Paul is a Fellow in the UK MOD’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) and Visiting Professor of Sensor Fusion and Autonomy at the University of Loughborough.
With 20+ years’ experience in the area of sensor fusion, signal processing and autonomy for defence applications, Paul now holds the role of Principal Advisor for ISR Fusion and Processing and Lead Technical Reviewer for Underpinning Data Science.  Paul serves on the Technical Programme Committees for the ISIF Fusion and IET Intelligent Signal Processing (ISP) conferences.

Abstract

SOUP IN THE SOUK: A ‘BAZAAR’ APPROACH TO DEFENCE SIGNAL PROCESSING
 
 You are currently experiencing an earthquake in software and algorithm development.  Open Source threatens to shake down the cathedrals of corporate software projects and flatten the chapels of private code repositories.  Replacing them with the ad-hoc, organic, collaborative energy of the bazaar.  This is, in equal measure, an opportunity for the signal processing algorithm developer and the defence industry as a whole.
 
This talk describes the development of Stone Soup, the open source framework for tracking and state estimation.  We describe the development process of an open source project and experiences gained while creating critical mass.  We discuss how structure is key to enabling engagement and how design is important even in an amorphous project.  Stone soup is already transforming the culture of the academic community and we discuss how it can bring changes to the way defence industry exploits signal processing innovations.