LRAB Chapter 77 Joint Laboratory
Chapter 77 Joint Laboratory
The next morning, Zuo Cheng went to Huaxia University of Technology.
Professor Li's office is on the third floor of the School of Electronic and Information Engineering. It's not big, but it's piled high with documents and journals. The plaque on the door reads "Professor Li Weizheng, Doctoral Supervisor," and the whiteboard next to it still has the derivation of the formulas we discussed last time.
Zuo Cheng knocked on the door.
"Come in," Professor Li's voice came from inside.
Pushing open the door, Yu Ying was also there. She was sitting in the chair opposite Professor Li, with a cup of tea beside her. When she saw Zuo Cheng come in, the corners of her mouth turned up slightly.
"You're here quite early," Yu Ying said.
"You said you had good news in your email, so of course I came early." Zuo Cheng sat down next to her.
Professor Li put down his paper and looked at Zuo Cheng: "Yu Ying told me about your desire to establish a collaboration with the university. It just so happens that the university is also promoting the integration of industry, academia, and research; we're on the same page."
"Professor Li, what specific ideas do you have?"
"A joint laboratory," Professor Li said, adding, "China University of Technology will provide the facilities, equipment, and graduate students, while 402 will provide the research projects, funding, and practical industry support. We will jointly build the laboratory and share the results."
Zuo Cheng quickly calculated in his mind. This model was excellent; the university provided the hardware and talent, while 402 provided the funding and real projects. Graduate students would work on projects in the joint lab and then directly enter 402 upon graduation, thus establishing a talent pipeline.
"How much should 402 invest each year in terms of funding?" Zuo Cheng asked.
"It depends on the scale," Professor Li said, counting on his fingers. "If we build a lab for 20 people in the first phase, the equipment purchase and daily operations will cost about 300 million yuan a year. 402 will contribute 200 million yuan, and the university will match 100 million yuan. The graduate students' salaries will be paid by the university, but the project bonuses will be paid by 402."
Three million is nothing to 402 right now. With a 120 million contract in hand, the first installment of 36 million is about to arrive, and the annual budget of 2 million is well within their means.
"Okay," Zuo Cheng said, "but on one condition."
"explain."
"I want to have a say in the research direction of the joint laboratory. This doesn't mean I want to interfere with academic freedom, but rather that the research direction must align with the 402 Institute's technological roadmap. For example, sensor networks for the Internet of Things, low-power wide-area networks, and edge computing gateways are all areas that the 402 Institute will focus on developing going forward."
Professor Li nodded: "That's only right. Industry-academia-research collaboration isn't about working behind closed doors; the research results must be useful. Yu Ying's research direction is precisely the intersection of satellite communication and the Internet of Things, which naturally aligns with your Sky Dome project."
Yu Ying added from the side, "Professor Li means that the research results from the joint laboratory can be directly used for the development of the third phase of Sky Dome. This way, we produce papers, and 402 produces products—a win-win situation."
Zuo Cheng looked at Yu Ying. Her eyes were serious; it wasn't the kind of perfunctory academic discussion, but rather she was genuinely thinking about what to do.
"Okay, it's settled then," Zuo Cheng said. "Han Lu will handle the contract details with the school, and I'll be responsible for coordinating the technical aspects."
Professor Li nodded with satisfaction: "Thank you for your hard work. By the way, does Huaxia University have any similar cooperation intentions? Is Professor Lin still at the university recently?"
"Professor Lin Zhiyuan is still here," Zuo Cheng said, "but I haven't formally discussed cooperation with him yet."
"You could try talking to him," Professor Li said. "Professor Lin's research group is very strong in embedded systems and communication protocols, which complements 402's technical focus. If both Huaxia University and Huaxia University of Technology establish partnerships with 402, it would be an endorsement from two top universities, which would greatly benefit your company's brand."
Zuo Cheng kept those words in mind. The joint endorsement from the two universities was indeed a huge plus for 402.
Emerging from Professor Li's office, Zuo Cheng and Yu Ying walked side by side along the tree-lined path on campus. There weren't many students on campus in September, with only a few freshmen occasionally looking for their way.
"Brother, what do you think of Professor Li's proposal?" Yu Ying asked.
"Excellent," Zuo Cheng said. "The terms are even more favorable than I expected. A 200 million annual budget in exchange for a 20-person research team and the endorsement of two universities—it's a win-win situation no matter how you look at it."
"So, what's your priority in terms of research direction?"
Zuo Cheng thought for a moment: "Sensor networks and edge computing. The third phase of Sky Dome needs to support 100,000 terminals. Cloud processing alone is not enough; edge computing must be done on the terminal side. Sensor networks are the foundation of the Internet of Things; without sensing, there is no data."
"That's exactly what I was thinking," Yu Ying said. "I've recently been looking at distributed cooperative algorithms for low-power sensor networks. If the joint lab is established, I can directly conduct my research here."
Zuo Cheng glanced at her. This girl could always surprise him.
"Kongkong, you're getting more and more amazing," he said.
Yu Ying rolled her eyes at him: "I've always been very capable; you just didn't notice before."
Zuo Cheng smiled. The two walked past a grove of plane trees, sunlight filtering through the leaves and dappling the pavement with light and shadow.
Back at the company, Zuo Cheng closed the door and opened the system panel. The cooldown timer for the technology radar had expired, so he decided to give it a try.
He focused his mind and activated his technological radar. Today, in Professor Li's office, he had a vague feeling that Professor Li's team might have some things worth learning.
[Technology Radar activated, consuming 5 points]
Current points: 158
[Scan complete]
[Discovering Learnable Technologies: Distributed Sensor Collaboration Algorithms]
[Source: Professor Li Weizheng]
[Copying cost: 8 points]
Zuo Cheng examined it carefully. Distributed sensor collaboration algorithms—this was precisely the research direction Yu Ying had mentioned earlier, and also the area the joint laboratory planned to focus on. The score of 8 points was lower than Ma Hao's 12 points from the last scan, indicating that the technology wasn't at that high level.
He hesitated for a few seconds. 158 points minus 8 points left him with 150 points. The third phase of Sky Dome's development had only just begun, and there would likely be many more areas where points would be needed.
However, this technology is crucial for activating the backbone of the Internet of Things (IoT). The Internet of Everything is just one leaf away from being realized, and if sensor collaboration algorithms are the key to that leaf, then the investment is worthwhile.
Zuo Cheng confirmed the copy.
[Copy complete, 8 points consumed]
Current points: 150
[New blade added: Distributed sensor collaboration]
[Number of blades for the Internet of Things: 7/7]
[The conditions for branch activation have been met!]
Zuo Cheng's heart suddenly raced. The Internet of Everything branch had been activated!
On the system panel, a soft blue light illuminated the central area of the tech tree. A new branch grew from the trunk, golden veins spreading along it, and seven leaves lit up in turn, radiating a warm glow.
[Branch Activation: The Internet of Everything]
Core technologies: IoT communication protocols, low-power wide-area networks, embedded systems, distributed sensor collaboration, edge computing gateways, intelligent sensor networks, and IoT security.
Zuo Cheng took a deep breath and turned off the system panel.
The third branch is lit up.