Kingston University academic named prestigious distinguished lecturer at Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers

An academic specialising in multimedia and wireless communications at Kingston University has been given a three-year role as a distinguished lecturer at the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

As part of the role Professor Maria Martini, Course Director for both Networking and Data Communications and Mobile Networks and Media Streaming MSc programmes at Kingston University, will give specialist lectures worldwide for the next three years alongside her teaching at Kingston.

Professor Martini’s, who also heads up Kingston University’s Wireless and Multimedia Networking Research Group, lectures will focus on three key areas:

1. Neuromorphic visual systems – data compression and beyond. Neuromorphic sensors work differently to most cameras, only recording when something actually changes or moves in their field of view. Because of this, these sensors can capture incredibly fast movements while using very little data, making them perfect for the future of smart devices. This talk will explore the current progress and challenges of storing and managing the unique data created by these advanced, eye-like sensors.
2. Objective quality assessment of images and video – SSIM as content-aware PSNR. When image and videos are compressed for storage or a show is being streamed to TV, it’s critical to know if the image looks good to the human eye. To do this, engineers use objective metrics that give a quality score. This talk will explore the relationship between two of the most famous formulas: Peak Signal-to-Noise Ratio (PSNR) and Structural Similarity Index (SSIM), highlighting how the complexity of streaming video (video compression and evaluation pipelines) can be reduced by approximating SSIM (that better reflects perceptual quality) as a function of PSNR (very simple to calculate).
3. Subjective quality assessment of immersive video systems. Designers need to know if new technology, like virtual reality and holograms, looks good to the average user. Global experts, like the IEEE Standards Association, are building new standards and tests to measure quality. The talks on this topic will cover the latest research and global standards being used to make sure the next generation of 3D tech is clear, comfortable and lifelike.

Talking of the honour of being selected as a distinguished lecturer, Professor Martini said it would give her the opportunity to network and share ideas with other experts across the world. “It will give me the chance to meet research groups worldwide and exchange ideas with them, potentially opening the door to future collaborations, so I am very excited to start serving in this role.”

• Find out more about studying Mobile Networks and Media Streaming MSc and Intelligent Networks and Cloud Computing MSc at Kingston University.