GBS Secures Training in Image Processing at TU Ilmenau

Four Regional Companies Finance Endowed Professorship in Industrial Image Processing at TU Ilmenau

Since the winter semester 2014/15, four companies from the region — TechnoTeam Ilmenau, Vision&Control Suhl, Steinbeis Quality Assurance and Image Processing Ilmenau, and Gesellschaft für Bild- und Signalverarbeitung (GBS) mbH — have been financing an endowed professorship in Industrial Image Processing at TU Ilmenau.

The goal of the sponsoring companies was and remains to continue the interdisciplinary education of engineers in the field of industrial image processing at TU Ilmenau. The demand for well-trained engineers in this field will continue to increase with ongoing automation and digitalization. Industrial image processing is an interdisciplinary science involving optics, electronics, lighting technology, and computer science. Therefore, the study program Optical System Technology/Optronics, supported by the department, was initiated at TU Ilmenau.

The department Quality Assurance and Industrial Image Processing, to which the endowed professorship is assigned, conducts both fundamental industrial research and applied research in industrial image processing. Methods, algorithms, and system engineering solutions for image acquisition, processing, and evaluation are developed, with applications particularly in quality assurance and process control in production, robotics, food industry, construction, medical technology, and security technology.

Prof. Notni, holder of this endowed professorship, is also head of the Optical Systems department at the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering (IOF) in Jena.

On October 19, 2015, Prof. Notni invited the sponsors to Jena to present his work at IOF and to review his activities in his first year at TU Ilmenau. The combination of his activities at TU Ilmenau and IOF creates very interesting synergies. Together with the sponsoring companies, Prof. Notni’s department, and IOF, a number of joint research projects are being conducted. Currently, 22 students are engaged in various activities at IOF (internships, bachelor, master theses). At TU Ilmenau, Prof. Notni’s department has also already secured significant third-party funding for research projects. Thus, the department is among the leading ones at TU Ilmenau.

After a presentation of the Fraunhofer Institute, especially the Optical Systems department, the representatives of the sponsoring companies were able to visit the laboratories at the institute and gain insight into the excellent research and development, particularly in fast 3-dimensional metrology and stray light metrology.

During the discussion, it was established that there is a high demand for engineers, both among the sponsoring companies and nationwide in Germany. Currently, German universities cannot meet this demand. A major reason is the insufficient number of applicants for engineering degree programs, including Optical System Technology/Optronics. Therefore, it is strongly recommended that technically interested young people consider technical degree programs. Especially in Thuringia, in the technology triangle Jena-Erfurt-Ilmenau, good opportunities for attractive jobs are expected now and in the future.