About me

My name is Maxim Van de Wynckel, and I am a PhD candidate at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel in the Web & Information Systems Engineering (WISE) Lab. I live in Brussels, Belgium. My research primarily focuses on hybrid and indoor positioning, interoperability, linked data, and methods for discovering services. Early in my career, I developed a fascination for integrating various technologies. Location data, in particular, offers a rich source for implicit human-computer interaction. However, I observed significant challenges in enabling seamless communication between different technologies. My focus on interoperability aims to bridge these gaps, facilitating effective and beneficial connections.

I graduated with great distinction from the Erasmushogeschool Brussels in 2016, earning a Bachelor's degree in Applied Computer Science. Subsequently, I obtained a Master of Science in Applied Computer Science at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel in 2019, also with great distinction. My Master's thesis, titled Indoor Navigation by Centralized Tracking, laid the foundation for my PhD research. Under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Beat Signer, I am investigating hybrid positioning systems and the interoperability of these systems.

I am a key contributor to the development of the open-source hybrid positioning system, OpenHPS, which was launched in 2020. In 2022, I designed the POSO ontology, providing a vocabulary for describing positioning systems, their algorithms, and the data they produce. In 2023, I introduced the SemBeacon Bluetooth Low Energy specification, aimed at creating semantic beacons for tracking and describing persons, objects, and environments. I am currently working towards my dissertation on the Discoverability and Interoperability of Indoor Positioning Systems, which I expect to defend before the summer of 2025.

In addition to my PhD research, I serve as a teaching assistant for various bachelor and master courses, including Web Technologies, Databases, Next Generation User Interfaces, and Advanced Topics in Big Data. I have also previously assisted in courses such as Information Visualisation and Open Information Systems. Furthermore, I supervise Bachelor and Master theses related to my research domain.

My current hobbies include addative manufacturing, electronics, and scuba diving. I am the creator and maintainer of the current website of the V.U.B. Diving Center vzw and I also help beginning divers to prepare their pool-exercises. I take pictures during some of my dives, for a small selection of those pictures, check my Adobe Portfolio here.