CeBIT 2015: Swiss universities showcase cutting-edge research

Computer science is an exciting, fast moving and diverse field. It pervades many areas from research to industry and plays a vital role in all aspects of society today. The internationally renowned faculties of the three Swiss universities cover many facets of modern computer science, from underlying theory to the design of practical systems. The institutions will showcase their cutting-​edge technologies in the Swiss Pavilion for Research & Innovation (hall 9, booth A28).

ETH Zurich: 3D photography with smartphones

Almost everyone has a camera on their smartphone nowadays. Prof. Marc Pollefeys and his group have developed an app that allows one to capture the world in 3D with their mobile device. The group has been studying how to extract 3D measurements from camera recordings and has successfully transformed an ordinary consumer smartphone into a portable digital scanner. Users can save 3D images without the need for any additional hardware or access to the internet. The technology could pave the way not only for 3D event 're-living' and greater opportunities for 3D printing. It could also open the door to full-scale crime scene reconstructions in courtrooms and enable the transfer of a 3D image of a medical symptom, for example, a rash or swelling to a doctor for diagnosis. Prof. Pollefeys has been invited as keynote speaker at CeBIT's Global Conferences (March 17, 4 pm), where he will share the latest findings of his research.

EPF Lausanne: a digital safe for sending confidential documents

In a bid to render electronic documents inaccessible to prying eyes, two researchers at EPFL's School of Computer and Communication Sciences in Lausanne have established the start-up company "Di55erent", which has just finalized the "MakeSends" tool. MakeSends encrypts the user's files with a secret code selected by the user. The encryption is powerful enough to ensure secure file transfer. "Once encrypted, the contents of the files cannot be accessed by anyone, not even ourselves," explains Dr. Radhakrishna Achanta. To crack a well-chosen code would take an impracticably long time. It would be rather like trying to open a safe by going through every possible combination of digits: it can, technically, be done but it would take many years! The level of security thereby ensured is similar to that of online banking and the system is extremely easy to use. The user chooses a password, enters it in the window provided and clicks on "send". It is as simple as that.

University of Zurich: vision-controlled drones for aerial searches and rescue operations

The traditional approach to flying drones requires a skilled human operator as pilot. This approach, however, can fail in the face of obstacles or when communication with the drone degrades. The second approach is through GPS. GPS, though, is not reliable in cluttered outdoor environments and is completely unavailable indoors. The solution developed by Prof. Davide Scaramuzza and his Robotics and Perception Group works differently: their drones can fly all by themselves, without GPS and without any human intervention. They require only a single onboard camera and a small powerful smartphone computer. Advanced computer-vision software analyses the changes that motion induces on the drone’s camera images and builds an accurate 3D map of the environment, which the drone then uses to stabilize itself and localize its position within the environment. This allows the drone to accurately follow a given trajectory completely by itself. The technology will have a tremendous impact in search and rescue and remote inspection missions, where currently drones are still run by skilled operators