Device Arena

Nokia and the Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology in Lausanne and Zurich (EPFL and ETH Zurich) announced today the establishment of a joint long-term research program. Nokia Research Center will open a laboratory in Lausanne in June creating a vibrant community linking researchers from Nokia and the Institutes of Technology. This open model of collaboration has already been successful for Nokia Research Center elsewhere.

Nokia collaboration with the Ecole Polytechnique F?d?rale de Lausanne (EPFL) and the Eidgen?ssische Technische Hochschule Zurich (ETH Zurich) will focus on helping people benefit from a world where they are connected to each other, to the Internet and also to information from the surrounding physical world. Access to the “Internet of Things” from a mobile device will allow people to collect information from their physical environment, filter it based on their location or preferences and share with their friends or communities.

The initial joint research agenda will focus on pervasive communications:

“Nokia has already carried out a great deal of research in the field of pervasive communications, and sees the fusing of the digital and physical worlds as a key objective in mobility. We have chosen to work with the Swiss Institutes of Technology because of their expertise in this area,” said Dr. Bob Iannucci, Nokia Chief Technology Officer and Head of Nokia Research Center.

Nokia Research Center collaborates with world-class universities and research institutes around the world, such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford University in the US and University of Cambridge, UK.

“This agreement with Nokia reinforces a very exciting cluster of high tech companies and research labs emerging on the EPFL campus,” commented Prof. Dr. Martin Vetterli, EPFL Vice President for International Relations and an expert in communication systems. “Joining forces with ETH Zurich and Nokia is the start of a unique scientific and technological journey.”

“ETH Zurich welcomes the joint research efforts of its strong partners, and views the collaboration as an opportunity to devise new and innovative solutions for what has become known as the internet of things,” commented Prof. Dr. Peter Chen, Vice President for Research from ETH Zurich. Scientists from three different ETH Zurich departments (Computer Science; Management, Technology and Economics; and Information Technology and Electrical Engineering) will be involved.

The opening of the new laboratory will take place on the campus in Lausanne on the 5th of June 2008. The media will be welcome to attend the opening ceremony.

Nokia