: A Framework for Remote Sensing and Data Analysis Using Fixed and Mobile
Sensors in a Combined Sensor Network
•
Driving for Change: A Video game to Reduce Depression in Taxi Drivers
•
Music Therapy in Virtual Environments: Transforming the lives of people with quadriplegia using
immersive environments for online group singing
•
Protecting Personal Data: Do the Australian Privacy Principles work with the Internet of Things?
•
Mapping the Melbourne Sharing Economy: The Relational Dynamics Of Sharing Networks
•
Topographical Community Accessibility Modelling for People with Mobility Impairments
2014
•
Colourimetric Sensor Chips for Lab-on-a-Smartphone
•
Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Ethics and Research Resources (The CALDER Pilot Study)
•
Domestic 3D Printing Research Initiative – domestic and commercial models of use for additive
manufacture
•
New Generation EEG Devices for Regional and Remote Health Care
•
“Super-Participation” and Everyday Political Talk Online: A Comparative Analysis
2013
•
An Open Research Initiative to Improve the Evaluation of Australian Telehealth Implementations
•
Blended Learning Across the Secondary-Tertiary Divide (Google)
•
Creating Musical Futures for Students In Rural and Remote Communities
•
Cultural Respect Encompassing Simulation Training (CREST)
•
From Information Kiosks to Community Hubs: Information Provision in Indigenous Communities in
an NBN Environment
•
Improving the Language Learning and Technology Connection: Identifying and Understanding
Current Challenges to, and Best Practice in Broadband Enabled Language Learning in Regional,
Rural and Urban Schools in Victoria
•
Kinect Technology for Remote Assessment of Interventions for Young Children with Autism
Spectrum Disorders
•
Making the Invisible Visible: Digital Storytelling for Neighbourhood Social Cohesion
•
Non-Contact 3D Falls: Detection, Prevention, and Behavioural Monitoring in Aged Residential &
Home Environments: Developing a Clinical Evaluation and Application Framework
From Broadband to Networks
22
•
Open Food Network (OFN): Connecting and Supporting the Sustainability of Regional Food Supply
Chain Communities
•
Telerehabilitation for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: Optimising the Model
•
Telework and Disability: Exploring Barriers and Opportunities
•
WADEYE IPTV: Delivering Audiovisual Archives to Remote Aboriginal Communities
•
Working in the Cloud: Developing Identity Resources for Care Leavers
2012
•
Developing Reusable 3D, Simulation-Based Learning Environments
•
Enabling Social Connection for Long-Term Hospital Patients
•
Framing the NBN: Consumer Attitudes and Perceptions
•
Health Service Provider Data Connectivity Requirements: Mapping a Path for a Broadband Enabled
Healthcare Future
•
“Hear Me Out”: Developing an Online Peer Support Program for Deaf and Hearing Impaired Teens
•
Non-User and the National Broadband Network
•
Participatory Sensing: Enabling Interactive Local Governance
•
SELF-OMICS: Addressing the Information and Communication Needs of the Quantified Individual
for Enabling Participatory and Personalised Medicine.
•
Smart Companion: RFID and Broadband Technologies for Medication Management for Patients and
Older People with Chronic Illness
•
The Post-Convergence Regulatory Environment
2011
•
2D v 3D for Improved Learning Outcomes
•
Ageing Well at Home with Broadband (BEIP)
•
Broadband 3D Telehealth Applications for the Empowerment of Patients in Health Care Facilities
and the Home
•
Field Testing of Remote Teledentistry Technology (Google)
•
Getting Well and Being Present: Connecting Hospitalised Children to their School and Family
•
Growing Old and Staying Connected: Touch Screen Technology for Ameliorating Older People’s
Experience of Social Isolation (ARC)
•
Improving Access to Interpreters During Clinical Consultations for Refugee and Immigrant Patients
•
Interpreter Mediated Cognitive Assessments
•
Mobile Augmented Reality: Exploring Information, Interface and Interaction in Blended
Environments
•
MUGLE: A Collaborative and Interactive Game-based Learning Platform for Distance Learning
(Google)
•
Participatory Public Space: A Right to the Networked City (ARC)
•
Refugee Health Clinical Hub: A Model for Integrated Clinical Care (BEIP)
•
SeeCare IPTV: Personalized Health Literacy Demonstrator
•
Smart Technologies for Older People
•
Teacher Professional Learning in a Virtual Environment
•
Telework, Productivity and Wellbeing
From Broadband to Networks
23
•
Telling Our Stories: Aboriginal Youth and Digital Storytelling, Embracing the Creative Capacity of
New Technology for Educational Pathways
•
Uni TV: Proof of Concept (BEIP)
2010
•
3D VR Training
•
Building a Digital User Guardian
•
Concordance Between Real-Time Teledentistry Assessments and Face-To-Face Examination
•
Connecting Learners for Collaboration Across Diverse Communities
•
Death, Grieving and Memorialization
•
Digital China: A Qualitative Assessment of Innovative Broadband Narrative Construction and Online
Research-Reporting Models in Key Mainland Chinese Media Universities and Research Centres
•
Early Detection and Mitigation of Disastrous Events with Broadband-Enabled Social Interaction
Technologies
•
High Resolution Monitoring of Atmospheric Pollutants to Identify Their Impact on Population Health
•
The HORYZONS Project: Online Recovery for Youth Onset Psychosis
•
Migrant Youth and the Cultural Dynamics of Transnational Connectivity
•
NBN Deployment Techno-Economic Model
•
Overcoming Geographical Barriers for Community Health: Remote Access to Clinical Diagnosis and
Treatment
•
Political Issue Analysis System
•
The Role of High Speed Broadband in Telecommunications Between People with Limited Speech
and the Health Workforce
•
Scalable and Energy-Efficient Deployment of Video-Rich Services Over Next Generation Networks
•
Telestroke Study
•
TELIA: Technology for Endangered Languages in Australasia
•
Uni TV: A Platform for Converged Services and Applications
•
Victorian Aboriginal Youth and Their Use of New Technologies: Exploring Online Social Networks to
Enhance Educational Outcomes
•
Wireless Broadband Monitoring of Knee Osteoarthritis
2009
•
Assessing the Potential Barriers to the Adoption of High-Speed Broadband by Australian Business
•
Broadband in the Home: A Longitudinal Study
•
Broadband-Enabled Public Screens: From Display to Interaction
•
Convict Founders and Survivors of Tasmania
•
Crowd-Sourcing Human Knowledge on Spatial Semantics of Placenames
•
Data Assimilation and Bushfire Modelling for Early and Rapid Bushfire Detection using Broadband
Technology
•
Demand Response in Smart Grids
•
Electronic Health Records: Ethical and Social Issues
•
Gardens of Tomorrow in Broadband-Enabled Neighbourhoods
•
Haptic Tele-Rehabilitation: Latency Implications for System Stability and Clinical Communication
From Broadband to Networks
24
•
Making Pathology Reports Smarter by Incorporating User Characteristics in Design
•
Mobile and Broadband Technologies for Ameliorating Social Isolation in Older People
•
Multi-site Immigrant Health Database: Personal Patient (Patient Controlled) Record
•
NBN Cost Benefit Analysis Methodology
•
Online Decision Support for Crop Irrigation
•
Returns on ICT Investment in the Third Sector
•
Screen Stories and Community Connections
•
Towards a Distributed International Ethnographic Museum
•
Using Broadband-Enabled Technology to Create a Presence in Classrooms for Children Who Are
Absent Due to Health Conditions
•
Youth Mental Health and Wellbeing Online
Annual Reports and Publications
Annual Reports
2014–15 (pdf: 1.4MB)
2013–14 (pdf: 12.1MB)
2012–13 (pdf: 4.6MB)
2011–12 (pdf: 16.4MB)
2010–11 (pdf: 9.3MB)
2009–10 (pdf: 3.6MB)
From Broadband to Networks
25
Institute Publications
Publications listed below between 2012 and 2014 are available at:
http://networkedsociety.unimelb.edu.au/about/ibes.html
2014
•
Participatory Sensing: Enabling interactive local governance through citizen engagement
•
Paediatric Teledentistry: delivering oral health services to rural and regional children
•
SeeCare IPTV: Broadband technology for improved health literacy
•
Telling Our Stories: Aboriginal young people in Victoria and Digital Storytelling
•
Framing the NBN: Public perceptions and media representations
2013
•
Hear Me Out! Enhancing social inclusion and wellbeing for deaf and hearing impaired teens through
an online peer support program
•
Uni TV: Trialling IPTV for Education
•
A Unified Approach for the Evaluation of Telehealth Implementations in Australia
•
Free Wi-Fi and Public Space: the state of Australian public initiatives
•
Health Provider Broadband Connectivity: A review of technical requirements
•
Self-Quantfication: The Informatics of Personal Data Management for Health and Fitness
2012
•
Telework, Productivity and Wellbeing
•
Keeping Intouchable: A community report on the use of mobile phones and social networking by
young Aboriginal people in Victoria
•
Interface, information & interaction: An exploration of Mobile Augmented Reality present and future
•
Mobile and broadband technologies for ameliorating social isolation in older people
•
Smart Technologies for Older People
2011
•
Valuing Broadband Benefits: A selective report on issues and options
•
Regulation in the Digital Economy: Convergent regulation for the digital economy
•
Where Wireless Makes Sense: Where wireless networks can be rolled out as a substitute for fixed
broadband networks
•
The role of high-speed broadband in communication between people with little or no speech and
GPs
•
‘Screen Stories and Community Connection’ Report to VicHealth and The Jack Brockhoff Foundation
•
Content regulation in the digital economy
•
The Future of the Universal Service Obligation: in the Convergent Environment
•
Regulation in the digital economy: Principles for the convergent environment
•
Political Issue Analysis System: Policy deliberation in the age of information abundance
Other Publications
For Books, Book Chapters, Journal Articles, Conference Papers and Media Articles, please refer to the
appendices of the Institute’s Annual Reports.
From Broadband to Networks
26
Melbourne Networked Society Institute
Level 4, Building 193
The University of Melbourne VIC 3010
w: networkedsociety.unimelb.edu.au
e: contact@networkedsociety.unimelb.edu.au
t: @MelbNSI