Researchers find solutions in collaboration with companies

Drones, welfare innovation and open data are the selected areas which the University of Southern Denmark will invest DKK 60 million in over the next three years.

The research areas can help solve major societal challenges and create growth in businesses and society.

The University has selected fifteen sub-projects relating to the strategic focus areas. The projects are interdisciplinary, and researchers from the Faculty of Business and Social Sciences are in charge of five of the fifteen projects.

Read more about the projects below.

The applications of drones
Mette Præst Knudsen heads a project which will ensure that the industry utilises the potential of drones better, thereby strengthening its competitiveness.

The drone industry is characterised by fascination and technology development rather than by actual commercialisation, partly because drones are developed both by hobbyists and by companies. The goal of the project is therefore to identify and break down the technological barriers that follow in the wake of the rapid development of drones and the growing market potential. The project gives insight into innovation and growth and will help drone entrepreneurs and companies achieve a more widespread use of drones.

Project title: The Paths to Firm Growth in Drone Eco-System.
Contact: Mette Præst Knudsen, professor at the Department of Marketing & Management.

The interaction between human and drone
Niklas Woermann heads a project which focuses on how drones can operate safely and reliably in the immediate vicinity of people.

The University of Southern Denmark sets up the world's first test laboratory, where developers as well as private and public organisations can develop technological solutions and test the traffic rules for the use of drones – for example, for when people and drones need to coordinate their movements to avoid collisions. The project will contribute to making people more aware of what they can expect from drones flying in public spaces.

Project title: Human-Drone interaction.
Contact: Niklas Woermann, associate professor at the Department of Marketing & Management.

The public's views on drones
Domen Bajde is in charge of a project which examines the public’s views on drones.

Although drone technology arouses enthusiasm, drones also cause concern about safety, noise and privacy. With this survey, the project will help position the University as an international centre for knowledge on the public’s receptiveness to drones. The goal of the project is to provide greater understanding of the public’s sometimes ambivalent view on technology. This will help the industry and policy makers improve the design of drones or to change existing legislation.

Project title: Public Response to Drone Technology: Threats and Opportunities for Improved Receptiveness.
Contact: Domen Bajde, associate professor at the Department of Marketing & Management.

Better commercialisation of welfare solutions
Majbritt Rostgaard Evald is in charge of a project which aims to implement welfare solutions more widely in the public sector.

Although public-private innovation is gaining more and more ground, many solutions today never leave the prototype stage. The project will increase companies’ knowledge about existing challenges and, not least, the opportunities for commercialisation of public-private solutions. This is done by forming network consortia where several companies collaborate on innovation processes to ensure welfare solutions are implemented widely for the benefit of both companies and citizens.

The project is based on data from two ongoing projects on public-private innovation (PPI), namely the Southern Danish PPI Fund and the OPI Living Design Lab, where researchers from The Faculty of Business and Social Sciences and The Faculty of Humanities participate.

Project title: Professionalization of public private innovation:  Tools for commercialization of welfare solutions and networking consortia for innovation processes.
Contact: Majbritt Rostgaard Evald, associate professor at the Department of Entrepreneurship and Relationship Management.

Read more about the research in public-private innovation at www.sdu.dk/opi (only available in Danish), where you will find tools for support to public-private partnerships.

Digitisation and legal frameworks
Hanne Marie Motzfeldt is in charge of an interdisciplinary project which is aimed at strengthening legal informatics in Denmark.

Digitisation is truly upon us, and this creates legal challenges, not only in relation to the use and transfer of data, but also in relation to automatic decision-making processes and the development of artificial intelligence. In other Nordic countries, legal informatics is a separate discipline where work is carried out to clarify and analyse the legal challenges that come with increased digitisation and the so-called robotisation. Furthermore, legal informatics is taught as a basic discipline at many universities. However, legal informatics, which overlaps with areas such as copyright law, public procurement law, EU law and contract law, is not very developed in Denmark. The "Legal Informatic Project" will change this. The project has gathered 20 researchers who will seek to clarify, create debate on and explain the legal frameworks for how businesses and individuals can develop and apply new technology. This will help bring the University’s researchers and students at all faculties to a leading position, nationally as well as internationally, in the field of legal informatics.

Project title: Legal Informatic Project.
Contact: Hanne Marie Motzfeldt, associate professor at the Department of Law.

FACTS
The University of Southern Denmark awards DKK 60 million to three selected research areas over the next three years. The areas are: drones, welfare innovation and open data.

The funds come from the Executive Board’s strategic fund and from the faculties.

In addition, companies, authorities and other funds are expected to co-finance the projects they participate in.

In addition to the five projects outlined above, researchers from The Faculty of Business and Social Sciences are involved in three other projects: "Drone technology within nature, environment and climate management", "Open Data on Human Behavior" and "Open Data Framework".

The next projects to be part of the University's strategic focus areas will be selected and announced in May.

Read more about the strategic focus areas. 

Participants in the projects

The roads to strong growth in the drones’ ecosystem
In charge of project: Mette Præst Knudsen, professor at the Department of Marketing & Management.
Project partners: Associate Professor Marianne Harbo Frederiksen, Department of Technology and Innovation - ITI; Associate Professor Martin Hannibal, Department of Marketing & Management; Associate Professor Domen Bajde, Department of Marketing & Management; Centre Director Brad Beach, SDU UAS Centre. Soon to be postdoc Anders Dahl Krabbe, Department of Marketing & Management.

Human-Drone interaction
In charge of project: Niklas Woermann, associate professor at the Department of Marketing & Management.
Project partner: PhD student Rasmus Gahrn-Andersen, Department of Language and Communication.

Public Response to Drone Technology: Threats and Opportunities for Improved Receptiveness
In charge of project: Domen Bajde, associate professor at the Department of Marketing & Management.
Project partner: Associate Professor Kathrin Maurer, Department for the Study of Culture.

Professionalization of public private innovation:  Tools for commercialization of welfare solutions and networking consortia for innovation processes
In charge of project: Majbritt Rostgaard Evald, associate professor at the Department of Entrepreneurship and Relationship Management.
Project partners: From the Department of Entrepreneurship and Relationship Management: Professor Henry Larsen; Associate Professor Ann Højbjerg Clarke; Assistant Professor Pia Schou Nielsen; Postdoc Helle Aarøe Nissen; Research Assistant Sidsel Valentine Jørgensen. From the Department of Design and Communication: Associate Professor Mette Gislev Kjærsgaard; Research Assistant Andreas Heiberg Skouby.

Legal Informatic Project
Head of project: Hanne Marie Motzfeldt, associate professor at the Department of Law.
Project partners: Department of Law, the research group Commercial Administrative Law: Associate Professor Carina Risvig Hamer; Professor Sten Schaumburg-Müller; Professor Bent Ole Grams Mortensen; Associate Professor Kent Kristensen; Associate Professor Peter Starup and Associate Professor Rikke Gottrup. Department of Design and Communication, the research area Knowledge, Learning and IT, Faculty of Humanities: Associate Professor Anne Gerdes.