General information

Electromagnetic interference (EMI) is not just an annoyance. With increasing numbers of safety-critical devices communicating wirelessly, ensuring that equipment functions correctly is an ever-increasing concern. Nowhere is this more true than hospital environments. Europe is a leader in many areas of medical technology, with companies like Philips at the forefront of research. However, with highly complex interactions between devices becoming the norm, guaranteeing safety requires that we start to assess new equipment using a risk-based approach rather than the conventional rules-based approach, a method that is increasing inappropriate for harsh EMI environments. The ETERNITY ETN will train 14 ESRs through a combination of research, doctoral schools, network-wide events and secondments at the Participants, which include 7 Beneficiaries (4 academic and 3 from industry) and 5 Partner Organisations from across Europe. In combination, these Participants can offer the ESRs research training that is international, interdisciplinary and intersectoral. The 14 ESRs are set to benefit from excellent supervision, with a triple-supervisor system that combines leading researchers from academia and industry, and to have access to some of Europe's finest research facilities. The training programme on offer will go beyond the needs of the ESRs in terms of technical hands-on training and taught courses focusing on the necessary aspects of engineering, with a wide range of complementary and transferrable-skills training that will equip them for their future careers in academia, industry, the public sector or, perhaps, their own start-up. ETERNITY is about maximising opportunities; giving the ESRs the chance to really benefit from a carefully crafted research-training programme; and allowing them to learn and develop as individuals who will make a difference to a vitally important area in terms of people’s safety and well-being in an increasingly technologically complex world.

With a rollout of 200 million digital smart meters across Europe, the new wireless technology should give users real-time, accurate measurement of electricity consumption. Some meters, however, have been in error by hundreds of percent, with electrical interference identified as the cause of incorrect customer billing. Given that all such meters had passed inspection under the EU Measuring Instrument Directive (MID), there is a clear need to improve meter test methods, update existing standards and restore consumer confidence. This project will develop methods to test the accuracy of smart meters for electricity consumption. Using high-precision measurements of real-world electrical disturbances, a testbed will be built in order to assess meter performance under similar, recreated conditions. To help settle billing disputes, interference-immune meter designs will be identified for on-site inspections; diagnostic algorithms will also be developed for the identification of transient current types. Ultimately, the results will support European and international standards and help restore consumer confidence in smart meter usage.