Role
Professor Brown is Director of the Computing and Informatics Research Centre and Research Group Leader for the Interactive Systems Research Group.
Research areas
Professor Brown is leader of the Interactive Systems Research Group (ISRG)
and Director of the Computing and Informatics Research Centre (CIRC)
Areas of research interest include:
Accessibility - for students with learning, physical and sensory impairments (DiversAsia)
Virtual Reality - in the rehabilitation of people with intellectual disabilities
Multimodal Affect Recognition Learning Systems - to develop personalised learning pathways (H2020 MaTHiSiS, Pathway and AI-TOP)
Social Robotics - for use use in the education of students with learning disabilities and autism (EDUROB)
Accessible Visual Programming Toolkits - to promote engagement and collaborative behaviours (H2020 No One Left Behind)
Serious Games - for the development of physical and cognitive skills (Real Life, RISE)
Co-design and positive mental wellbeing (EPSRC An Internet of Soft Things)
Opportunities to carry out postgraduate research towards an MPhil/PhD exist in all the areas identified above and in associated interdisciplinary areas. Further information may be obtained from the NTU Graduate School.
External activity
- Governor of the Oak Field School for students with a severe learning disabilities
- Conference Chair for the International Conference on Disability, Virtual Reality and Associated Technology (ICDVRAT21)
- Associate Editor for Frontiers: Virtual Reality in Medicine
Sponsors and collaborators
Notable Research funding:
- 2021: Medical Technologies and Advanced Materials Research Theme – Research Springboard Fund: ML_SELECT: Machine Learning Augmented Selection of Eligible People for Lung Cancer Screening using Electronic Primary Care Data. £34,276.72.
- 2020: Erasmus+ Capacity Building in Higher Education (KA2 Cooperation for Innovation and the Exchange of Good Practices): DIVERASIA – Embracing diversity in ASIA through the adoption of Inclusive Open Practices. €1M.
- 2020: Strategic partnerships in the field of education and training Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency, EU: AI-TOP: An AI Tool to Predict Engagement and 'Meltdown' Events in Students with Autism. €449.691.
- 2017: EU Erasmus+. €443,075. Pathway+: A mobile pedagogical assistant to develop meaningful pathways to personalised learning for students with learning disabilities.
- 2015:EU Horizon 2020. €618,000. MATHISIS: Managing Affective-learning through Intelligent atoms and Smart InteractionS (for students with learning disabilities & autism).
- 2014: EU Horizon 2020 £457,200. No One Left Behind – An Accessible Digital Game Making Tool for Students with Learning Disabilities and Autism.
- 2013: ViPi - Virtual Portal for Interaction and ICT Training for People with Disabilities, EU LLP KA3 ICT, (2010-2013), grant total €107,192
- 2011: AEGIS - Open Accessibility Everywhere: Groundwork, Infrastructure, Standards, EU Seventh Framework Programme: THEME ICT-2007.7.1 ICT and Ageing. (2011-2012), grant total £141,802
- 2010: Promoting Acceptance Using Simulated Environments, D Brown - PI and International Project Coordinator, PAUSE EU Leonardo, (2010-2012), grant total €285,000
- 2009: RECALL - Reconnecting Communities And Lifelong Learning, D Brown - PI and International Project Coordinator, EU LLP KA3 ICT, (2009-2012), grant total €585,000
- 2009: Extending the Applicability of a Low Cost VR System for Home Based Rehabilitation of the Upper Limb Following Stroke, iNET EMDA (2011) grant total, £25,360
- 2009: Blind Cricket Simulation Project, D Brown - PI, JISC. grant total £9,600
- 2009: Using the Nintendo Wiimote Controller in Upper Limb Stroke Rehabilitation, D Brown - PI, (CLAHRC) (2009-2010), grant total £46,967 (approx. £5,871 spend in June 2007-2009 period)
- 2008: Game On Extra Time (GOET) (2008-2010) EU Leonardo Serious Games Including Those on Mobile Platforms for People with Cognitive and Sensory Impairments, D Brown - PI and International Project Coordinator, 2007-2009, grant total €300,000. (approx. €105,895 spend in June 2007-2009 period)
- 2007: GOAL.NET EU Leonardo: Serious games based learning for people with cognitive and sensory impairments, D Brown PI and International Project Coordinator, 2007-2009, grant total €219,795 (approx. €180,984 spend in June 2007-2009 period)
- 2006: Game On EU Grundtvig: Game On - Accessible Games Based Learning for Offenders and Ex-offenders, D Brown - PI and International Project Coordinator, (2006-2008) Grant total: €164,079 (approx. €110.047 spend in June 2007-2009 period).
Press expertise
- Accessibility
- Serious games
- Virtual environments
- Multimodal Affect Recognition Systems
- Social Robotics