Research project

Sixth Sense Transport: Reducing/re-distributing transport options through a flexible interpretation of time

Research groups:
Lead researchers:

Professor Tom Cherrett
Research funder:

EPSRC
Status:

Not active

Project overview

The 6th Sense Transport project explored the transport and business opportunities that may be gained by improving the temporal and spatial visibility of transport using Smartphones.

TRG worked with Oxfam in this research, giving their collection/delivery vehicles and clothing/book banks (the latter equipped with remote monitoring sensors) the properties of a channel within a social network (as in Facebook or Twitter). This enabled them to transmit data about their status, receive data about possible opportunities and carry information for others in the network, so enabling better travel and transport decisions to be made.

A Smartphone app was developed to help Oxfam staff to improve the efficiency of their logistics processes. A main interest for TRG was in how such new ‘visualisations’ of vehicle, bank and shop status given to Oxfam staff (drivers, area managers, shop managers) might enable more effective localised decision making to save time/fuel and lead to more reactive stock management.

Staff

Lead researchers

Professor Tom Cherrett

Prof of Logistics and Transport Mgnment

Research interests

Understanding and improving the distribution of goods and the management of freight vehicles in urban areas, including the supply of goods to hospitals and the use of consolidation centres;
How optimisation techniques can be used to improve system efficiency and in what ways Intelligent Transport Systems (smart tagging of assets and the use of smartphones) can improve operating efficiency;
Approaches to more effectively collect and manage the movement of waste in terms of both household domestic waste collection strategies, Household Waste Recycling Centre (HWRC) management and joint domestic/commercial waste collection strategies. He has worked on a number of research projects in these specific areas: (Department for Transport grant PPAD 9/142/034, ‘Optimising vehicles undertaking waste collections' GR/S79626/01, SUE project 55 ‘Transport and Logistics'; EP/D043328/1, ‘Green Logistics'.

Connect with Tom

Email: T.J.Cherrett@soton.ac.uk