Nokia and Tampere University of Technology to tighten their collaboration

Nokia Research Center (NRC) and Tampere University of Technology (TUT) have today announced the creation of a new framework to tighten open and innovative collaboration in their research activities. TUT will become the first and central collaboration partner in the planned Nokia Innovation Center Tampere, Finland, opening in September.

The aim of the center is to create a model for research based on open innovation, where information flows freely between collaborators. Past experience indicates that creating common research facilities where researchers from both parties can work together lowers the barrier to collaboration. Genuine collaboration is the central target:

“This announcement is about creating impactful results through sharing of information in both directions, not technology transfer. We can discuss together some specific research problem or functional entity without compromising confidentiality of either party. Researchers from both organizations can share the enthusiasm and work together as one group,” commented Professor Jaakko Astola of the Tampere University of Technology, who has been strongly involved in preparing the new framework.

When launched, approximately 70 researchers will work together on a weekly basis. Both parties deem it essential that the center’s work has the potential for market impact while also contributing to the state-of-the-art by producing high-quality technical publications. Part of the research will be funded by Tekes, the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology. It is envisaged that other research institutions, as well as compatible commercial companies, in the Tampere area may eventually also participate in the work of the center.

Nokia and TUT have a long tradition of research collaboration for which the new the framework is a natural continuation. The announcement is also in line with NRC’s policy of working in close collaboration with respected academic institutions on projects of mutual benefit. Nokia has in recent months announced research collaborations with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Stanford University in the USA, with the University of Cambridge in the UK and - most recently - with the Helsinki University of Technology in Finland. The announcement today brings a welcome boost to research collaboration between industry and the academia in Finland.

Jukka P. Saarinen, who has led the project from Nokia’s side, said: “Nokia is very committed to promoting excellence in technology research in Finland, and Tampere will be the second Finnish university with which Nokia has recently announced a close collaboration. In this way, Nokia Research Center brings together some of the best and brightest minds to focus on some of the most challenging and exciting problems. By creating a collaborative environment, based around research teams, rather than focusing on short-term problems, we believe we will benefit both our own research work and that of the university.”

The research center is expected to focus, initially and among other topics, on research in
- content and media ecosystems (future digital media; maintaining and sharing personal content between various devices),
- smart UI solutions (camera-end image processing; visual user interfaces for the next generation experience)
- printed electronics (miniaturization and electronics integration)
- modular system architectures (advanced computer architectures and devices).