Fraunhofer Institute for Transportation and Infrastructure Systems IVI

July 5, 2017

Digitization, electrification, autonomous and self-organized work in the fields – even in the seemingly archaic field of agriculture, extensive transformation processes are currently underway and ready to meet the challenges of the next industrial revolution. These developments will outshine many others, given their global relevance in the face of a predicted world population of almost 10 billion people. At that time, feeding the world will only be possible by means of a highly efficient and sustainable agriculture. The research project »Feldschwarm^®« (field swarm), funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) as an innovative regional growth core with a total of 8 million €, will contribute to these developments. After several years of thorough preparations, the project has finally been kicked-off as the grant notifications were handed over in Dresden’s »Transparent Factory« on 5^th July. In collaboration with the international market leader John Deere, Saxon SMEs, research institutes of the TU Dresden and the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft will develop highly flexible and automated agricultural machinery that protect the soil and build upon renewable propulsion technologies. With a total budget of 12 million €, the 3-year project is one of the most voluminous R&D project in Saxon agricultural engineering.

The »Germany – Land of Ideas« initiative and the German Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure have announced 10 outstanding digital innovations for safe mobility. As one of the winners, the research project »FAPS – Fraunhofer IVI Accident Prevention School« was honored as lighthouse project for intelligent mobility.

Press release

Prize winner website (in German)

Based on results of the European research project »European Bus System of the Future – EBSF«, the follow-up project EBSF 2 started in May 2015. More than 40 partners pool their expertise to develop and test technologies for the bus transport of tomorrow. The Fraunhofer IVI contributes to two larger research topics. One of them is concerned with the needs-based adaption of the length of city buses during regular operation. It proposes to split a multi-unit bus so that the trailer can be detached at the articulation joint and the remaining segment can be used independently. The implementation was carried out in co-operation with Hübner GmbH, the world’s leading manufacturer of articulation systems.

The innovative solution was officially demonstrated on June 21^st, 2017, using the AutoTram® Extra Grand. Numerous international guests came to visit the Fraunhofer IVI in Dresden to follow this presentation.

The project is funded within the European Research Framework Programme HORIZON 2020 and coordinated by UITP.

Under the motto »a night creating knowledge«, numerous research-related institutions opened their doors to welcome visitors on Dresden’s Science Night for the 15^th time. The Fraunhofer IVI also participated in the event by once more offering a diverse program.

In addition to a display on the history of computer engineering, which invited the visitors to dive into the world of abacuses and analog IT, the institute also presented the current Big Data trend in more detail. As an example, the project iSand demonstrated how information from social media sources can be processed for the use in disaster management. Another highlight for the visitors was the autartec® FreiLichtHaus. The house came to life by means of augmented reality, turning from a simple 2D print into a tangible, real object on the tablet screen. The Guide2Wear project sparked the audience’s interest by showing the potential of wearable devices in public transport navigation. The evening program was rounded off with a kids’ station offering little handicrafts projects and the opportunity to try the computer games of the parent generation.

On June 14, more than 50 experts from innovative logistics companies, electric vehicle manufacturers and related research institutions met during the industry-specific user’s day to discuss current challenges in electric freight traffic. The event was held in the city of Essen, for the first time in cooperation with the Haus der Technik e. V. In addition to this year’s main topics of financing and procurement, the participants debated vividly on new technological developments: »Introduction barriers – such as the battery prices, which are still too high – can be implemented in an economically feasible way by using suitable technical measures like ageing diagnosis«, Claudius Jehle says. He is manager of the Fraunhofer IVI’s group on Storage Systems and Converters. With its remote remote battery monitoring system, the institute is well equipped for the future requirements of electric logistics.    

• Press release (in German)

May 29-31, 2017

For 25 years now, Fraunhofer has been an established engine of progress in the federal states of Germany. No other research organization was so quickly and supportively present on site in the period of political and social upheaval in East Germany in 1989/1990. The Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft took the opportunity to celebrate this anniversary during the Annual Conference by hosting a public event in the city center of Dresden, as well as an interactive exhibition showcasing the organization’s research highlights.

On the evening of May 30, the »Joseph von Fraunhofer Prizes« awards ceremony was held. Since 1978, the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft has annually been honoring researchers for their outstanding scientific achievements solving application-oriented problems. This year, four awards of 50,000 euros each were presented. In addition, the event honored the winner of the 2017 Fraunhofer award »Human-Centered Technology«, a prize that is announced every two years. Guest speakers at the event included Stanislaw Tillich (Minister President of the Free State of Saxony) and Prof. Johanna Wanka (Federal Minister for Education and Research).

Award winners

Following the award ceremony, interested »night owls« were invited to join an interactive tour in Dresden’s city center. Actors played eager, curious science journalists who took the visitors on a journey through time. Prof. Matthias Klingner, Lars Seiffert (Director, Operations and HR of the Dresdner Verkehrsbetriebe AG) and Dr. Frank Dressel, a representative of the »Zukunftsstadt«, got together in a round of talks at the Albertinum to discuss mobility topics, including also the Saxon initiative »Synchronized Mobility 2023«. Altogether, a broad public audience had the chance to learn about the relevance of research and knowledge networks in a vivid and artistic manner.

Another highlight was the interactive anniversary exhibition »#real_digital: Creating values together«, showing important events and exemplary technologies of Fraunhofer research. The official opening of the exhibition took place on May 29 at the International Congress Center Dresden, featuring speeches by Prof. Reimund Neugebauer, President of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, and further high-profile guests.