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Broadband Visual Communications

Broadband Internet will soon be commonplace in schools, businesses, homes and government. Broadband Internet has "large pipes" that transmit high quality audio and video, as well as text and images. NRC is researching the technologies and applications that will make broadband Internet valuable to Canadian society.

Broadband research at the NRC Institute for Information Technology (NRC-IIT) includes three inter-related themes:

1. harnessing the collective power of computers distributed across the network;
2. developing tools for collaborative work across the network; and
3. exploring the value inherent in transmission of video over the network.

The objective of the Broadband Visual Communication (BVC) Research Program is to understand and influence the impact of broadband networks, with particular focus on the visual and interactive capabilities unique to broadband.

Past Projects

• MusicGrid

The BVC focus is on applications to learning, within schools and other knowledge organizations, with a particular emphasis on environments and applications that bring people together across distance and time.

BVC projects currently support three learning communities:

• advanced violin students working with Pinchas Zukerman, Music Director of the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa;
• high school students engaged in project-based learning - high school groups are located at eight broadband-connected schools across Canada
• secondary school teachers involved in professional development - a component of the CANARIE Inc. funded LearnCanada project, for which the BVC program provides software and multimedia technologies

NRC-IIT's Broadband Visual Communication research is carried out in close collaboration with the National Arts Centre (NAC), the Communications Research Centre (CRC), CANARIE Inc. and McGill University, as well as other Canadian and international partners.

Research Contact

Dr. Martin Brooks
Research Council Officer
Computational Video
NRC Institute for Information Technology
1200 Montreal Road
Building M-50, Room 369
Ottawa, ON K1A 0R6
Telephone: +1 (613) 990-7661
Fax: +1 (613) 952-7151
E-mail: Martin.Brooks@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca

Business Contact

Dr. George Forester
Business Development Officer
Business Development Office, NCR
NRC Institute for Information Technology
1200 Montreal Road
Building M-50, Room 203
Ottawa, ON K1A 0R6
Telephone: +1 (613) 993-3478
Fax: +1 (613) 952-0074
E-mail: George.Forester@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca