The diagnosis determines everything that subsequently happens by way of medical treatment. Fraunhofer research scientists are therefore seeking to provide physicians with optimal support in this task. They are developing new diagnosis techniques, including an automated system for measuring blood counts.

Through the combination of life sciences with microsystems to create ‘lifetronics’, our scientists are developing new solutions including systems for the continuous mobile monitoring of physiological functions such as heart activity, temperature and respiration.

Thanks to numerous innovations, surgical interventions are less invasive than they used to be. The laser is particularly appreciated as a surgical instrument because of its precision and targeted effect. Special endoscopes and imaging systems enable surgeons to safely operate in highly sensitive zones such as the brain. Each new technology which supports the operating surgeon simplifies and accelerates the intervention and thus benefits the patient.

Many diseases demand a long and difficult course of treatment. Fraunhofer research therefore aims to offer the best possible support to patients and physicians, for example in the form of high-precision, non-invasive instruments and processes for the local destruction of tumors.

Prosthetics, including prosthetic dentistry, is a wide area of medicine which many people encounter. It focuses on esthetic factors and maximum durability, to be achieved at the lowest possible cost. To meet these requirements, research scientists apply the latest techniques in production technology. Neuroprosthetics – in which nerve fibers are connected to electronic circuits – will appreciably expand the range of treatment options.

Pharmaceutical research is expensive. It can take up to ten years investigating around 10,000 substances before a drug is approved. Modern technologies and advanced techniques such as translational medicine are helping to speed up this process and make it more efficient.

The experts simulate many possible scenarios in order to identify potential risks and to draw up detailed strategic action plans. They are developing systems, for example, which collect environmental data and sound the alarm if any hazardous substances are detected. In a few years’ time, highly sensitive sniffer devices could replace the present physical checks at airports. Without noticing, passengers would walk past sensors checking them for radioactive, chemical, biological and explosive substances as well as for metal objects.

When disaster strikes, the police and rescue services have to arrive quickly and take decisions on the spot. In order to do so they require reliable information. Coordinating operations by two-way radio and searching for information in card files and data sheets cost valuable time. Innovative emergency management systems enable rescue teams to call up all the information they require on PCs and PDAs. If conditions are too dangerous for people, robots equipped with cameras and measuring instruments roll into the danger zone and transmit data to the control center.

Our quasi-dependence on information technology not only applies to emergency situations but also to everyday life. Computers and telephone lines are essential to every company, bank, hospital and energy supplier. Our dependence on this infrastructure increases the importance of security and reliability, because the many and varied channels of communication on which it depends are vulnerable to attack.

Scientists bear a great responsibility, as they develop security concepts which protect confidential data. We have become accustomed to using passwords, PIN numbers and ID cards to prevent uninvited guests from logging onto our computer or bank account. Increasing use is being made of biometric systems as a means of authenticating access to data and sensitive areas of buildings. Invisible to us, these data are protected by complex software architectures and encryption systems.

Brave new media world: Cable clutter and interface problems will soon be a thing of the past. We are working on the living room of the future, where all the different appliances will be wirelessly connected and will be simplicity itself to operate. New video and sound transmission technologies will ensure optimal quality, irrespective of whether films are viewed on huge flat-screen TVs or on a PC. 3-D displays and interactive projections will offer excellent entertainment.

A new standard compresses video data to about half the present size – opening the way for mobile TV. This makes it possible to watch live events, film trailers and news in good quality even on a cell phone. The technology can also be used to warn mobile users of bad weather and floods wherever they might be, giving them enough time to take precautions.

Mobility widens people’s horizons: Small children gleefully dart about the house on their Bobbycars; later they learn to ride a bike and their radius of action expands, and as soon as they grow up they want to drive fast cars or powerful motor bikes and discover the world.

If the forecasts are correct, the number of automobiles in Germany will rise to 50 million by the year 2015. At the same time, goods traffic will increase by 60 percent, because in the age of globalization more and more products – from refrigerators and cameras to tropical fruit and jeans – travel thousands of miles before they reach the consumer.

In order for people and goods to reach their destinations quickly in the future, Fraunhofer researchers are developing technologies that will enable drivers to avoid traffic jams and accidents, encourage wider use of public transportation, and optimize the flow of merchandise.

Simulation systems allow the effects of planned construction sites, new roads and routes to be visualized before they are built. The new software enables traffic planners to optimize their development projects long before the excavators and bulldozers set to work.

If traffic jams nevertheless occur, intelligent navigation systems which constantly receive and process the latest traffic information will help drivers to avoid them. The new systems can analyze several alternative routes using different modes of transportation. They then indicate the quickest route, taking into account the time of day and traffic situation.

Mobility is not possible without some risk, but technical developments can achieve enormous improvements in safety. Fraunhofer researchers are testing the reliability of materials used in automobile construction. And they are conducting work on innovative safety concepts – for example on a new, intelligent side impact protection system for automobiles.

Buildings hold massive energy-saving potential. About one third of the energy consumed in Germany is used for the heating and air-conditioning of homes and offices. With intelligent building technology, energy consumption can be reduced by up to 40 percent. Houses built before 1983 are particularly profligate energy-wasters – they need more than 20 liters of heating oil per square meter and year. Houses built today need just one third of that. The low-energy and ‘three-liter’ houses developed by Fraunhofer scientists and engineers consume even less energy.

Fuel cells work extremely efficiently. They convert chemical energy directly into power and heat – with hardly any emissions and an electrical yield in the region of 50 percent. If the fuel cells are installed inside a house, the heat they generate can also be used, which increases the total efficiency to 80 percent.

Using energy sparingly is one step towards achieving a sustainable energy supply. Over the long term, however, renewable energy sources such as the sun, wind and biomass must be used as direct sources. Wind power is currently the most important form of renewable energy used in power generation. But at which sites does enough wind blow? How should the turbines be designed? What stresses will they have to withstand? What requirements will offshore facilities have to meet? Our engineers and scientists provide answers to these questions.

The sun is a gigantic and virtually inexhaustible power source. In just one hour it delivers as much energy as is consumed on Earth in one year. Photovoltaic systems and solar thermal power plants make it possible to utilize the sun’s energy. Our scientists and engineers have conducted extensive research on the fundamental principles. Now they are developing new, even more powerful and economical systems, such as highly efficient solar cells, and are also studying the use of metallurgical silicon.

Metrology has an essential role to play in protecting the environment. It enables us to identify potential and actual problem areas, assess the need for action, and determine what has to be done. By developing solutions such as an analysis laboratory miniaturized to the size of a microchip and portable spectrometers, Fraunhofer scientists and engineers can provide rapidly deployable instruments for use anywhere in any situation.

Certain toxic materials in electronic equipment have prompted the introduction of laws requiring manufacturers to take their products back for disposal at the end of their service life. Foresighted manufacturers integrate recyclability into the design of their products. Modular design and the use of less toxic substitute materials, for example, reduce the problems arising and the cost involved.

Noise pollution is a feature of modern life which affects people personally and directly, damaging their health and impacting their lives. Fraunhofer researchers are working on promising solutions, including active vibration damping by means of adaptronics, which attacks a great deal of this noise at its mechanical source.

The best way to reduce industrial pollution is to design processes that prevent the emission of pollutants from the outset. This is where the skills of Fraunhofer’s process engineering experts can be applied to great effect. In numerous projects, they have succeeded in optimizing processes to reduce the consumption of resources and lower emissions, thereby protecting the environment while at the same time cutting costs.