The National Centre for Sensor Research (NCSR) which is located in Dublin City University was established in 1999 to create a focus for research into novel and innovative sensor platforms. The NCSR comprises several highly successful research clusters with ca. 220 researchers, and has participated in many EC Framework seven projects.

Prof Dermot Diamond, Director of the NCSR, has been involved in many large-scale national and international (FP7) grants, both as partner (e.g. PSYCHE, Marie Curie ITN ATWARM) and coordinator (Marie Curie IRSES MASK). He has published 272 peer-reviewed articles (4,407 citations, H=36). The NSCR has a dedicated experienced administrative and technical support team for the management of FP7 proposals. The NCSR is one of the most successful research centres in Ireland today. Moreover, to quote from a report generated by the World Technology Evaluation Centre (WTEC) ‘NCSR is now world class with one of the strongest overall sensor research efforts worldwide. The NCSR has received funding in excess of €50 million for research projects which has facilitated large-scale, long-term collaborations with both national and international academic institutions and a significant number of industrial partners. Website: www.ncsr.ie

Contact person: Dermot Diamond (dermot.diamond@dcu.ie)

Role of DCU in COMMON SENSE:
Research on “new generation” technologies in order to obtain cost-effective sensors for large scale production and development of precompetitive prototypes.

Profile of staff engaged in the project:
Dr Dermot Diamond received his PhD and DSc from Queen’s University Belfast (Chemical Sensors, 1987, Internet Scale Sensing, 2002), and was Vice-President for Research at Dublin City University (2002- 2004). Prof Diamond has more than 30 years of experience in the field of chemical sensors, intelligent sensing and wireless sensor networks. He has published more than 270 peer-reviewed papers in international journals, is a named inventor on 13 patents, and is co-author and editor of four books. He is director and founding member of the National Centre for Sensor Research (www.ncsr.ie) at Dublin City University, and is currently a Principle Investigator in CLARITY (www.clarity-centre.com/), a major SFI funded CSET focused on wireless sensor networks. His research is focused on the fundamental science of stimuli responsive polymers, the development of futuristic autonomous chemical sensing platforms, and the use of analytical devices and sensors as information providers for wireless networked systems.

Dr Margaret Mc Caul holds a BSc (in Chemical Instrumentation and Analysis) from the Limerick Institute of Technology and holds a PhD from Dublin City University in Organic Geochemistry, which involved the development of novel analytical techniques for the isolation and characterization of dissolved organic matter from freshwater and marine environments. Margaret has over six years industrial experience in the areas of environmental monitoring, chemical instrumentation and equine forensics. She has also held two postdoctoral positions in the areas of analytical and science education. Margaret joined Prof. Diamond’s group in the NCSR in 2014 working on the COMMON SENSE project. She will focus on the scientific and technical aspects for the tasks assigned.

Eoghan McNamara is a mechanical and manufacturing engineer working on the COMMON SENSE project as part of Insight, Dublin City University. As a manufacturing engineer he brings expertise to the physical aspects of the sensor system, as well as design for manufacture and assembly. Eoghan utilizes CAD software to create full component digital assemblies in order to plan and visualise the final system as well as to generate a full bill of materials. Eoghan also has a strong background and experience as a product designer prior to graduating as a mechanical and manufacturing engineer. In the past Eoghan has worked designing autonomous sensor systems deployed to landfills and anaerobic lagoons and brings this experience in autonomous systems to the COMMON SENSE project.