Starting a research project can be a daunting task. However, as with all endeavourments the first steps are detrimental.
Here are some basic steps you can follow as a general guideline:

1. Describe your project/idea with no more than five keywords.
2. Use these keywords to search for projects and publications related to your project
   To do so, use google (for projects search) and see my search for publications section (for papers search).
• If you happen to be fluent in another language than English, make sure to conduct a project search in that language as well (notably in Japanese, French and German)
3. For projects : Assess from the website, the originality and relevance of the project. How up to date is the site, the reputation of the author and the overall quality of the work. If the project is of no relevance then ignore it, otherwise bookmark it (see 5)
4. For papers: Check the title. If no relevance to your interests ignore. otherwise, check the abstracts. If the abstract show a paper with no relevance ignore it. otherwise, download the paper (see 5) and read it.
5. In case of doubt, better be safe so if you cannot conclude the relevance of a project or a paper, better bookmark or download it. Try classifying your results into directly relevant, relevant, could be relevant. Use this classification to prioritise our work.
6. Now you have a first set of results for your survey of the field. Reading and investigating all this material should give you a clearer idea about:
   1. You field of interest
   2. The state of the art
   3. Who are the players in your field
   4. Which conferences, journals and other publications are of interest
7. Write a first report to help you ascertain your knowledge.
8. Further your expertise by checking the various references in the papers you have read and the links in the websites you have visited.
9. Several itterations/cycles from 1 till 8 might be necessary over several months, and you will acquire depth and expertise in your field!