Research centres | Royal College of Art

Designs for Royal College of Art Battersea South Campus

The College's research centres apply expertise from science, engineering and technology disciplines to world-leading research in art and design. Our research centres address some of the major challenges facing society today: material science, a healthy ageing society, clean growth, and the future of mobility. We work with partners from around the world to establish new collaborative research partnerships with human-centred, design-led approaches at their heart.

South goal with boys

The Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design

The Centre is a global leader in Inclusive Design, Design Thinking and Creative Leadership, working with government, business, academia and the third sector.

Intelligent Mobility Design Centre

Intelligent Mobility Design Centre

The Intelligent Mobility Design Centre (IMDC) leads research at the intersection of people, mobility and technology within a complex and changing urban and global environment.

3D Printed Textile by Marie Holm, 2018 (Photographer: Anna Winter)

Materials Science Research Centre

Research in the Materials Science Research Centre focuses on the invention and the experience of materials to address real world challenges, specifically environmental sustainability, and human health and wellbeing.

RCA Autonomous Repair Arm and User Interface

RCA Robotics Laboratory

Combining creative techniques, mechanisms and functions from nature and art, and approaches from the experimental sciences, the RCA Robotics Laboratory develops new robotic technologies enhancing access, safety and performance in a wide range of industrial applications.

Computer Science Research Centre

Computer Science Research Centre

Enabling cutting-edge research and innovation at the interface between art, design and computer science with immediate and tangible impact. The Computer Science Research Centre pioneers interdisciplinary research in Intelligent Human-Computer Interaction (IHCI), including in priority research areas such as Computer Graphics and Visualisations, Smart and Interactive Technologies, Artificial Intelligence, and Information Systems.