The Electronics and Computer CS Centre for Internet of Things and Pervasive Systems (C-IoT) is conducting pioneering research to address the challenges of realising billions of IoT devices in an effective, sustainable, and safe way. C-IoT benefits from the diverse skills and expertise within ECS and acts as a focal point for research into both the underpinning technologies of IoT, and its application to solve societal challenges.
The Centre involves researchers from all ECS groups, covering topics including:
IoT introduces new challenges around how data can be structured, accessed and analysed to harness its full potential, while respecting users’ data preferences. Our researchers work across the areas of data management, analysis and interfacing in areas such as:
Infrastructure design for collecting, sharing and analysing data
Intelligent techniques for data analysis and assigning data provenance,
The meaningful engagement of individuals and policymakers with the IoT data ecosystem.
The use of AI to process IoT data, whether on the cloud or at the edge, has the potential for significant improvements in autonomous behaviour and decision making, and is explored in conjunction with researchers from the ECS Centre for Machine Intelligence.
IoT is often characterised by fast development, which can result in vulnerabilities. Most devices are highly resource-constrained and therefore cannot be equipped with appropriate detection software to prevent cyber threats. Our growing reliance on IoT increasingly intertwines the cyber and physical worlds leading to many cyber-physical attacks against confidentiality, integrity and availability. Our researchers are addressing this across the system stack, from trustworthy hardware and authentication, to secure IoT systems and frameworks which preserve and manage user privacy.
We also work collaboratively with researchers across the University whether applying fundamental research to health and wellbeing applications with clinicians at University Hospital Southampton, or addressing scientific and societal challenges associated with making smarter cities and infrastructure. C-IoT runs regular of seminars, workshops and engagement events.