Senior Research Associate/Research Associate in Image Processing, Computer

Vision and Machine Learning (H-unique)

School of Computing and Communications Salary: £31,396 to £44,263 Closing Date: Friday 24 November 2023 Interview Date: Thursday 30 November 2023 Reference: 1244-23

This is an exciting opportunity to join a top-15 university as a (senior) research associate in computer vision, on the ERC-funded project H-Unique. You will join our Imaging and Computer Vision Lab to develop new image processing and computer vision methodologies for effective multimodal feature extraction and comparison from multimodal images in a way that is robust to changes in viewpoint, illumination, background and modality. This is a fantastic opportunity to focus on core theory and methodology development with real- world meaningful application on a high-profile project.

This exciting research opportunity has arisen directly from ground-breaking research undertaken by the principal investigator Prof Dame Sue Black in the forensic identification of individuals from images of their anatomy. Assessment of the evidential robustness of hand identification in the courtroom requires that the degree of “uniqueness” in the human hand be assessed through large volume image analysis.

H-unique is a five year, €2.5M programme of research and will be the first multimodal automated interrogation of visible hand anatomy, through analysis and interpretation of human variation. We are investigating inherent and acquired variation, as the hand retains and displays a multiplicity of anatomical variants formed by different aetiologies. Hard biometrics are well- understood and some soft biometrics are gaining traction within both the biometric and forensic domains. We are pioneering the development of new methods to release the full extent of variation within the visible anatomy of the human hand and reconstruct its discriminatory profile as a retro- engineered multimodal biometric. This work will provide a major novel breakthrough in the study of anatomical variation, with wide ranging, interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary impact.

We invite applications from enthusiastic individuals who have a PhD or equivalent experience in a relevant discipline. You must be able to demonstrate a research background in the area of image processing, computer vision, and deep learning. Familiarity with biometric image analysis methods is not essential but will put you at an advantage. We will also value highly your ability to learn rapidly and to adapt to new technologies beyond your current skills and expertise. For more details, please see the Job Description/Person Specification for this position.

The School of Computing and Communications offers a highly inclusive and stimulating environment for career development, and you will be exposed to a range of further opportunities over the course of this post. We are committed to family-friendly and flexible working policies on an individual basis, as well as the Athena SWAN Charter, which recognises and celebrates good employment practice undertaken to address gender equality in higher education and research.

You will join us on an indefinite contract. However, the role remains contingent on external funding which, for this position, ends 31st December 2024

For further information or an informal discussion please contact Dr Bryan M. Williams (Email: [email protected]) or Dr Hossein Rahmani (Email: [email protected]).

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