$1 million investment to advance interactive technology
CALGARY, Alberta --- March 8, 2007 --- SMART Technologies Inc. announces the creation of the iCORE/SMART Technologies Inc. Industrial Chair in Interactive Technologies Research at the University of Calgary. SMART and Informatics Circle of Research Excellence (iCORE) are each contributing CDN$500,000 over five years, bringing the total research support for the University of Calgary chair to CDN$1 million. Saul Greenberg, PhD, and Sheelagh Carpendale, PhD, will share the chair and challenge the boundaries of interactive technology through innovative research. Greenberg, professor of computer science at the University of Calgary, and Carpendale, Canada Research Chair in Information Visualization and associate professor at the University of Calgary, see this as an opportunity to create a world in which every surface could be interactive and computer operation would not require a mouse or a keyboard or any special input device. SMART, the creator of the world’s first and continuously best-selling interactive whiteboard, supports the advancement of interactive technology applications through local research and education.
Greenberg and Carpendale are experts in the fields of human-computer interaction, computer-supported collaboration and interactive digital displays. The research team is one of the few in the world developing interactive tabletop display applications. Greenberg and Carpendale think that one day, because of their research, interactive displays could operate from verbal commands, boardroom tables could function as interactive digital surfaces and specialized digital appliances could help aging relatives live independently. At home, for example, a static digital picture of grandma could change to another static picture as her activities change. The images would tell an observer if she’s active, in good or poor health, or eating well. Greenberg and Carpendale believe their research has implications for a wide range of visual display applications, including ecological and genetic data, hospital workflows and group interaction. As an interactive digital display leader, SMART will provide consultation and guidance to the researchers so that their work reflects the needs of global markets.
“Our goal is to develop technology that fits seamlessly into everyday social practices and facilitates group interaction,” says Saul Greenberg, joint iCORE/SMART Technologies Industrial Chair Interactive Technologies Research. “We are rethinking how people view, represent, manage and interact with information,” says Sheelagh Carpendale.
“Carpendale and Greenberg are leaders in developing intelligent software technology and interactive digital displays,” says Randy Goebel, president and CEO of iCORE. “Their research, and connection with SMART, fit directly with iCORE’s mandate to support world-class research, which will create an accumulating economic benefit in Alberta.”
“We are delighted to support Saul Greenberg, Sheelagh Carpendale and other researchers at the University of Calgary through the creation of this important chair,” says David Martin, SMART’s executive chairman. “Their research is leading edge and world class, and will make a significant contribution to the advancement of interactive technologies.”
About iCORE
iCORE was established in October 1999 by the Government of Alberta to foster an expanding community of exceptional researchers in the field of informatics, that is, areas of computer science, electrical and computer engineering, physics, mathematics and other disciplines related to information and communication technology (ICT). As part of the Government of Alberta’s strategy to create a globally competitive knowledge-based economic sector, iCORE is directing its support to areas in which Alberta has a chance to develop internationally recognized research teams. It is also focusing on areas in which Alberta companies are active, so that intellectual property and valuable knowledge workers resulting from iCORE's investment will have compelling reasons to stay in Alberta.
iCORE invests in people – the highest caliber research scientists who work on fundamental and applied problems in informatics. It operates several grant programs to develop iCORE Chairs at Alberta universities, around which world-class research teams are developed. Since its inception, more than 24 research chairs have been established to focus on emerging areas such as wireless communications, artificial intelligence, and quantum and nanocomputing. The iCORE principle is simple: exceptional people produce exceptional results. To learn more about iCORE visit www.icore.ca.
About SMART
SMART Technologies Inc. is both the industry pioneer and a global market leader in user-friendly interactive whiteboards and other group collaboration tools. SMART products include the award-winning family of SMART Board interactive whiteboards, interactive pen displays, interactive digital signage, conferencing applications and software. SMART products are designed to meet the requirements of today’s corporate environment. With SMART’s versatile products, users are able to effectively display media-rich information, host and participate in audio and videoconferencing, share desktops remotely, collaborate, share data and efficiently train personnel. SMART products are used in more than 100 countries around the world and customers include NASA, Texas Instruments, BMW, Toyota Motors, DaimlerChrysler, Boeing, Lucent Technologies, the Los Angeles Lakers, Novartis, the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Procter & Gamble, Disney Imagineering and Harvard University.
SMART is a private company founded in 1987. Employing more than 900 people, SMART is headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, with assembly facilities in Ontario, and offices in Bonn, Tokyo, Shanghai, New York City, Chicago and Washington DC. SMART has been issued and maintains a broad portfolio of patents with numerous U.S., Canadian and other patents pending. In 1992, SMART formed a strategic alliance with Intel® Corporation that resulted in joint product development and marketing efforts, and Intel’s equity ownership in the company. To learn more about SMART visit www.smarttech.com.
