Internship: Optimization of the deployment of environmental sensors

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INRAE presentation

The French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food, and Environment (INRAE) is a major player in research and innovation. It is a community of 12,000 people with 272 research, experimental research, and support units located in 18 regional centres throughout France. Internationally, INRAE is among the top research organisations in the agricultural and food sciences, plant and animal sciences, as well as in ecology and environmental science. It is the world’s leading research organisation specialising in agriculture, food and the environment. INRAE’s goal is to be a key player in the transitions necessary to address major global challenges. Faced with a growing world population, climate change, resource scarcity, and declining biodiversity, the Institute has a major role to play in building solutions and supporting the necessary acceleration of agricultural, food and environmental transitions.

Work environment, missions and activities

The research collective ConnecSenS (https://www.connecsens.org/) deploys environmental sensors, with application in fields such as biology and hydrogeology. Currently, the sensor positions are decided by hand by the experts. The goal is to conceive methods to automatize the process and optimize the sensor positions with regards to different criteria (type of sensors, geographical constraints, spatial covering, communication, …).

An example, which is the topic of the internship, is pluviometers: in a given region, we want to deploy them to cover the area. The collected data will allow to understand the hydrogeological profile of the region, allowing a new subdivision into several subregions, for a new deployment. Furthermore, while in some areas the sensors can send their data to a node, others will have to be deployed in areas without coverage. The approach will be to divide the region into sub-areas, to define how many pluviometers will be deployed in each of them, and to apply Lloyd’s algorithm (or Voronoi iteration) to decide the sensor positions. The standard approach for this algorithm uses optimal transport. A validation phase by experts will allow to refine the algorithm.

The goal of the PhD thesis is to analyze the needs and constraints of a diverse array of scientists deploying environmental sensors, and to propose generic algorithmic solutions adapted to said needs. Those solutions will always be evaluated by the expert users in order to refine and improve them. Different approaches will be used, for different types of sensors, constraints and goals. Those approaches will come from graph theory, operations research, algorithmic geometry.

It is also possible to apply only for the internship or the PhD.

Please send a cover letter, resume and available grades from your Masters.

Training and skills

Recommended training: Masters degree in computer science or applied mathematics.

Desired knowledge: Operations research, optimization, algorithms, programing.

Appreciated experience: Research internship.

Skills: Communication (interdisciplinary), scientific curiosity.

INRAE's life quality

By joining our teams, you benefit from (depending on the type of contract and its duration):

- 2,5 days off per month of attendance;
- parenting support: CESU childcare, leisure services;
- skills development systems: training, career advise;
- social support: advice and listening, social assistance and loans;
- holiday and leisure services: holiday vouchers, accommodation at preferential rates;
- sports and cultural activities;
- collective catering.

The Cézeaux site is served by subway line A, and is also equipped with parking facilities and services dedicated to cycling.

How to apply

I send my CV and my motivation letter