Bristol is Open: its origins and projects.
Origins
Between 2013 and 2014, we had received funding from Building Digital UK's Go to https://www.gov.uk/guidance/building-digital-uk (opens new window), Super-Connected Cities programme Go to https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/2010-to-2015-government-policy-broadband-investment/2010-to-2015-government-policy-broadband-investment#appendix-3-investing-in-superconnected-cities (opens new window).
We used the funding to establish multiple communications technologies and enable smart city research, development and innovation.
Bristol is Open (BiO), was set up as a joint venture between Bristol City Council and the University of Bristol, to develop a ‘test-bed' programmable, digital infrastructure, that launched in April 2015.
What has happened under Bristol is Open
We used our city-wide infrastructure to evaluate new digital technologies, smart city research, development and innovation.
We researched:
- Software Defined Networking (SDN)
- Internet of Things (IoT) and Big Data Analytics
- 5G
- Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML)
- CCTV analytics
- High Performance Computing (HPC)
Our smart city projects:
- The Big Clout project evaluated Internet of Things, cloud computing and Big Data applications.
- The Replicate project, in which Bristol was a lead city, deployed energy efficiency, mobility and Information and Communications Technology solutions in city districts.
- The 5G Smart Tourism project deployed 5G, to provide CCTV feeds, trial crowd analytics and apply millimeter wave technologies for pop-up event control. The project also trialled the use of a low power wide area network (LoRaWan) and Internet of Things (IoT) sensors for a marshall tracking system.
After three years of operation, Bristol is Open came under the sole ownership of Bristol City Council who oversaw the completion of these projects.