Research Fellow – Radar Systems for Sign Language Recognition

University of South Hampton; Highfield; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

Join a pioneering project at a leading university focused on developing innovative radar technology for British Sign Language recognition. As a Postdoctoral Research Fellow, you will collaborate with a talented team to design and validate a unique radar simulator. This role offers the chance to contribute to groundbreaking research while enjoying a supportive work environment that values equality and inclusion. With flexible working hours and access to excellent resources, this position is perfect for those passionate about advancing technology in an inclusive context. Embrace the opportunity to make a real impact in the field of radar sensing technology.

Benefits

Generous holiday allowance

Flexible working hours

Subsidised health and fitness facilities

Discounts on various services

Qualifications

• Experience in radar systems and radar signal processing is essential.
• Strong programming skills in Python, MATLAB, or C++ are required.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design and validation of LinguaRadar for sign language gestures.
• Conduct radar experiments and write academic papers.

Skills

Radar Systems

Signal Processing

Python

MATLAB

C++

Problem-Solving

Education

PhD in Electrical/Electronic Engineering

Equivalent Qualification/Experience

Tools

OpenPose

MediaPipe

Blender

Job description

Research Fellow – Radar Systems for Sign Language Recognition

Join the project shaping the future of inclusive technology

At the University of Southampton, our research addresses some of the most pressing challenges of today’s world. Now, funded by EPSRC, we are looking for a talented Postdoctoral Research Fellow to join the RADAR-SIGN-BRIDGE project – an exciting initiative to develop privacy-preserving radar technology for British Sign Language (BSL) recognition and translation.

You will be based in the School of Electronics and Computer Science (ECS), working alongside an interdisciplinary team led by Dr. Shelly Vishwakarma ([e-mail]), in collaboration with partners at the University of Edinburgh (Centre for Speech Technology Research, CSTR) and University College London (Deafness Cognition and Language Research Centre, DCAL).

About the role

You will lead the design, development, and validation of LinguaRadar – a first-of-its-kind radar simulator for sign language gestures. Your work will involve integrating animation pipelines (e.g., OpenPose, MediaPipe, Blender) with radar signal models, generating synthetic radar datasets, and validating them with real-world measurements fromradar hardware.

As part of the team, you will:

• Build and validate radar signal simulation frameworks for BSL gestures.
• Process skeletal motion data to drive simulation pipelines.
• Conduct radar experiments to calibrate and benchmark simulation outputs.
• Write academic papers, contribute to open-source dataset releases, and present your work at international conferences.

About you

You will bring your passion for advancing radar sensing technology into a new application domain. You will have:

• A PhD* or equivalent qualification / experience in Electrical/Electronic Engineering, Signal Processing, or a closely related field.
• Proven experience in radar systems, radar signal processing, and simulation.
• Strong programming skills (Python, MATLAB, or C++).
• Excellent problem-solving skills and a collaborative mindset.

Experience with micro-Doppler or range-Doppler radar analysis, or familiarity with animation/motion capture data processing, would be advantageous.

What we can offer you?

The University of Southampton is a top university (1% globally), and ECS is one of the top-ranked schools for Electronic Engineering and Computer Science in the UK. You'll also benefit from ECS’s links to the ARM-ECS Research Centre, the MINDS CDT, and the Future Worlds startup accelerator.

As a founding signatory of the Athena SWAN charter, and holder of a silver award, we’re committed to improving equality. We aim to create an environment where everyone can thrive and are proactive in fostering a culture of inclusion, respect and equality of opportunity. As well as additional benefits that will make your life easier, such as a generous holiday allowance and additional university closure days. We will help you find a good work-life balance with flexible working hours. We will support your long-term future too, with access to the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS)*, subsidised health and fitness facilities and a range of discounts.

We strongly encourage interested candidates to contact Dr. Shelly Vishwakarma ([e-mail] ) to discuss this role further.

Applications will be considered from candidates who are working towards or nearing completion of a relevant PhD. The title of Research Fellow will be applied upon completion of the PhD. Prior to qualification being awarded, the title of Senior Research Assistant will be given.

We are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion and welcome applicants who support our mission of inclusivity.

Apply by 11.59 pm GMT on the closing date. For assistance contact Recruitment on [phone] or [e-mail] quoting the job number.