AUTOMATic project: two PhD student positions

The Faculty of Computer Science and the Department of Mathematics at the University of Namur invite applications for two doctoral students to work on the project “AUTOMATic: AUTOnomous MAnager for urban Traffic”. This is an interdisciplinary project which aims to develop and to test, in a simulation environment, a content-aware urban traffic management system relying on a swarm of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).  The system is made of a group of drones that, by extracting data describing urban traffic and by operating ground-based units (e.g., traffic lights), autonomously and automatically evaluates the traffic current status; predicts its future; and mitigates or avoids undesired developments (e.g., congestion). This project is a collaboration between Prof Elio Tuci (https://directory.unamur.be/staff/etuci), from the Faculty of Computer Science at UNamur, Prof Alexandre Mauroy (https://directory.unamur.be/staff/mauroya) from the Department of Mathematics at UNamur, and prof Jean-Noël Colin (https://directory.unamur.be/staff/jncolin), from the Faculty of Computer Science at UNamur.

We are looking for two doctoral students, with different profiles:

Profile A: candidate with a mathematical background

The candidate should have a Master degree in applied mathematics or engineering (or equivalent), with a good background in mathematical modelling. Knowledge of traffic modelling, control theory, or network science will be considered as a plus. The candidate is also expected to demonstrate a keen interest in learning theoretical concepts and in developing practical methodologies for applications.

Profile B: candidate with a computer science background

The candidate should have a Master degree in sciences (or in a field judged equivalent by the selection committee) with some strong background in computer science, programming, simulation modelling. It is important that the candidate can translate ideas between disciplines, taking ideas from mathematics and implementing them in collective and swarm robotics systems.

For both candidates, the appointments will be for four years, and are based in Namur, Belgium. The candidates should have good oral/written communication skills in English. French is the official language of the University of Namur. However, knowledge of French is not required to carry out the activities of this project. The candidate with profile A will join the Department of Mathematics at UNamur; the candidate with profile B will join the Faculty of Computer Science at UNamur. Both doctoral students will join the Namur Institute for Complex Systems, naXys (www.naxys.be), and the Namur Digital Institute, NADI (https://nadi.unamur.be/). The positions are open to candidates of any nationality, assuming that they possess a two-year Master degree and a three years Bachelor degree. The selected candidates will be offered an internationally competitive salary at the level of doctoral students. Funding to cover the project operating costs are offered by the University of Namur.

To apply for this position, please send by email a CV, a list of publications, a motivation letter (max length one page), and the names of three referees to:

The short-listed candidates will be contacted for an interview (possibly by videoconference). We will keep on processing applications as soon as we receive them and until a suitable candidate is found. The project starting date is October 1st, 2022.

UNamur’s personnel management policy is geared towards diversity and equal opportunities. We recruit candidates on the basis of their skills, irrespective of age, gender, sexual orientation, origin, nationality, beliefs, disability, etc.

For further information on the project, you can contact the project coordinators:

Prof Elio Tuci – elio.tuci@unamur.be

Prof Alexandre Mauroy – alexandre.mauroy@unamur.be

Prof Jean-Noël Colin – jean-noel.colin@unamur.be