iDIBE Research
A variety of council-funded research projects under the iDIBE are pushing the boundaries of knowledge and cutting-edge developments on digital innovations in the built environment.
The Institute for Digital Innovation is committed to finding cutting-edge solutions to some of the world’s biggest problems. The Institute's world-class research brings together UCL’s expertise in engineering and computer science, while incorporating the social and behavioural sciences.
IDIBE's interdisciplinary approach provides a central focal point for innovation to happen, while our outward-looking culture strengthens our international connections and transformational reach.
Research projects
Current projects:
This project, co-investigated by Professor Tim Broyd, is a collaboration between UCL and the Tsinghua University School of Architecture, Beijing. It seeks to balance the needs of low carbon and indoor environmental quality (IEQ) in the UK and China to inform policy making.
There are four broad stages to the research:
examining the different contexts within which buildings have been designed and constructed and how they are used and operated internationally. building on this analysis by undertaking a monitoring campaign in China and the UK to allow comparisons between the performance of the same types of building in two different contexts.
The study intends to lead understanding and improvements in the total performance of low carbon buildings helping to develop effective policies and regulations in the transition to low carbon cities.
- developing a unique database relating to the interlinked performance gaps which will help identify the most suitable buildings that will integrate monitoring and modelling approaches in the next phase.
- developing semi-automated building assessment methods, technologies and tools to enable rapid characterisation of the probable pathologies to determine the most cost effective route to remedy the underlying causes of energy/IEQ underperformance.
IDIBE's internal advisory board is made up of representatives from across UCL who are pushing boundaries in research and teaching relating to the digital built environment:
Dr Jan Boehm, Senior Lecturer at the UCL Department of Civil Environmental and Geomatic Engineering (CEGE) Professor Jon French, Head of Department, UCL Department of Geography Professor Andy Hudson-Smith, Director of The Bartlett Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis (CASA) Professor Tadj Oreszczyn, Director of The Bartlett School of Environment, Energy and Resources (BSEER) Professor Yvonne Rogers, Director of UCL Interaction Centre (UCLIC) Professor Jeremy Watson, Professor of Engineering Systems in the UCL Department of Science, Technology, Engineering and Public Policy (STEaPP), Vice-Dean (Mission) at the UCL Faculty of Engineering
Past projects:
Contact us
Institute for Innovation in the Built Environment Director
Professor Tim Broyd
Tel: +44 (0)20 3108 3214
tim.broyd@ucl.ac.uk