Helping fund innovation in Norfolk
Matt Dobson and Dr Duncan Barclay of ei Technologies were in an innovative mood when considering how best to build an app that can tell what mood you’re in. Thanks to a collaborative consultancy with Professor Stephen Cox, from UEA’s School of Computing Sciences, a Beta version is due to launch soon and they’ve won further funding. Now a new funding scheme can help you access UEA’s expertise, talent and facilities so you too can bring your innovations to life.
The University of East Anglia, (UEA) has partnered with the New Anglia Growth Hub to create a funding scheme for SME businesses throughout Norfolk and Suffolk. This will enable access to academic expertise in the form of consultancy, mentoring, or the hiring of specialist facilities in order to stimulate business growth.
ei Technologies Ltd, founded in 2012, wanted to build an app that would listen to a user’s voice whilst they went about their daily routine. It would not record any words, but instead would listen to the acoustic features and pitch, the tell-tale signs of emotional states, and list the user’s differing moods.
The app is expected to help people who suffer from anxiety, depression or stress, as they’re often asked to record their mood changes to help psychologists fine-tune their treatment. The company was looking for help from an expert in paralinguistic research to fill the gaps in their combined experience.
After speaking with several experts, they felt that Prof Stephen Cox, from UEA’s School of Computing Sciences, had the right understanding of what they were trying to achieve. His commercial experience and previous industrial collaborations made him approachable and a comprehensive source for both the theoretical and technical issues the company faced.
After the initial consultancy period ended, with Stephen’s further collaboration, ei Technologies were able to achieve additional funding from the Technology Strategy Board for a nine-month project, and are expected to launch a Beta test version of the app “Xpression” in 2014.
“Fast computers and powerful machine-learning algorithms mean that we can analyse the speech signal in ways that were impossible only a few years ago. The TSB award will enable us to research systematically the best way to detect emotions in the voice”. Stephen said.
The Regional Growth Fund is a £3.2 billion fund designed to help companies in England to grow and supports projects and programmes committed to deliver sustainable jobs and economic growth. A sixth round will launch in the summer.
The fund can also be used towards the hiring of a graduate via UEA’s internship programme; this could be for a period of 6 months up to a year.
The scheme will run until March 2015, and will allow UEA to offer match funding from £2,000 to £20,000.
Contact details:
01603 591610