A major success for HSRW in the competitive NEXT.in.NRW innovation competition: Out of 140 submissions, the project “CoSiMo – Concierge System for Inclusive Mobility” was selected in a two-stage process as one of 25 projects to receive funding of €1.1 million, of which €320,000 is for the HSRW. The project is a joint initiative involving TH Ostwestfalen-Lippe (consortium leader), HSRW and the Herten-based software company XignSys. The HSRW’s sub-project is coordinated by Prof. Dr Ulrich Pfeiffer and carried out in cooperation with Prof. Dr Christian Ressel (Faculty of K&U).
A major success for HSRW in the highly competitive NEXT.in.NRW innovation competition: Out of 140 entries, the “CoSiMo – Concierge System for Inclusive Mobility” project was selected in a two-stage process as one of 25 projects to receive funding of €1.1 million, of which €320,000 is for HSRW. The project is a joint venture between TH Ostwestfalen-Lippe (consortium leader), HSRW and the Herten-based software company XignSys. The HSRW’s sub-project is coordinated by Prof. Dr Ulrich Pfeiffer and carried out in collaboration with Prof. Dr Christian Ressel (Faculty of K&U).
The CoSiMo research project is developing an open, secure and data-protection-compliant communication system for virtual agents, which will be tested for the first time in the innovative MonoCab monorail vehicle. The aim of the project is to drive forward the mobility transition through a trustworthy, multimodal and inclusive digital concierge, whilst simultaneously strengthening Europe’s digital sovereignty. CoSiMo combines technological innovation with user-centred design and practical application. The project pursues three key objectives:
- Development of an open communication standard: A secure, decentralised standard is intended to enable the interoperability of various virtual agents and assistance systems, whilst sustainably strengthening data protection and digital sovereignty.
- Building an inclusive virtual concierge agent: The digital assistant acts as a personalised, embodied interface between users, their environment and other systems. The focus is on accessible, multimodal interaction design and taking social, legal and ethical requirements into account.
- Prototype implementation in the MonoCab: In a real-world mobility scenario, suitability for everyday use, user experience and safety are being investigated. The results provide important insights for future applications in public transport and other everyday situations.
CoSiMo thus represents a pioneering approach to accessible, trustworthy and interoperable digital mobility solutions – an important step towards an inclusive and sustainable transport system of the future.
