Fraunhofer in the USA

Fraunhofer USA Digital Media Technologies DMT

Fraunhofer USA Digital Media Technologies DMT promotes and supports the audio and media technologies of Fraunhofer IIS in the United States. The Audio and Multimedia Group of Fraunhofer USA, Inc., markets state-of-the-art audio coding techniques and real-time multimedia systems. Working closely with the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS in Erlangen, Germany, Fraunhofer USA's Audio and Multimedia office in San Jose, California, markets Fraunhofer developments to American customers.

For over 30 years, they have been shaping the globally deployed standards and technologies in the fields of audio coding and moving picture production. Fraunhofer IIS systems and tools help create, transmit and provide excellent audio and video content as well as enable high-quality real-time communication. Today, almost all computers, mobile phones and consumer electronic devices are equipped with Fraunhofer IIS technologies and are used by billions of people around the world every day.

It all started with the creation of mp3, then evolved with the co-development of AAC and HE-AAC. Now the fourth generation of best-in-class audio technologies – MPEG-H Audio, EVS, LC3/LC3plus and xHE-AAC – elevates the media experience to new heights. In terms of audio signal processing, Symphoria and the Sonamic product family provide enveloping and enhanced sound in cars, while the upHear product family dramatically improves 3D audio playback or recording quality of professional and consumer devices. Fraunhofer technologies also power digital radio: first and foremost in the form of the ContentServer, combining audio encoding, multimedia data management and multiplexing. In the field of moving picture technologies, establishing the Digital Cinema Initiative test plan boosted the creation of professional tools for digital film and media production, such as easyDCP, Realception and JPEG XS.