The Center for Location Science

Optimal Facility Location. Spatial Analysis. Geographic Information Systems and Science.

IED Strategy
IED Strategy
Access to Transit

Research Projects

The Center for Location Science conducts scholarly research about challenging problems that are fundamentally spatial in nature. The Center pursues grant and contract support from federal, state, and local agencies as well as non-profit corporations and for-profit enterprises. Summaries of some of the Center's active projects appear below.


Operational-Level Optimization of Autonomous Logistics Enterprises

Description: The revolution in autonomous logistics is an anticipated transformation in high-efficiency, high-speed, and highly integrated transportation and supply-chain management systems that will rely on the deployment of unmanned and self-driving air, ground, and sea platforms. It will also rely on algorithms that enhance agent autonomy and on computational approaches to combinatorially complex location and allocation decisions. This project explores a series of interrelated logistical problems in the unmanned/autonomous context in order to anticipate and develop mitigation strategies for the challenges they represent.

Awarded: 2016

Duration: 5/1/2016 – 4/30/2018

PI: Kevin M. Curtin, Ph.D.

Co-PI: Alec D. Barker, Ph.D.

Funded amount: $737,609

Funding agency: U.S. Navy Office of Naval Research


 

Understanding Network Socio-Geographic Dynamics:

Using smartphones to locate, track, and study goal-directed team behaviors

Description: This project examines the spatial characteristics of team activities, especially the movements and communications of human groups trying to accomplish specific organizational tasks. It uses computer simulation, interactive computer games, customized smartphones, and teams of human subjects in games like hide-and-seek. The project is collecting information and building concepts to help us understand why, how, and when individuals, teams, and systems of teams make choices about their locations.

Phase I

Awarded: 2013

Duration: 11/1/13 – 09/29/15

PI: Kevin M. Curtin, Ph.D.

Co-PI: Richard M. Medina, Ph.D.

Co-Investigator: Alec D. Barker, Ph.D.

Funded amount: $337,566

Funding agency: U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences

Phase II

Awarded: 2015

Duration: 09/29/15 - 11/29/2016

PI: Kevin M. Curtin, Ph.D.

Co-PI: Alec D. Barker, Ph.D.

Graduate Research Assistants: Rebecca M. Rice, John Solly

Funded amount: $189,744 (Total $527,311)

Funding agency: U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences

 

Related publications and presentations:

 

 

FEMA/SAFER CFCA Recruitment and Retention Phase II

Description: Kevin M. Curtin, PhD acts as the University Partner for Phase II of the Volunteer Workforce Solutions (VWS) Project, under the auspices of the Connecticut Fire Chiefs Association (CFCA) and their partner the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC). Dr. Curtin meets the evaluation and analytical needs of CFCA and IAFC in the hope of improving volunteer firefighter recruitment and retention.

Awarded: 2014

Duration: 11/1/14 - 7/1/16

PI: Kevin M. Curtin, Ph.D.

Graduate Research Assistant: Rebecca Hill

Funded amount: $97,525

Funding agency: Federal Emergency Management Agency and the International Association of Fire Chiefs

Related publications and presentations:

 


FSTAR - Firefighter Safety Through Advanced Research

Description: Kevin M. Curtin, PhD acts as the University Partner for FSTAR project

Awarded: 2015

Duration: 12/9/15 - 4/22/16

PI: Kevin M. Curtin, Ph.D.

Graduate Research Assistants: Jasmin Khangura and Rebecca Hill

Undergraduate Research Assistant: Kelsey Ciarrocca

Funded amount: $37,809

Funding agency: Federal Emergency Management Agency and the International Association of Fire Chiefs

Related publications and presentations:

Drugs, Violence, and Development in Colombia
Police Patrol Area Optimization
Access to Transit
3D View of the George Mason Fairfax Campus