In the mid-1990s, researchers began applying evolutionary algorithms (EA) to new kinds of programmable electronic devices that allowed the functionality and physical connections of circuits to be modified both easily and inexpensively. The combination of these programmable devices (FPGAs or FPAAs, to name but two) and of evolutionary algorithms spawned a new research field: Evolvable Hardware. Since that time, the field has expanded beyond the use of EAs on simple electronic devices to encompass many different combinations of biologically-inspired algorithms and physical (real or simulated) devices. Held without interruption since 1995, ICES has become the leading conference in the field of evolvable hardware and systems. The 9th ICES conference, to be held in York, UK, in September 2010, hopes to build on the success of its predecessors by bringing together researchers who combine biologically inspired concepts with hardware and presenting the latest developments in the field.

The ICES 2010 conference is organised by the Intelligent Systems Group in the Department of Electronics of the University of York.

The topics to be covered include, (but are not limited to):
Evolutionary hardware design
Co-evolution of hybrid systems
Bio-inspired systems on GPUs
Intrinsic and extrinsic evolution
Hardware/software co-evolution
On-line hardware evolution
Evolutionary robotics
Autonomic and organic computing
Evolutionary circuit diagnostics and testing
Self-repairing and fault tolerant systems
Self-reconfigurable and adaptive hardware
Generative and developmental approaches
Real-world applications of evolvable hardware
MEMS and nanotechnology in evolvable hardware
Formal models for bio-inspired hardware systems
Novel devices/testbeds/tools for evolvable hardware


The conference will be held in the historic centre of York, a walled riverside city in the north of England, around two hours by rail from London, Edinburgh and Manchester. York is a small city with a rich 2000 years history, a popular tourist destination with a lively café bar and restaurant culture, offering a number of museums and galleries set around the Minster, one of Europe's largest gothic cathedrals.