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Fields of research:
- LiDAR
- radar
- camera
- Sensor data fusion
- Advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS)
Smart solutions for vehicle environment detection and distance measurement systems pave the way for safe traffic and form the basis for autonomous driving. An autonomously driving car can only move safely in traffic if it correctly and accurately detects its current environment with multiple 360° near and far-range sensors. This is achieved exclusively with the information from the vehicle's sensors.
LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) is a key technology for this. LiDAR systems measure the time it takes for the light emitted by a laser to be reflected by an object and detected by a sensor. LiDAR sensors provide essential information for object detection and collision avoidance by generating an exact 3D image of the vehicle's surroundings by measuring hundreds of thousands of distances per second. Combined with cameras and radar sensors, they perceive their surroundings, help with orientation, detect obstacles, and measure distances, thus ensuring greater safety and efficiency in complex environments and on busy roads.
Early warning system for detecting aquaplaning and black ice with Fraunhofer EMFT.
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Researchers at Fraunhofer EMFT are working on a project of the same name on so-called Cyber Physical Connectors, a new generation of active, "intelligent" connectors.
Universal radar modules for fully automated driving with Fraunhofer ENAS, Fraunhofer FHR, Leibniz IHP.
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An optical multi-sensor measurement system has been developed, which is capable of precise deformation measurements of boards mounted in automotive electronic control units (ECUs) from global level to local level.
The aim of the lead project "eHarsh" is to develop and provide a technology platform on the basis of which sensor systems, consisting of sensors and electronics, can be developed and manufactured for use in extremely harsh environments.
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Fraunhofer FHR has now developed a simulation tool that generates raw radar data and electromagnetically simulates time-dynamic processes – based on physical optics and, depending on the complexity, in real time. It is therefore ideally suited to replacing time-consuming test drives.
A radar target simulator was developed at FHR, with which the raw radar data, after further processing into object lists, can be played back to the radar sensors over-the-air.
In the KonSens - "Cooperating Sensor Systems" project, the consortium consisting of Fraunhofer FHR, IAIS, IVI and IIS researched the feasibility and benefits of networked sensor systems for the automated evaluation of intersections.
In the HORIS project, the Fraunhofer Institute for High Frequency Physics and Radar Techniques FHR, the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS, and the Fraunhofer Application Center "Connected Mobility and Infrastructure" have set themselves the goal of improving road safety – particularly in situations involving large numbers of road users.
What a human driver usually estimates with a glance it can only be carried out by means of sophisticated sensors in self-driving cars. Fraunhofer FHR has now investigated what radar sensors are able to do in this regard.
Together with RWTH Aachen University, Fraunhofer FHR has now developed a GPR (Ground Penetrating Radar) system that can be used to examine the track beds non-destructively and over their entire length. To do this, the radar system must be mounted on a mobile platform that can travel along the track and examine it.
Fraunhofer FHR is carrying out corresponding investigations for numerous customers. The measuring equipment can be used to professionally measure and characterize various material types – even those consisting of several different homogeneous layers.
The virtual testing environment ATRIUM, the German acronym for »automobile testing environment for radar in-the-loop testing and measurements« aims to change this – it is being developed at Fraunhofer FHR.
A novel radar system is capable of reliably locating drowning persons, as such providing valuable help for rescue missions. A first field test was extremely promising, but a lot of research work is still required until the system can be used routinely.
Recognizing obstacles on the road and along the roadside will be particularly important. A radar system is capable of recognizing even small obstacles and determining their heights at distances from 80 to 150 meters.
MELINDA enables long-range operation, simple implementation of glare suppression and potentially a small form factor.
Hydrogen detection for the early detection of fire and explosion hazards due to leaks in hydrogen tanks and pipes in the field of "mobility with fuel cells". Funded by the Federal Ministry of Economics (BMWI) - ZIM.
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Fraunhofer HHI uses the infrastructure and controlled environment of the BST to develop sensor systems for reliable characterization and early identification of safety-critical conditions.
The Energy Storage Sensor Technology group develops measurement systems which enable the most precise changes in state to be recorded and provided to the user.
The High-Performance Center "Digital Networking" pools the expertise of four Berlin Fraunhofer Institutes and supports the German economy and companies in the Berlin-Brandenburg region in realizing the potential of digitalization.
Fraunhofer IZM offers a complete development – from requirements, concept, manufacturing of sensor elements to packaging and test – of sensors for the measurement of physical parameters e.g. pressure, acceleration, force, gas concentration.
The combination of active or passive TSV silicon interposer wafers with cap wafers by wafer to wafer bonding technologies offers new possibilities for hermetic wafer level packaging of MEMS components.
Fraunhofer IZM focuses on the optimized design and characterization of RF/millimeter-wave radar modules using the M3 approach (methods, models, measures). Based on the application requirements, the implementation concept is developed in conjunction with the M3 approach.
Funded by the European Union and the Free State of Saxony as part of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).
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ThermOBS is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research as part of the "Mikroelektronik aus Deutschland - Innovationstreiber der Digitalisierung" program.
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Excellent accuracy laser projection for high quality optical sensing and measurement tasks . Fraunhofer ISIT has developed 1D and 2D quasistatic scanning mirrors with piezoelectric AlN and AlScN based actuation.
Among other things, Fraunhofer IMS offers the development of LiDAR (light detection and ranging) and IRFPA (infrared focal plane array) sensor systems and combines these with other sensor methods.
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According to the slogan "Research Together", the project "Next Level Photonics", between the Fraunhofer IMS, Fraunhofer ISIT and the highly endowed Kyoto University from Japan, is being established.
SPAD-based LiDAR systems are applicable in many different applications. Due to their single-photon sensitivity they are suitable for automotive long-range applications like driver assistances (e.g. emergency breaking systems) or autonomous driving to detect obstacles in the driveway of the car.
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The new compact LiDAR (light detection and ranging) camera Owl stands for fast and reliable distance measurements.
Within the ALBACOPTER® Lighthouse Project led by Fraunhofer IVI, an airborne experimental platform will be developed and approved for testing and demonstration flights that combines the VTOL capabilities of multicopters with the aerodynamic advantages of gliders.
A pixel-wise quality information given in addition to the resulting point cloud allows confident decision-making of automated systems.
To enable machine vision in three dimensions, a team of researchers at Fraunhofer IPMS is developing a »scanning eye«.
The project was funded under the Microsystems Framework Program (2004-2009) of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research. The project was supervised by VDI/VDE Innovation + Technik GmbH and coordinated by Robert Bosch GmbH.
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Current LIDAR scanning systems with electrostatic MEMS achieve a scan angle of 40° in both directions, while the new generation of piezoelectrically driven MEMS scanners from Fraunhofer ISIT can achieve extreme optical scan angles close to 180° due to the high torque provided by the piezoelectric material.
For this project, the Ferdinand Braun Institute supplied a pulsed laser source including control electronics, the Fraunhofer Institute for Microelectronic Circuits and Systems (IMS) developed a trapping optics with pre-processing electronics, and the Fraunhofer Institute for Silicon Technology (ISIT) produced the MEMS scanners.