Where future realities are being created

In May 2022, a new research project in computer science at Blekinge Institute of Technology was announced. At the heart of the project is the development of new, smart digital environments and a vision for virtual and immersive spaces, referred to as intelligent realities.

Digitalisation affects everyone to some degree. Over the past decade, there have been rapid developments in areas such as augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) and extended reality (XR). Furthermore, rapid progress is being made in artificial intelligence and machine learning. These trends create the conditions for visions of an immersive, ubiquitous and intelligent digital environment, also known as intelligent realities.

“Intelligent realities are a concept that has grown in recent years and the demand for smart digital environments has increased due to the pandemic and the need for sustainable ways forward with less travel. As digitalisation increases, these different concepts within intelligent realities will only become more relevant for our work,” says Veronica Sundstedt, associate professor of computer science at BTH and head of the new research project.

The various technologies, such as VR and AR, are already familiar to the gaming industry, for example.

Yet increasingly these technologies are being adopted by other industries too. The research in this project will be about creating intelligent, digital environments that put the focus on people, and this is crucial: the user is to be at the centre and the technology is to have a purpose.

The research project has also renewed the educational offering at BTH. In the autumn of 2022, a Master of Science in Engineering programme specialising in game engineering was launched, followed by a Bachelor of Science programme in Engineering specialising in technical game graphics in 2023.

Facts:

The project is financed by the Knowledge Foundation, BTH and industry. It will run for six years and combines five linked strategic research themes:

• Novel Experience Assessment Methodologies
• Novel Environment and Interaction Techniques
• Visual Analytics
• Adaptive and Distributed AI
• Networking