WiTraM – Knowledge Transfer Model

 

Development of a portable transfer model »science – market – provider« using the example of innovative components for the control of traffic hubs

 

Objectives

Knowledge and technology transfer between research institutions and SMEs is often only happening punctually. The project seeks to enhance this transfer with an integrated approach, designing a novel transfer model »science – market – provider« and testing it using an example from the future market of transport and environment.

The core idea of the transfer strategy is to focus on market-ready products and the establishment of a sustainable network of partners. Know-how from research institutions is released to a transfer lab at an early stage and thus made available for evaluation and further development by interested developers (SMEs) and users. Ideally, the future users pick up new knowledge and use it, for instance, in their requests for tender regarding new or replacement investments.

Without this quick and direct knowledge transfer to both the developers and the users, requests for tenders, for instance, do not reflect the current state of research, but only the well-known state of the art and thus do not trigger product innovations. The project widens existing bilateral transfer strategies between research and product developers to a trilateral transfer model between research institutions, product developers and users. 

Technology transfer shall thereby take place according to a systematic transfer method which can be translated to other application scenarios. Personal and objective barriers can be overcome for all involved parties. 

Funding

The project was funded from July 2008 to December 2010 within the innovation contest

»Economy meets Research«

of the German Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Development. 

Partners

  • Technische Universität Dresden, Institute of Railway Systems and Public Transport, Chair of Railway Transport, Urban and Regional Public Transport
  • dresden elektronik ingenieurtechnik GmbH
  • Ingenieurgesellschaft Zuverlässigkeit und Prozessmodellierung Dresden
  • Dresdner Verkehrsbetriebe AG