uOttawa News

OTTAWA, May 20, 2015  —  Professor Azzedine Boukerche of the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Ottawa has been awarded $1.65 million from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) in support of a transportation research training program that will prepare the students of today to become experts in game-changing technologies of tomorrow.

The application of advanced technologies in transportation is aimed at improving vehicle-to-vehicle as well as vehicle-to-static network communications, to increase commuting efficiency and safety and reduce fuel consumption, among other benefits.

The funding, awarded through NSERC’S highly competitive Collaborative Research and Training Experience (CREATE) grant, will help launch the Training and Research in Advanced Networks Systems for Intelligent Transportation (TRANSIT) program.

“CREATE-TRANSIT will provide significant added value to Professor Boukerche’s already successful NSERC-DIVA network by exposing students to a wide range of employment-ready skills in advanced network systems for the automotive sector,” said Mona Nemer, vice-president, research. “Along with our world-class research, programs such as these allow the University of Ottawa to excel in training the best students for a most competitive job market.”

In addition to the advanced training already offered in science and engineering programs, CREATE-TRANSIT will provide young researchers from the University of Ottawa and three other Canadian universities (Carleton University, the University of Ontario Institute of Technology and the University of Alberta) with the professional multidisciplinary skills needed to meet the ITS strategic goals of the Canadian government and the transportation industry. The graduate students will also acquire the proficiency needed to develop and implement the latest ITS technology, ensuring Canada is at the forefront of innovation in this field.

Professor Boukerche, who holds the Canada Research Chair in Large-Scale Distributed Interactive Simulations and Mobile Computing and Networking, has led the highly successful Developing Next Generation Intelligent Vehicular Networks and Applications (NSERC-DIVA) project. He has made significant scientific contributions over the last two decades in the areas of wireless sensor networking, mobile computing and intelligent vehicular networking. His influential research has earned him national and international awards. CREATE-TRANSIT will complement DIVA by providing a broader, industry-focused training to students currently working under DIVA.

About NSERC

The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) is the primary funding agency supporting Canada’s science and engineering research community. The agency supports almost 30,000 post-secondary students and postdoctoral fellows in their advanced studies. NSERC promotes discovery by funding approximately 12,000 professors every year and works with over 3,000 Canadian companies that are participating and investing in postsecondary research projects.

Media Inquiries:

Kina Leclair
Media Relations Officer
Office: 613-562-5800 (2529)
Cell: 613-762-2908
kleclair@uOttawa.ca

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