UK Establishes State-of-the-Art Emergent Technology Lab for Virtual & Augmented Reality

The UK Department of Education has funded a new Emergent Technology Lab at the University of Hull, where students will have access to advanced equipment in Virtual (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR).

A £200,000 capital grant was allocated for the high-tech equipment suite, located at the university’s campus, Erudera.com.

The lab will offer training in VR and AR for its students, who can develop their applications while being able to create autonomous vehicles, learn about electronics, mechanical engineering, and embedded software development. The lab will be a part of the Yorkshire & Humber Institute of Technology, where students of all colleges will be able to utilize the lab.

The Faculty of Science and Engineering Dean, Andrew Heyes, said that there is a shortage of people with skills in artificial intelligence while balling the field potentially the future of manufacturing in the United Kingdom.

“With this investment, students will have access to some of the best facilities and expertise around, so they will be better placed to take advantage of those employment opportunities,” Professor Heyes said.

Further on, the investment intends to expand the participation of people with different backgrounds, to grant them access to opportunities in the manufacturing and technology sectors.

The head of YHIoT, Any Gadd, noted that the university is a close partner in developing technical skills across the institute.

“The new equipment will help to develop the knowledge and skills needed for emerging technologies supporting various employer sectors to boost the region’s economy,” Gadd said.

Furthermore, the interim head of the Department of Computer Science and Technology at the University of Hull, Peter Robinson, remarked that the university has approximately 20 sets of equipment for establishing robotic vehicles. These projects intend to offer learning projects opportunities in electronics, mechanical engineering, embedded software development, and artificial intelligence.

On the other hand, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Education at the University of Hull, Becky Huxley-Binns, said that the university offers the right environment for students and teachers to cooperate and improve technical education.

“Digital technology and agri-tech have an important role to play in the future prosperity of the region, and we’ve got colleges working really closely with universities, listening to the employers’ voice and responding to their needs,” Huxley-Binns stated.

Recently, Singaporean universities have formed the first alliance with 16 British universities, focusing on entrepreneurship and innovation. The alliance’s goal is to reinforce the UK-Singapore cooperation, especially in innovation, knowledge exchange, global licensing of technologies, and producing the new generation of entrepreneurs.