Explore future needs for R&D centers and shared facilities to complement distributed, project-based research. There are a number of research problems whose investigation might ultimately require centers or shared facilities. For example, characterizing and improving the security and reliability of a large-scale communications network, especially when it comprises multiple interconnected service providers that use diverse technologies, requires a much broader perspective than can be brought by any individual or group of individuals. Centers may also be a way to more efficiently provide certain experimental facilities—such as for fabrication, prototyping, and testing. For example, research that depends on fabrication of integrated circuits or other devices may require access to facilities that are beyond the reach of a university-based research group. Finally, centers provide a nucleus for academic-industry collaboration and for interdisciplinary research.
There are several plausible options for establishing R&D centers: establishing university-based centers in which industry participates, extending the mission and size of a government laboratory such as those at NIST, or establishing a federally funded research and development center for telecommunications research. Selecting the appropriate types and mix of institutions would be an important task for ATRA and would depend on industry interests and institutional capabilities. Research priorities that emerge from vision-setting and roadmapping activities would also help inform the design of such centers.
Establish a forum in which lawmakers, regulators, research funding agencies, and industry can share knowledge about technological developments, visions and roadmaps, and policy and regulation. To maximize the leverage of establishing ATRA and increasing industry participation in R&D, it is essential that lawmakers and regulators understand the impact of legislation and rule-making on the R&D enterprise, and that both they and researchers consider and reflect in their thinking the interplay between the policy environment, business opportunities, and technological directions.
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