WAVES is an extension and an expansion of a previous pilot project 'OPTOCTRL', co-sponsored between the Danish Technical Research Council, Bang & Olufsen A/S, and Aalborg University. OPTOCTRL is currently in the concluding phase and basically all the original objectives have been met. During the research activities, a range of new research themes outside the scope of OPTOCTRL have emerged which all seem quite promising, both from a scientific and from an industrial point of view. WAVES relies on the experience of OPTOCTRL, and the partners behind OPTOCTRL are members also of the new consortium. WAVES, however, has a considerably wider scope, and the consortium as well as the range of activities have been extended accordingly.

The key motivating technology for the present research program is the digital signal processor (DSP). The invention of the DSP and the development of a floating point DSP into a small component with a cost of less than $10, represents one of the greatest steps forwards ever for the consumer electronics industry (and many other industries). A signal processing algorithm or a feedback control system that few years ago involved layouts of huge boards of discrete digital components (or even analog circuits) with expensive manufacturing systems, now can be realized with a one time spending of a few man-months of software development. Even more significantly, signal processing methods and automatic control algorithms which seemed completely impractical just a few years ago, now already are beginning to be marketed.

This development coincides with a recent breakthrough in mathematics and advanced signal analysis, namely the development of the wavelet transform and associated algorithms. In this work, two central features of these algorithms will be exploited: the ability to merge time and frequency analysis and the ability to tailor the signal analysis algorithms themselves to be optimal in a specific sense to the problem at hand.

The commercial aspects of this is highly competitive products with sensor and control systems that are fast to develop and with a much higher precision and robustness than competing products. Moreover, the products are very versatile, and easy to adapt to rapid changing markets.