There are 5 research projects of the University of Turin that will be financed with about 6 million euros by the INFRA-P that the Piedmont Region has activated for “the construction, strengthening and expansion of public research infrastructures”, to enhance investments and the creation / enhancement of laboratories open to the use by multiple users (research centers and companies) and to develop relevant applications in industry and in the system of businesses.

Thanks to new fundings, the researchers of the University will be able to enhance their research on Artificial Intelligence, Materials Study, Nanotechnologies, Molecular Imaging for Biomedicine and Biotechnology, Humanities, Social Sciences and Humanities.

“The funding of the Region rewards once again the research of the University of Turin”, declares Dean Gianmaria Ajani “and confirms the recent recognition obtained by the MIUR Departments of Excellence. A research that is at the forefront in sectors of the highest value and competitiveness for local companies. In fact, the University has for some time played a decisive role as an engine for the development of the regional production system and commits its researchers to projects at the service of companies. With the awarding of these new funds, the University will make available to the territory its capabilities for the construction of the new Competence Centers within the IMPRESA 4.0 plan. Thanks to a strong synergy with the Polytechnic, the Piedmont Region, the companies and the other institutions, it will be possible to create infrastructures and services that offer great impact in terms of production for the development and the future of our territory “.

“The production methods of the future need new technologies”, says Vice-Dean Silvio Aime, “based above all on the digitalisation of production processes, new economic models, innovative work organization and new internal and external corporate relations. University and Polytechnic, working together can combine their specific skills to find competitive answers to complex needs of great relevance for the business world and for the development of the country “.

The projects awarded by the competition, all characterized by strong multidisciplinarity and technical-scientific innovation, are:

• HPC4AI – Center of High Performance Computing Competence and Artificial Intelligence Turin

The project wants to build a high performance computing competence center for open and scalable Artificial Intelligence with applications centered in the S3 strategy: health, agri-food, mechatronics, automotive, aerospace. The center is made up of a distributed federation of ODRs that complement the enabling technologies for the operation and sustainability of the center. These include High-Performance Computing (HPC), IoT, Machine Learning, Big Data Analytics.

The infrastructure (IR) of the center, consisting of 4 federated green data centers, will be easily accessible through cloud services. To maximize technology transfer, the center will operate by co-designing applications and technological solutions. The center will offer highly specialized support to foster innovation and develop skills in local companies, thus stimulating the expansion of market opportunities.

Total project cost 4.5 million euros.

Funded 1.5 million University of Turin (Coordinator)

Project realized in collaboration with the Polytechnic of Turin (co-beneficiary)

• SAX – Advanced instruments for complex systems

The SAX project provides for the extension and expansion of services for companies and research bodies of the NIS Interdepartmental Center of UniTO (www.nis.unito.it), in partnership with DISAT of PoliTO (www.disat.polito.it) through the acquisition of multi-accessory FEG-SEM instruments, for digitized RX microtomography and RX diffractometry, to constitute an innovative instrumental pool at regional and national level for the study of materials and systems of interest for the innovation areas of the production system identified by the regional strategy S3.

The realization of the project extends already existing networking perspectives between the Universities of Turin and their Business Incubators, and opens a new one towards a future regional Competence Center.

Total project cost 2.5 million euros

Funded 1.05 million euros University of Turin (Coordinator)

Project realized in collaboration with the Polytechnic of Turin (co-beneficiary)

• PiqueT – Piemonte Quantum Enabling Technology

In the field of enabling technologies (KET), the emerging quantum technologies, evolution of nanotechnologies and photonics, are a strong opportunity for industries to grow and innovate on a wide range of sectors, strategic for the S3 of Piedmont. PiQuET is a technological facility that rationalizes and enhances existing facilities, makes them a common factor in the territory, and acts horizontally on strategic industrial supply chains for competitive growth and productivity. IR operates on synergistic sectors: development of materials, micro / nanostructured devices and sensors, microfotonics and quantum fiber communication, developing innovative systems for the industry and also allowing advanced and safe sensor networks. The OdR share their instruments, complete them with a new and significant investment and place them in a new laboratory with avant-garde plants located at TNE in Turin in Corso Settembrini 178. The IR will be one of a kind in Italy, because it creates a new IR at the state of the art, it creates a critical mass of the skills and tools of the OdR and begins a permanent collaboration between OdR and industry, supporting the industrial take-up, the patents paths and an industrial plan that creates new jobs.

Total project cost 6 million euros

Funded 200,000 euros University of Turin (co-beneficiary)

Project realized in collaboration with the National Institute of Metrological Research Inrim (coordinator) and Polytechnic of Turin (co-beneficiary)

• EuBI-NodoIM-TO – Strengthening of the Italian Euro-BioImaging Node for Molecular Imaging, Turin Office

The Hub for the Medical Imaging of the European Euro-BioImaing Infrastructure (EuBI) will be based at the Institute of Translational Medicine (IMT, P.zza Nizza, Turin). Connected to the Hub, there will be the Italian Node for Molecular Imaging, dedicated to pre-clinical investigations with the different in-vivo imaging modalities, coordinated by the University of Turin. The investment project involves the acquisition of a scanner for Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) operating at 7 Tesla and a PET (SPECT) / CT instrumentation for small animals for the Turin site of the Italian Node of Molecular Imaging (NodoIM-TO). MRI and PET (SPECT) / CT represent the most important imaging techniques in terms of spatial resolution (MRI) and sensitivity (PET). The EuBI Node will use model animals available at the facility of the Molecular Biotechnology Center (MBC-1 and -2).

Total project cost 3 million euros

Funded 1.5 million euros University of Turin

• 0 – Research infrastructure of humanities, social sciences and humanities for the digital transformation of companies and markets

The project meets the challenge of the multidisciplinary integration of research in the HSSH field in favor of the plurality of processes linked to the Fourth Industrial Revolution, identifying an innovative contribution of the operational research of human, social and humanistic sciences.

The investment project involves the construction of a research hub in the Palazzo Nuovo campus, which guarantees the networking of laboratories and technological equipment of the latest generation for human, social and humanistic research relevant to the business system.

The flexibility of the spaces and equipment provided and the plurality of actors involved in the design (9 departments) guarantee a wide and efficient use of IR and a wide range of services to companies, also through joint planning, maximizing results and minimizing risks, both in economic terms and in relation to the results of research and innovation for growth. https://innovazione.unito.it/hssh-with-and-for-industry-4-0

Total project cost 2.87 million euros

Funded 1.44 million euros University of Turin