Ongoing IST Calls Joining Funded FP 6 Projects

Ongoing IST Calls Joining Funded FP 6 Projects Frequently Asked Questions Sonia Spasova IST NCP Training SOFIA, 31 March 2006

IST Call 6 l IST Call 6 opened on 22 nd December 2005 and closes on 25 th April 2006 at 17 h 00 (Brussels time) l Main evaluation mid- May, Hearings mid-June, ESRs end- June l It covers 5 Strategic objectives and is funded at 140 M€ in total l Each Strategic objective is open to only a limited range of “instruments” – IP, STREP, CA, SSA (no No. Es) l Submission using the Electronic Proposal Submission System

IST Call 6 – Strategic objectives 2. 6. 1 Advanced robotics STP, CA, SSA – 37 M€ 2. 6. 2 Ambient Assisted Living IP – 20 M€: STP, CA, SSA – 20 M€ 2. 6. 3 Search engines for audio-visual content IP - 12 M€: STP, CA – 18 M€ 2. 6. 4 Accompanying actions supporting participation CA, SSA – 3 M€ 2. 6. 5/1 Targeted research actions Int. Coop. on Digital TV: Latin America Int. Coop. on Digital TV: China STP, CA, SSA – 5 M€ Int. Coop. on Grid Technologies: China Int. Coop. for e. Government: W. Balkans Early warning systems: Tsunami STP, CA, SSA – 5 M€ 2. 6. 5/2 Coordination actions or Specific support actions: Strategic cooperation CA, SSA 5 M€

IST Call 6 - Eligibility 1. Instrument restriction must be respected 2. Minimum consortium IP, STREP, CA proposals l Two mutually-independent partners from EU or Candidate states (Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania, Turkey) l A third partner as above, or from an Associated state (Iceland, Israel, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland) l Further partners from any country Third-country partners are funded if on the INCO target list 3. Minimum Consortium SSA proposals l No restrictions; may even be one participant from any country ! A one-partner SSA would be eligible. But would it be credible ?

IST Call 6 – Help l Commission contact person for each objective link from call page http: //www. cordis. lu/ist l A help desk for proposers´ questions ist@cec. eu. int tel +32 2 296 8596 l A help desk for electronic submission problems support@epss-fp 6. org tel: +32 2 233 3760 l Partner search facilities http: //www. ideal-ist. net http: //www. partners-service. cordis. lu/ l A network of National Contact Points http: //www. cordis. lu/ist/ncps. htm

2. 6. 1 Advanced robotics - Objectives l Moving from specific industrial technology to a broad enabler of a wide range of products and services for the consumer, home & entertainment markets l Development of more intelligent, flexible, cost-effective, modular, safe, dependable, robust, user-driven robot systems è massive introduction of robots in everyday human environments and their close co-operation with people è extend the coupling of the world of information and communication with the world of physical interaction

Advanced robotics - focus STREPS Multidisciplinary Research with focus on one or several of themes: – Flexible robot systems – Safe, robust and dependable robot systems operating in human environments and co-operating with people – Networked and co-operating robots – Advanced integrated modular robotics Some starting points: State-of-the-art in multi-modal knowledge acquisition, in reasoning and decision-making, evolution and learning, miniaturisation Support Actions Prepare the emergence of a multidisciplinary research community in Europe: – Develop longer term visions and roadmaps – Address organisational, legal, ethical and socio-economic challenges – Standardisation activities for modular Robotics – Benchmarking – International co-operation

2. 6. 2 ALL - ICT for an ageing society Assisted Independent Active l Support to Daily activities Increase independence and autonomy “at home” (Assistive technology, smart homes, warning systems, shopping facilities) l Participation in society and mobility – Communication, access to education, leisure, … l Integrated Care – Healthcare – Social care – Informal care <-> Interoperability

2. 6. 2 Proposal requirements Total indicative budget 40 M€ IPs: 50% STREPs, CAs, SSAs: 50% – Respond to end-user needs – Significant end-user interaction & involvement in R&D process – Multidisciplinary projects teams – Involvement of relevant public authorities – Verification and testing of results – Lead to cost-effective user-friendly solutions – Holistic and Integrated solutions – Stimulate business innovation and involve major industrial partners, including SMEs – Clear Exploitation of outcomes

2. 6. 3 Search Engines for Audio – Visual Content Objectives: l To provide advanced solutions for organising, searching and accessing large-scale, distributed digital audio-visual content and objects. – Support will be given to projects that significantly advance research capabilities and/or consolidate existing research work and identify future orientations in the field. – Proposed actions should have a federating effect on on-going work within relevant national initiatives for on-line access to digital content.

2. 6. 3. Search Engines for Audio – Visual Content Focus l Technologies to support the process of representing and interpreting, navigating and retrieving audio-visual content and other types of digital objects. l Methods and tools aimed at higher levels of information harvesting, including automated knowledge discovery and extraction, annotation and summarisation, indexing and retrieval of all types of digital content (text, image, video, audio, 3 D graphical objects etc. ), including protected content. l Systems for adaptive search by content and/or context to be tested in realistic everyday life settings, based on relevance feedback – including socially-derived relevance. This should encompass the integration and testing of search from a variety of sources based on mixed-media queries and the delivery of different media types on a variety of devices (including mobile terminals).

2. 6. 4 Accompanying actions in support of participation in Community ICT Indicative budget: 3 M€ CAs, SSAs Ø The objective is to stimulate, encourage and facilitate the participation in current and future Community ICT research. Ø Bridge between the 6 and 7 FWP Ø Special focus on newcomers and SMEs, NMS, ACC. Ø Targeted also on INCO countries.

Strategic Objective 2. 6. 5: International Cooperation General objectives: Ø To establish privileged partnerships with selected countries or regions; Ø To contribute to the stability and prosperity of regions neighboring the EU Ø To address global environmental issues Ø To prepare for future, wider and more concrete partnerships with the target regions

Strategic Objective 2. 6. 5/1: Targeted research actions 2. 6. 5/1 International Cooperation on Digital TV Broadcasting & Interactive Applications • Target region: Latin America • Indicative budget: 5 M€ • STREPs, SSAs, CAs 2. 6. 5/1 International Cooperation on Digital Broadcasting / Mobile Convergence • Target country: China • Indicative budget: 5 M€€ • STREPs, SSAs, CAs http: //cordis. europa. eu. int/ist/audiovisual

2. 6. 5/1 Grid Technologies – Target Country: China • • • Target country: China Indicative budget: 5 M€ STREPs, SSAs, CAs • Complements the main Grid research activities in previous calls, now from an international co-operation perspective • Addresses both research developments and business / industrial applications • Proposals shall link existing initiatives in the EU and China • To establish a long-term co-operation framework with the target country

2. 6. 5/1 International Cooperation on Grid Technologies RESEARCH FOCUS IST Call 6 Application Sector n Application Sector 3 Application Sector 2 Application Pull Application Sector 1 Indicative Budget 5 M€ Grid-enabled Applications & Services for business and society Promote global adoption of Grid environments and tools Grid Foundations Technology Push e-bus, e-health, egoy, e-learning Environment, … Architecture, design and development of technologies and systems for the Grid International Cooperation on Grid Technologies

2. 6. 5/1 International cooperation for e. Government and e. Participation Target countries: Western Balkans This call complements the on-going research in e. Government and e. Democracy : http: //europa. eu. int/egovernment_research Objectives: To address key issues across the region, such as: - improved public services, - institutional reinforcement, - decision making - democratic processes Public services of high impact may include: - e. Customs - e. Justice - e. Public Procurement - e. Democracy - e. Participation Cooperation within the W. Balkan region as well as with the EU is supported

2. 6. 5/1 International cooperation for e. Government and e. Participation – Target countries: Western Balkans Instruments: STREPs, SSAs, CAs Balanced partnerships among: W. Balkan and EU partners; ICT research organisations (industry, academia) and users (e. g. public administrations) Multidisciplinary research in STREPs: technological, organisational, institutional, legal, etc SSAs, CAs: well focused proposals with tangible results and benefits

2. 6. 5/1 Early warning systems for geo-physical hazards Target countries: Mediterranean partner countries, Indonesia, Thailand, India, Sri-Lanka, Japan, USA, Canada, New-Zealand. ØThe aim is to develop, validate and demonstrate advanced systems and services to manage geo-physical risks, with a focus on developing an early warning and alert capacity for improved disaster prevention and preparedness in coastal zones. The objective is to establish operational prototypes for tsunami detection, early warning and alert relevant to the main tsunami-prone regions in the Atlantic and Mediterranean, and Indian Ocean. Indicative budget 5 M€ Instruments: STREPs, SSAs and CAs

2. 6. 5/2 INCO – Strategic Cooperation Instruments: CA and SSA Indicative Budget: 5 M€ Identifying partner countries, common needs and opportunities for deeper strategic co-operation Each proposal expected to: l Contribute to global strategy for future initiatives l Focus on well-identified region l Include partners from region addressed l Cover all technologies relevant to co-operation l Yield results within 12 -18 months l Be based on local needs and/or opportunities best addressed jointly Emphasis on emerging, developing, neighbourhood countries

IST 2006 Calls for Exibition, Networking and Workshop Proposals l IST 2006 Strategies for Leadership - the most important European event in the field of IST l One overriding aim: help achieve Europe's innovative potential in developing and rolling out ICTs l Includes a high-level conference, an exhibition of cutting edge research results from across Europe and a programme of networking sessions and workshops

Event Participants Top down organisation Participation determined by the European Commission CONFERENCE EXHIBITION Bottom up organisation Participation determined by calls for proposals – now open CALLS OPEN: 14 March 2006 NETWORKING & WORKSHOPS

PARTICIPANTS: KEY TOOL: WEBSITE http: //europa. eu. int/information_society/istevent/2006/index_en. htm

Open Call for Exhibits l The deadline for submission of exhibits is 21 April 2006 l All applicants will be notified of the selection at the beginning of June 2006. l Research and technology projects with high-tech prototype demonstrators - the selection will be done by the European Commission - will be assessed on the basis of selection criteria l Information stands about IST-related activities (without technology prototypes) - will be selected according to their relevance to the IST programme

Open Call for Networking Sessions and Workshops l Deadline for submission of proposals: 15 June 2006 l NS and WS bring together people interested in a specific topic to discuss project ideas, research activities or partnerships. They are less formal discussion groups than the official conference sessions, encouraging active participation and lateral thinking. l Their topic, format and content are therefore proposed and defined by the stakeholders - the people organising and attending the session itself - and they are open to everybody who wishes to attend. l A WS provides a forum for exchange of knowledge on technical subjects and for learning, is oriented toward the state-of-the-art and aims at consolidation. l A NS aims at bringing together new constituencies, that are preferably not already working together, in view of submitting proposals or taking other actions in the context of FP 7.

Joining a project- Competitive Calls Published on CORDIS, with a link to the website of the project, where all the necessary documentation and background information is published (requested tasks, duration, funding, evaluation criteria, submission mechanism) l Open Competitive Call: Automating Production of Cross Media Content for Multi-channel Distribution (AXMEDIS) http: //www. axmedis. org/callfortakeup/call. html Ø Addressed to organizations interested in developing real solutions by exploiting AXMEDIS technologies (additional demonstrators) Ø Submission mechanism: is paper only Ø Deadline: 19/04/2006; 17 h 00 Florence time

FAQs about Network of Excellence (1/3) l In what way does a No. E differ from the Thematic Network funded in the 5 FP or CA? TN or CA funded the coordination of the activities of specific research and development projects for a particular purpose over a pre-determined period of time. No. E is intended to fund the restructuring of a whole research sector, so that the sector works more efficiently, shares resources and eliminates duplication of activities, and it is intended it should do this on a permanent basis

FAQs about Network of Excellence (2/3) l What does an No. E actually do ? Coordinates and integrates the activities of the members of the network, arranging for the sharing of resources between them and the cutting out of duplication. Carries out: - specific research and development tasks defined in the Joint Programme of Activities (JPA) which it included in its proposal - activities to spread excellence, for example training of researchers and other key staff, and dissemination and technology transfer to industry

FAQs about Network of Excellence (3/3) l Is the project funding increased if a new partner joins ? No automatic increase in funding to cover new partners. l If there is no extra money, why should we want to expand the network ? One of the main goals of an No. E is to spread excellence throughout its research sector; incorporating new partners is the most obvious way to do this. Also organisations sometimes find that they have overestimated the amount of funding they can really invest in integration activities, so joining the consortia may allow you to exploit the available grant.

Thank you for your attention! Sonia Spasova State Expert State Agency for Information Technologies and Communications 6 Gourko Street 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria Phone: +359 2 949 2215 Fax: +359 2 987 40 50 e-mail: sspasova@mtc. government. bg