2-year fully funded EngD position with the HSI (Designing Human-System Interaction) Program

The department of Industrial Design of the TU/e is offering a fully funded position to master graduates leading to the award of an EngD (Engineering Doctorate) degree in Designing Human-System Interaction. The appointment is for two years starting in September 2023.

The project

Eindhoven Engine is an innovation accelerator founded by TU/e, Fontys and TNO, in cooperation with the industry. It accelerates innovation in the Brainport region to provide new and timely technology-based solutions as an answer to the societal challenges our generation and environment is facing.

For this, capabilities and positions available at science, technology and business-oriented partners provide a human capital and knowledge basis. However, it is envisaged that this potential can be unleashed up to yet another level when organizational barriers are lowered, and interpersonal exchange and combination of ideas and skills are actively stimulated. Inspiring and challenging 'moon-shot' goals with associated deadlines are essential, as well as dedicated selection and coaching of team members, collaborating in an inspiring work and meeting space which stimulates and facilitates the joint execution of their innovation projects. This is where business model innovation comes alive.

In cooperation with a few project partners, Eindhoven Engine has decided to contribute the development of an integrated multi-dimensional digital twin of the Brainport region. Currently many scattered efforts for digital twinning are running. The aim of this project is to align a reasonable amount of these efforts into a state-of-the-art prototype that allows the Brainport region to address diverse actual problems (such as nitrogen reduction, the energy transition to renewables, the addition of 100.000 persons to the region and their impact on traffic, emergency service, …).

Context

The digital twins of the urban environment become more powerful and are currently already assisting governments, municipalities in making decisions to improve the live of citizens. Much data is created and becomes digitally available in many aspects of our lives. The future will only need more of these tools, and now is the time to create synergy and create integrated approaches to enable tackling these complex problems fundamentally.

The challenge

The challenge for the EngD position at Eindhoven University of Technology would be to develop and evaluate a concept prototype of a multidimensional, integrated digital twin for the MRE (Metropolitan Region Eindhoven) area. This digital twin should accurately represent the physical and functional aspects of the region, including infrastructure, transportation, buildings, and other urban systems.

The digital twin should be capable of simulating and analyzing different scenarios to evaluate the impact of changes and improvements in the region. This could involve incorporating data from various sources, such as real-time sensor data, historical data, and demographic data, to enable predictive analysis of different scenarios.

Furthermore, the digital twin should provide a platform for collaboration and communication among stakeholders, such as urban planners, policymakers, and residents. This could involve developing a user-friendly interface that allows different stakeholders to visualize and interact with the digital twin to gain insights and make informed decisions.

It should become platform of collaboration in the triple helix, to transfer academic knowledge to societal impact.

Candidates should have a background in an area related to interaction design (e.g., industrial design, software engineering, and human computer interaction). They need to be creative, and entrepreneurial and to have an innovative mind. Candidates will be embedded in a multidisciplinary team consisting of computer scientists, industrial designers, and business entrepreneurs.

HSI Program

The mission of the HSI program is to train professionals who already have a Master's degree in design or engineering to develop competences in designing and evaluating interactive intelligent and innovative systems, services, and products. The goal is to ensure positive user experiences that support their values and needs. The HSI program is based on design thinking and system thinking, as well as scientifically founded and methodologically sound user-centered and data-driven approaches, paying special attention to the frontier of the complex systems enabled by artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies and its impact on individuals, organizations and society.

In the HSI program, candidates are positioned as designers throughout the program, as the intermediate between market demands and technical possibilities, between user needs and product satisfaction; candidates work on design cases and projects for research, industry, or government supervised by university staff and the host organization; Candidates work on assignments and case studies throughout the program; Candidates with backgrounds in the engineering, behavioral and physical sciences work in small interdisciplinary teams, together with other EngD, PhD, and Master students with different national and cultural backgrounds; 

The structure of the program is attached. The design project stretches over two years with a total of 10 to 12 month of effort. The courses are offered once a year and the candidate may decide to take a course during either the first year or the second. Elective courses can be adjusted or replaced if needed. Design cases are one to three month long smaller design or research projects in the context of the research groups. For each individual candidate a Training and Supervision plan of courses, design cases and projects will be developed and followed according to the background of the candidate and the needs from the industry and business.

Career perspective

Examples of positions held by HSI graduates are data designer, ai-system designer, interaction designer, usability engineer, user experience designer, human factor engineer, information architect, manager in innovative businesses, and team leader of these roles.

The HSI program is for people who

• are passionate in designing with AI and data, with a focus on business model innovation,
• wish to improve the interaction between people and systems,
• wish to make technology truly accessible and beneficial,
• are interested in technological development and its impact on people,
• like to lead and work in multidisciplinary teams in an international context,
• like to be at the forefront of enabling technologies and want to exploit those technologies from the perspective of end-users, stakeholders, and business,
• are challenged by societal impact, engineering problems and real-world constraints.

Eligible candidates shall have a relevant Master degree with a keen interest in human-machine interaction, the use of exponential technology for impact, and business innovation. Practical experience is an asset. We require that trainees in our program have excellent social and communicative competencies, including sufficient proficiency in reading, writing, speaking and comprehension of English.

We offer a fixed-term, 2-year position in a research group with an excellent reputation. Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities, including:

• A gross monthly salary of € 2089.
• Additionally, 8% holiday and 8.3% end-of-year annual supplements.
• A minimum of 41 holidays per year (excluding bank holidays, for a full-time employment of 40 hrs/week)
• Additional benefits, including excellent technical infrastructure, childcare, holiday savings schemes, and sports facilities.
• Assistance for finding accommodation is offered.