Carnegie Mellon Hosting Embedded Computing Center
Carnegie Mellon University recently announced the two faculty members who will head new Intel Science and Research Centers based at the renowned Pittsburgh school, one focused on cloud computing and the other on embedded computing. Several universities are involved in each center, with each center set to receive $15 million during the next five years, according to the university's announcement.
The embedded computer ISTC works on technologies and systems for automotive, retail, and home applications. The automotive ones are envisioned as making it safer to drive in bad weather, such as snowstorms, identifying less crowded routes to a destination, and detecting nearby pedestrians and other vehicles to prevent accidents. Priya Narasimhan, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering and director of Carnegie Mellon's Mobility Research Center, is co-principal investigator of this ISTC along with Mei Chen, a senior research scientist at Intel.
The cloud computing ISTC's co-PIs are Gregory Ganger, an electrical and computer engineering professor at CMU, and Phil Gibbons, Intel research scientist and an adjunct professor in computer science.
"These new ISTCs are expected to open amazing possibilities," said Justin Rattner, Intel's chief technology officer. "Imagine, for example, future cars equipped with embedded sensors and microprocessors to constantly collect and analyze traffic and weather data. That information could be analyzed and shared in the cloud so that drivers could be provided with suggestions for quicker and safer routes."
The two centers represent the next $30 million installment of a five-year, $100 million Intel ISTC program to increase university research and accelerate innovation in a few key areas. Two others working on visual computing and secure computing are based at Stanford University and the University of California at Berkeley, respectively.