Research Associate / Senior Research Associate in Computer Science

at  University of Bristol

YOU SHOULD APPLY IF

• Demonstrated ability to design, implement and evaluate software solutions.
• Track record in research related to computer science (e.g., software engineering, agile development, human-computer interaction, etc.).
• Experience in IoT technologies, data modelling, and interface design.
• Ability to work independently with guidance from the investigatory team.
• Evidence of programming skills, as well as conducting research, writing it up for dissemination and presentation to academic audiences.
• Demonstrable ability to work to tight deadlines, prioritise tasks in response to deadlines and achieve project milestones.
• Demonstrable independence in proposing and conducting research or development and coordination activities as part of a team.

THE ROLE

This role is a part of a multidisciplinary, EPSRC funded research project which will co-create a digital hub solution to enable a UK circular food system in the context of the apple supply chain. The digital hub will act as the central marketplace where (automatically collected) data on produce availability will be published, prices negotiated, and new product flows supported to foster creation of a circular economy. The present role will focus on the software development for the digital hub.

WHAT WILL YOU BE DOING?

• Develop a modular, microservice-based Digital Hub architecture with a service dashboard for circular economy.
• Evaluate IoT, image processing and other technologies (e.g., QR codes, image processing) for data collection within the user environments (e.g., orchards, breweries).
• Design and deploy prototypes for automated data collection within the observed user environments to place buy/sell orders on the Hub (e.g., for approximate quantities of apples, cider, or their by-products).
• Implement a trading algorithms that matches the products for sale with the buying needs/requests of the platform members (e.g., quantities of apples for cider making, or for sale at supermarkets).
• Evaluate developed solutions (e.g., through task-based assessments and end-user feedback) to refine and improve the services.
• Publish in high-impact journals and present at international conferences.