Technology news

Members of the Figura team in their lab at the Advanced Technology Innovation Centre on Loughborough University Science and Enterprise Park

Loughborough University spinout Figura Analytics closes seed investment round to take nanotech solution to the drinks industry

Loughborough University spinout Figura Analytics has successfully closed a seed funding round, led by a syndicate of angel investors, to bring its nanopore technology to the drinks market this year.
sport and metaverse event logo

Sport and the Metaverse: Loughborough hosts first thought leadership event with MIT Sloan Global Programs (VIDEO)

Global leaders in research, sport, and AI gathered in London this week (Monday the 19th of December) to discuss ‘Sport and the Metaverse’, as part of a new Loughborough University and MIT Sloan School of Management collaboration.

an image of a football

World Cup football tested on campus (VIDEO)

Researchers from Loughborough University’s Sports Technology Institute have carried out rigorous testing into the adidas Al Rihla Pro football – the official match ball used at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Prototype AR shopping devices could benefit both consumers and retailers – new study

Augmented reality (AR) could change the way we buy clothes in the future.

Jumpers for Goalposts exhibition now open – here’s a look inside!

An exhibition that brings together art, design, science, and football-related research from across Loughborough University is now open to the public – and you can have a peek inside thanks to a new teaser video.
Image of a phone with a loot box on screen and cash next to the phone

Loot boxes cause financial and emotional harm to children, new report reveals

“The game just got better and better as I spent more money and I got addicted to it. I knew I’d spent the money, but I didn’t know how much.
Photograph of OWLC colleagues (from left) Jonathan Proctor, Matt Bleasdale, Giles Clayton-Jones and Nathan Snowden-Merrills

OWLC joins Loughborough University Science and Enterprise Park’s Energy and Low Carbon cluster

The University is delighted to welcome OWLC (Offshore Wind Logistics and Construction) to the Science and Enterprise Park (LUSEP). The company, founded in London in 2014, relocated its headquarters to the Advanced Technology Innovation Centre (ATIC) earlier this month.
A group of school children talking to one of the PhD researchers at the SlowCat exhibition stand

Loughborough’s researchers inspire the next generation of scientists at London Schools’ Climate Kick-Start Event

A Loughborough team of scientists and engineers who are designing and preparing catalysts for a greener future took part in a London-wide schools programme to empower young people to help tackle climate change.
air ventilation system in building

Loughborough part of international awareness campaign to champion building ventilation

An international awareness campaign to promote the critical role of better building ventilation in supporting health, well-being, and productivity has been launched by a coalition of scientists, academics, engineering bodies and environmental activists.
The start line of a racing track

Loughborough partners with performance car brand, Abarth, to trial facial recognition technology

Working in partnership with Loughborough University, performance car brand, Abarth, has become the first manufacturer to trial facial recognition technology to better understand the emotions experienced when in its car.
Flood damage to a home in Whalley (2015), the floor is muddy and possessions are stacked on tables, etc

Previsico accelerates IoT rollout in the UK following flood mitigation success

Loughborough University spinout Previsico has launched the nationwide roll-out of innovative IoT technology that enables individuals and communities to build resilience against the impacts of flooding. This follows success across the UK, including Whalley in Lancashire, which was devasted by flooding in 2015 and 2020.
Photograph of Pooja Goddard, sitting in an open plan learning space

Dr Pooja Goddard awarded Royal Academy of Engineering Industrial Fellowship

Dr Pooja Goddard is among this year’s cohort of just 16 UK academics to be awarded a Royal Academy of Engineering Industrial Fellowship.

Innovative smart meter initiative will enable connection of low-carbon technologies to electricity network

Researchers from Loughborough University are developing innovative ways to use smart meter data to help equip the electricity network with low-carbon technologies.

Experts to discuss how digitization will impact our future

InterAct will hold their annual conference at the beginning of October, aiming to discuss digitalization and how it can impact our future.
An image of Orbit, an interactive robot that aims to teach children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) about emotions and social appropriateness through storytelling, physical interaction, and visual communication. It is dome shaped, and has a smiley face appearance on a screen.

Meet Orbit, the interactive robot that looks to help children with autism spectrum disorders develop social skills

“Hey there. Allow me to introduce you to your new companion, Orbit, a robot you can play with and listen to. Not only can Orbit hear you, they can feel you too.”
Two wheelchair users looking at a phone

Could a new fitness app help people with disabilities be more physically active?

Researchers from Loughborough University are working with the founders of a new fitness app, created specifically for people with impairments, to test its usability and effectiveness.
Close up of an ambulance

How ready are we for the next pandemic? New report analysing UK’s response to COVID-19 says technology is key

The COVID-19 pandemic has been labelled as the largest peacetime emergency that Britain has faced in the last 100 years.
Man on a treadmill with an exoskeleton leg support

Revolutionising rehabilitation: Discussing a new £100m transformational centre and why people are looking to axolotls for answers…

Around the world, an estimated 2.4 billion people are currently living with a health condition that benefits from rehabilitation, and the need for such services and interventions is predicted to increase globally, says the World Health Organisation.

Centre left to right: David Goldspink, Caterpillar Vice President and General Manager and Professor Nick Jennings, Loughborough University Vice-Chancellor with members of Caterpillar and the Innovation and Research Centre

Loughborough University and Caterpillar reinforce strategic collaboration to accelerate innovative technologies for a reduced carbon future

Loughborough University and Caterpillar have formally agreed to continue a strategic collaboration launched more than 25 years ago to accelerate innovative technologies within the off-highway powertrain sector.
Joe fuggle

Loughborough student creates support hub for young athletes and their parents (VIDEO)

A Loughborough University student has created a ground-breaking online platform that supports athletes and parents with wellbeing.

Theatre audiences with accessibility needs risk returning to pre-pandemic levels of exclusion

A new report published by researchers from Loughborough and Kent universities recommends that theatres, arts organisations and funders should prioritise digital innovations to allow vulnerable audiences better access to live shows.
sports tech in action

Loughborough researchers collaborate with FIFA on artificial pitch testing (VIDEO)

Loughborough researchers have collaborated with international governing body giant FIFA to bring artificial pitch testing into the modern era.

Scones with jam and cream

Music to your ears (and mouth): Study explores if cooking with sound could produce more environmentally-friendly jam and cream

Planning an afternoon tea to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee? Have you got your jam and cream in?
Landing of Italian Troops in Tripoli, Libya in October 1911. (Image supplied by the Illustrations Bureau (Whitefriars, London)).

Photos of wartime Europe still shape views of conflict – here’s how we’re trying to right the record

A war in Europe instantly creates parallels with the world wars for people in the UK and other European countries. This connection represents what most people know and are taught about conflict on the continent. The media coverage and response to the war in Ukraine have also invoked familiar images of the second world war, in particular those of bombed buildings, armed soldiers and civilians, and children clinging to their parents.
Dr Ishara Dharmasena, of the School of Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering (MEME), and a team of researchers at the University of Moratuwa (Sri Lanka) have developed a new, scalable manufacturing technique to create wearable fabrics embedded with very small power generators known as ‘Triboelectric Nanogenerators’ (TENGs).

Tech experts create wearable material that can generate electricity by capturing energy from body movements

Clothing that can sense our health, communicate information with others, and generate electricity may soon be hitting the market, thanks to new research by Loughborough University.