Supply Chains

SC 1: All-Weather Automated Machinery and Transportation

Mission 

To enhance the performance, safety, and efficiency of automated machinery and transportation in all weather conditions by leveraging state-of-the-art AI algorithms and advanced sensing technologies. 

Vision  

  1. Enhanced Performance in Adverse Weather 
  2. AI-Driven Cooperative Situational Awareness 
  3. Accurate Positioning in Adverse Conditions 
  4. Digital Twin for Remote Operations 

Impact 

  • Improved Safety and Efficiency: By enhancing performance in adverse weather conditions, the project will reduce the risk of accidents and increase overall efficiency for automated machinery and transportation systems.  
  • Enhanced Collaboration: AI-driven cooperative situational awareness will improve collaboration between machines, humans, and other stakeholders, leading to a more streamlined and efficient work environment. 

SC2: Digital manufacturing, robotics, and AI for low-emission buildings' construction

Mission 

To close the future gap of affordable inclusive mobility and work in a Society 5.0 by supporting an inclusiveness of robots and workers in order to approve manufacturing processes.  

Vision 

  1. Collaborative human-machine interactions through highly accurate sensor technologies.  
  2. Digital Twin for managing the construction lifecycle of near-zero emission buildings. 
  3. Leveraged Learning and Process Mining to analyse sensor data and production processes. 
  4. Highly accurate sensor technologies and AI for improved safety measures in robotics. 
  5. Digital Layer Technology (DLT) for assuring reusability, safety, and interoperability in human-machine interactions. 

Impact

  • Improved HMI in manufacturing thanks to highly accurate and responsive sensor solutions.  
  • Safe human-robot collaboration with heavy-duty robots.  
  • Fully digitalized process from plan to assembly to end users from the construction industry through the provision of digital twin. 
  • Enabling technology providers for semiconductors, electronics, and software solutions to introduce an innovative approach to the construction industry. 
  • Acceleration of the fulfilment of national policy objectives, especially in Germany, to build sustainable and affordable housing.

SC 3: Precise measurements for efficient, reliable and safe electric powertrains in transportation

Mission 

To improve existing components and develop substantially new ones using novel multi-physics sensors. This helps to gain the advantages of the quantum sensor, which are multi-domain nature, enabling to monitor temperature, current and magnetic field quantities with very high accuracy and in a wide frequency range.

Vision 

  1. Prototypes of electric drives utilizing novel minimally invasive sensors with high efficiency, reliability and safety and high precision of generated torque.  
  2. Beyond the state-of-the-art innovative concept of torque sensors based on tunable metamaterials with high EMC / immune to external EM-fields and exceptionally high resolution.  
  3. A modular, quantum sensor-enabled battery pack with AI-based digital twin for local and fleet-wide control  
  4. Adoption of SiC and GaN technology in automotive applications for high- and low-power applications. 

Impact  

  • Enhanced efficiency and safety in different kinds of torque measurements, particularly for the measurements of steering torque, powertrain torque and for collaborative robotics.  
  • Improved efficiency and performance in various fields of applications for torque sensors.  
  • Increased performance per mass ratio, improved lifetime and reduced waste. Prevention of thermal runaways and less dangerous heavy-duty trucks. 
  • Thanks to Gallium Nitride, major advantages for power systems in automotive applications; such as reduced size, reduced weight, reduced cost, and increased energy efficiency. 
  • Thanks to Silicon Carbide, major advantages for power devices with performances are clearly superior to those achievable with Silicon. 

SC 4: Emergent Automated Driving Systems for extrinsic efficiency in mobility

Mission 

To leverage various advanced technologies (V2X, AI and ADAS) and provide real-time information about the traffic situation and road conditions. Furthermore, to develop robust and reliable algorithms for predicting and analysing pedestrian movements and increase driving comfort and safety for passengers and all individuals on the road. 

Vision 

  1. Extrinsically efficient collaborative mobility by multi-channel cooperative sensing and communication. 
  2. Continuous automated operation of vehicles in difficult-to-handle situations. 
  3. Traffic flow optimization for increased safety and efficiency and reduced travel costs. 
  4. Estimate and provide the full coverage of road conditions to the oncoming traffic in a dynamical fashion.  
  5. Predict the vulnerable road users (VRUs) behaviour and adapt the driving strategy accordingly to improve their safety. 

Impact 

  • Traffic flow optimization in chosen situations based on traffic information, by utilizing V2X communication channels.  
  • A more precise estimation of road conditions can also be provided for oncoming traffic.  
  • Based on road conditions, drivers are provided with recommendations on how to adapt to the driving style.  
  • Sensing the vulnerable road users (VRUs) and prediction of their behaviour.

SC 5: Multi-agent and Cooperative Sensing & Control in Emergency Response Applications

Mission 

To explore the use of cooperative multi-agent systems to assist in detection and rescue of survivors in disaster-stricken areas via emergent sensing techniques for scene analysis, vital signs monitoring, and emergency response. 

Vision 

  1. Highly efficient search and rescue (SAR) missions based on algorithms for systems utilizing multiple agents and capable of supporting remote emergency medicine analysis through vital signs monitoring. 
  2. Safety, functionality, reliability, and affordability through sensor collaboration (e.g., time of flight sensor, radar, IR Camera, etc.)  
  3. Distributed sensors and control for regulating/optimizing global system parameters and variables.  
  4. Collaborative mission and resource allocation and coordination of SAR platforms and systems. 

Impact 

  • Incorporate swarm intelligence and emerging systems which are upcoming methods to coordinate cooperative systems.  
  • The principles of swarm intelligence and emerging systems can also be employed in other systems of systems.  
  • This supports the leverage of synergies in several fields, like mobility, industry, and environment. 

SC 6: ECS for energy efficiency and distributed intelligent control

Mission 

To use wide bandgap switch technology (SiC & GaN) together with advanced digital control, to improve the efficiency of the converter and electrolysis process. In addition, to improve the understanding of reliability mechanisms and lifetime enhancing techniques in GaN-based components. Finally, to research the control of large-scale heat pump installations in expansive structures with various distinct and separated sections and centralized outside units. 

Vision  

  1. Application of wide bandgap device technology for increasing the energy efficiency of large-scale hydrogen production and consumption.
  2. Improve knowledge on wide bandgap device reliability, efficiency and lifetime to speed up GaN adoption.  
  3. Concepts for supplying the essential thermal comfort including water and air conditioning for emergent buildings or shelter and have optimized energy efficiency through intelligent heat pump systems. 

Impact 

  • The project is an opportunity to invest and increase effort in the field of green hydrogen applications. This will in turn improve the position of Europe in the hydrogen market and decrease the dependency of Europe on other parts of the world.  
  • The energy transition will be sped up by increasing the time to market for Prodrive and ITRI and speeding up the adoption of SiC and GaN technologies with increase efficiency and reliability in the energy domain.  
  • The modularized heat pumps, water supply and air supply system can be used in other regions with the same climate as Europe with high commercial value.