The Data and Analytics Facility for National Infrastructure (DAFNI) has unveiled a new tool for analysing data related to telecommunications infrastructure.
Known as the Cambridge Digital Communications Assessment Model, it is one of a number scheduled to run on the DAFNI platform to provide high level computing for infrastructure data analysis for the UK.
The organisation said it will provide insights for policy decisions and give the UK a strong lead in high impact infrastructure data science.
The model will enable telecoms companies, infrastructure providers, engineers, policy makers, planners and researchers to quantify the impact of policies and investments of technologies such as fibre to premises broadband, 5G and mobile networks.
It also provides spatial evidence for regulatory and policy options and can be used for scenario planning.
Dr Edward Oughton (pictured), from the University of Oxford and the UK Infrastructure Transitions Research Consortium (ITRC), led in the development of the model. “This is a new domain of analytics to help deployment,” he said.
“We’ve tested the types of strategies that infrastructure owners could deploy, from top level scenario planning to detailed topics such as heights and locations of mobile phone towers to quantify the capacity implications given existing planning regulations.
“This will be of great interest to many small and medium digital ecosystems players such as mobile operators or smaller companies with no R&D department.”
DAFNI was established two years ago, backed by £8 million for four years from the UK Collaboratorium for Research on Infrastructure and Cities and managed by the Scientific Computing Department of the UK’s Science and Technology Facilities Council.
It has a remit to work with a wide range of public, private sector bodies looking for insights into the national infrastructure, and is planning to go live in beta form this summer, with its first conference due to take place next week.
