FREYA · Project

Connecting Research Identifiers So You Can Actually Find and Track Scientific Results

digitalTestedTRL 6Thin data (2/5)

Imagine every research paper, dataset, and scientist had a unique barcode — like a product in a supermarket. Now imagine those barcodes were all linked together so you could scan one and instantly see everything connected to it. FREYA built exactly that: a system of connected digital identifiers that maps relationships between researchers, their data, publications, and institutions. Think of it as Google Maps but for navigating the world of scientific outputs.

By the numbers

EUR 4,998,650

EU funding for PID infrastructure development

consortium partners across the PID ecosystem

countries represented in the consortium

total project deliverables produced

TRL6

technology readiness level achieved for new PID prototypes

The business problem

What needed solving

Organizations that manage, publish, or consume research outputs — from publishers to pharma R&D teams — waste significant time and resources trying to trace connections between papers, datasets, researchers, and grants across disconnected systems. Without a unified way to link these resources, valuable research gets lost, duplicate work happens, and proving the impact of investments becomes nearly impossible.

The solution

What was built

FREYA built TRL6-level prototype infrastructure for persistent identifier services, including three core components: a PID Graph that maps relationships across different identifier systems, a PID Forum for community-driven governance of new identifier types, and a PID Commons model for long-term sustainability. The project produced 26 deliverables building on proven PID technologies.

Audience

Who needs this

Academic publishers needing to link articles, datasets, and author profiles automaticallyPharmaceutical and biotech companies running large-scale scientific literature and data scoutingResearch data repositories seeking interoperable metadata and tracking capabilitiesUniversity research offices needing to demonstrate and report research impactTechnology companies building research discovery or analytics platforms

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Scholarly Publishing

enterprise

Target: Academic publishers and content platforms managing large volumes of research outputs

If you are a publishing company struggling to link articles, datasets, and author profiles across fragmented systems — FREYA developed a PID Graph that connects persistent identifiers across 12 partner organizations in 6 countries. This means your platform can automatically surface related datasets, authors, and institutions for any publication, reducing manual curation and improving discoverability for paying subscribers.

Pharmaceutical R&D

enterprise

Target: Pharma and biotech companies with large-scale literature and data scouting operations

If you are a pharma R&D team spending weeks tracing who produced which dataset and where the underlying research data lives — FREYA built TRL6-level prototype infrastructure for persistent identifier services that map relationships between researchers, grants, datasets, and publications. This lets your scouts follow a single identifier to find all connected outputs, cutting literature review time significantly.

Research Data Management

any

Target: Universities, research institutions, and data repositories needing interoperable metadata systems

If you are a research institution managing thousands of datasets with no reliable way to track reuse or demonstrate impact — FREYA created an interconnected identifier infrastructure built on proven PID systems like DOIs. With 26 deliverables including governance models for long-term sustainability, this gives your repository standardized ways to register, link, and report on all research outputs.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What would it cost to implement these PID services?

FREYA was funded with EUR 4,998,650 across 12 partners, building on existing trusted PID systems (like DOIs). The core services were designed to be open infrastructure, so implementation costs would depend on integration scope. Based on available project data, pricing models for individual organizations are not specified.

Can this scale to handle millions of research outputs?

Yes. FREYA explicitly built on 'technologies and services that are already well proven' — including systems like DataCite and ORCID that already handle millions of identifiers globally. The PID Graph was designed to integrate across multiple PID systems at scale, covering 6 countries and multiple disciplines.

What about IP and licensing?

FREYA was a Research and Innovation Action (RIA) with open science at its core, aimed at building a component of the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC). The PID Commons governance model was designed around open, collaborative self-governance. Based on available project data, the infrastructure and standards are intended to be openly accessible.

Is this compatible with existing research management systems?

FREYA was specifically designed to integrate with established community-based services and the EOSC. The project built on existing trusted PID systems from its partners, meaning it connects to rather than replaces current infrastructure. The 12-partner consortium included major PID providers ensuring interoperability.

What is the current status and who maintains it?

The project closed in November 2020 after 3 years. The PID Commons governance structure was specifically created to ensure sustainability beyond the project's lifetime, with defined roles and responsibilities for ongoing maintenance. Key partner organizations like DataCite and ORCID continue operating these services.

Does this meet regulatory requirements for research data management?

FREYA was designed as a building block of the European Open Science Cloud, aligned with EU open science policy and FAIR data principles. The PID Forum was linked to the Research Data Alliance (RDA) for community oversight. Based on available project data, it supports compliance with EU-mandated open access and data management requirements.

Consortium

Who built it

The FREYA consortium of 12 partners across 6 countries (AU, CH, DE, NL, UK, US) is heavily research-oriented, with 5 research organizations and only 1 industrial partner (8% industry ratio). This reflects the infrastructure nature of the project — it builds foundational plumbing for the research ecosystem rather than a commercial product. The coordinator, UK Research and Innovation, is a major national funding body, giving the project institutional weight. With 2 universities, 4 other organizations (likely PID service providers like DataCite and ORCID), and 1 SME, the consortium covers the full PID value chain. For a business considering adoption, the low industry ratio means commercial use cases may need additional development, but the involvement of established PID operators means the technology is production-grade for research infrastructure.

UNITED KINGDOM RESEARCH AND INNOVATIONCoordinator · UK
KONINKLIJKE NEDERLANDSE AKADEMIE VAN WETENSCHAPPEN - KNAWparticipant · NL
EUROPEAN MOLECULAR BIOLOGY LABORATORYparticipant · DE
DATACITE-INTERNATIONAL DATA CITATION INITIATIVE EVparticipant · DE
UNIVERSITAET BREMENparticipant · DE
MONASH UNIVERSITYparticipant · AU
ORGANISATION EUROPEENNE POUR LA RECHERCHE NUCLEAIREparticipant · CH
THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARDparticipant · UK

How to reach the team

The coordinator is UK Research and Innovation. SciTransfer can help identify the right contact person for business inquiries.

Order a report on this consortium See UNITED KINGDOM RESEARCH AND INNOVATION profile →

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to explore how connected research identifiers can improve your data discovery or R&D scouting? SciTransfer can arrange an introduction to the FREYA team and help you assess fit for your organization.

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