CONFLUENT
Enabling Commercial Application of Convergent Service in Collaborative Networks of UMTS and DVB-T Systems.
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CONFLUENT PROJECT-OVERVIEW


CONFLUENT will define a FP6 project to provide the elements needed for the commercial exploitation of services “any­where”, combining UMTS and DVB-T
(CONFLUENT - Enabling commercial application of convergent services in collaborative networks of UMTS and DVB-T systems)

A European IST bridging project, CONFLUENT, is launched to bring together key broadcasters, network operators, researchers, academics and industrialists across Europe in an FP6 umbrella project that will drive the commercial application of services “anywhere” combining UMTS and DVB-T.

The umbrella project should provide, inter alia, integrated APIs, billing architectures, management of and protocols for collaborating networks, terminal profile guidelines and terminal service conformance, low-power solution for all components of the hand-held/portable terminal, a low power transmitter fitting with the environmental constraints, acceptable overall system performance (incl. security) and service control protocols, inputs to frequency management, content formatting, consumer validation and field tests.

Realisation of the potential for the commercial exploitation of services combining UMTS and DVB-T in Europe requires a critical mass of complimentary expertise. This expertise exists at a European level but not at a national level within Europe. The CONFLUENT project brings together the expertise needed to identify the work that needs to be done to realise the commercial exploitation of services combining UMTS and DVB-T and can thus define the FP6 umbrella project. The commission strongly believes that the provision of such services is the role of the private and not the public sector. For the private sector to fulfil this role it requires a market for content at the European and not the national level. The commission recognises that this requires standardisation and regulation. The CONFLUENT project includes partners from all the major European economies (France, Germany, Italy and the UK) who through the project will be able to contribute significantly to the process of standardisation and regulation.

The CONFLUENT project will deliver prerequisites for the commercial exploitation of services combining UMTS and DVB-T, crucial to which is the availability of handheld terminals for high speed operation with low power consumption. These terminals will provide widely available alternative platforms for Internet access. Thus, the partners in CONFLUENT will be working together so that Europe becomes a community that can use the Internet. Essential, if Europe is to complete effectively with the United States.

To achieve its target CONFLUENT will comprise the following core elements:

  1. The project will develop an integrated solution for space diversity reception using low-power front-end and processing). This is a prerequisite for the deployment of the hybrid UMTS and DVB-T service concept in a mobile environment.
  2. The core services and applications identified from all EU projects on converged network operation and mobile/portable terminals will be reviewed. Service scenarios will be developed around the core services identified for key network scenarios.
  3. The project will prove the concept of transferability of applications. This will be accomplished by enhancing the software API’s of two terminals developed under different EU projects on hybrid services so that each offers applications developed for the other. A set of common functionalities will be extracted from the enhanced API profiles and published as a proposed minimum set of functionalities for the MHP-MOBILE tool kit that is intended to be the standard for API development in conformant hand-held/mobile terminals.

The twelve-month project, which started on 1 July 2002, aims at demonstrating the enhancements to the terminals made available to the project by related EU projects at IBC’2003.

*IST (Information Society Technology) is part of the 5th Framework Programme of the EU to promote the development of Information Technology across Europe.

Partners:

  • Brunel --- Brunel University London, UK (Project Coordinator)
  • IRT --- Institut für Rundfunktechnik GmbH, Germany
  • DiBcom --- DiBcom, France
  • Netik(F) --- NETikos Finland Oy, Finland
  • Netik(I) --- NETikos SpA, Italy
  • ORB --- Ostdeutscher Rundfunk Brandenburg, Germany
  • PSH --- Philips Semiconductors Hamburg, Germany
  • R&S --- Rohde & Schwarz, Germany
  • Thales --- Thales Broadcast & Multimedia, France
  • TU-BS --- Institute for Communications Technology, TU-Braunschweig, Germany
  • T-Nova --- T-Systems Nova, Germany

Contact point:

Dr. Thomas Owens
Department of Electronic and Computer Engineering
Brunel University, Uxbridge, Middlesex UB8 3PH
Facsimile: +44-1895-203357
Phone: +44-1895-816263
E-Mail: Thomas.Owens@brunel.ac.uk