Cooperation with Fraunhofer
Within the framework of the Pact for Research and Innovation, the Max Planck Society and Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft intend to continue and intensify their cooperation across research areas and disciplines. With its focus centred on application, the collaboration with Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft is of particular interest to the Max Planck Society. Against this background, the two organizations have been engaged in talks since spring 2004 in order to identify and support collaboration opportunities at the interface of application oriented research and basic research. This includes meanwhile the fields of computer science, materials science / nanotechnology and biotechnology, as well as the area of regenerative energies and photonics. The aim of such a venture is to bring to application the knowledge resulting from collaborative efforts, thereby making a direct contribution to the development of new technologies.
MaxwellSuits – ultra-lightweight support clothing for robot-based assistance
Around 60 years ago, researchers developed the first wearable robot that works with the body rather than replacing it. The aim was to combine mechanical power and precision with human versatility in order to support people in heavy physical work, in old age, or during rehabilitation after an injury. Wearable robots – now mostly known as exoskeletons – consist of rigid limbs and mechanical joints. They are increasingly being used, for example in clinical rehabilitation. However, they are rigid, heavy, bulky, and expensive, which limits both their acceptance and functionality. This is why so-called exosuits are gaining in importance: soft, clothing-like robots. They use flexible materials, are lighter, more adaptable, and more comfortable than exoskeletons, do not impair mobility, and can be worn discreetly under clothing. The "MaxwellSuits" project aims to launch the next generation of exosuits: they are to be lighter, softer, safer, and more powerful. MaxwellSuits combines the expertise of the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation in the development of exoskeletons using simulations with the research of the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems on soft actuators. Actuators convert electrical impulses into mechanical motion. In the MaxwellSuits actuators, an external electric field is applied to oil-filled pockets consisting of thin plastic films. The resulting Maxwell voltage causes the pockets to deform, leading to a muscle-like contraction. The MaxwellSuits team wants to develop exosuits that preventively stabilize the torso and provide motor support for the ankle joint. They also plan to create a structured development process for exosuits that can be reliably repeated with the help of simulations and real-world tests.
Participating Institutes:
Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA
Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems
Duration 2023 – 2027
SAPs4Tissue – Self-assembling biologically active peptide nanofibrils for the biomimetic design of functional cell niches in human tissue models
Artificial organs and tissues could reduce the number of animal experiments required in the development of new drugs. The artificial cell structures are generated from human induced pluripotent stem cells on extracellular matrices (ECM) that are specific to the respective organs and significantly determine their development, functionality, and regenerative capacity. The SAPs4Tissue team uses biologically active self-assembling peptide nanofibrils (SAP) for the ECM, which self-organize into larger structures. With the help of these SAPs, organ development could be better controlled than with the ECMs used today, because their physical and biochemical properties can be specifically adjusted by varying their chemical composition and structure. In this project, the researchers aim to identify biologically active SAPs in an automated screening process and elucidate their effect on the development of specific organs, ultimately creating a library of SAPs for organ cultivation. Based on these findings, the team will use SAP to generate intestinal epithelial cells from induced pluripotent stem cells and investigate their suitability for research into intestinal diseases and the testing of pharmaceutical agents.
Participating Institutes:
Fraunhofer Translational Center Regenerative Therapies TLC-RT
Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research
Duration 2023 – 2026
RICIMER – Roman-inspired concrete innovation by multi-analytical enhanced Research
A building material from ancient Rome continues to set the benchmark to this very day. The Romans used self-healing, earthquake-proof concrete to build structures such as the dome of the Pantheon by mixing in volcanic ash rather than Portland cement. This method generates far fewer CO2 emissions than the concrete produced today. The Ricimer team now wants to re-discover the formula for this building material, which was lost in the Middle Ages. One reason for this is that volcanic ash is similar to the melt products from municipal incineration ashes, which could be turned into a useful product in concrete production. By developing alternative building materials, the researchers want to help establish a sustainable closed-loop economy and reduce global CO2 emissions. To successfully use the slag from incineration plants to replace cement, the researchers will first take a closer look at the complex microstructure of Roman concrete and investigate which factors influence the structure and give the concrete its self-healing and other properties. This research should then provide an insight into how slag needs to be processed to create concrete similar to the building material used in ancient times.
Participating Institutes:
Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics – IBP
Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research
Duration 2022 – 2026
LAR3S – Laser-generated, three-dimensional photonic components
Optical data exchange and processing are becoming increasingly widespread. What's more, the success of quantum information processing is reliant on the availability of photonic components that can transport, shape, store, and filter light signals with high spectral selectivity. These kinds of components are also useful for spectroscopic techniques in basic research and optical sensors. To make this a reality, the partners in the LAR3S project are developing methods to manufacture microresonators and photonic-crystal fibers (PCF) that will open the door to new possibilities in optical signal processing. Microresonators are annular components that can store and modulate light, which researchers now want to manufacture by combining the selective laser-induced etching method with laser polishing. The goal is to create resonators that are better able to store light and use other non-annular geometries, such as in the form of a Möbius strip or the figure eight, to allow new functions to be integrated when processing light. Besides this, the researchers are also looking to improve and enhance the properties and functions of PCFs by using a new manufacturing method. PCFs use cavities in a fiber-optic core to guide and modulate light. Researchers now want to manufacture the glass rods from which the fibers are drawn by drilling the cavities in a fused silica rod using the inverse laser drilling technique instead of laboriously assembling the precursors of the fibers from glass capillaries. This will make it possible to create PCFs with new geometries and new properties.
Participating Institutes:
Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light
Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology ILT
Fraunhofer Institute for Silicate Research ISC
Duration: 2022 – 2025
GT-4-ET – Glass technologies for the Einstein telescope
The detection of gravitational waves in 2015 opened up a whole new world of sensory impressions in astronomy. While it was previously only possible to explore visible cosmic processes, events can now, in a sense, also be heard through tiny distortions in spacetime. This includes phenomena that are otherwise invisible. But it takes very keen ears to pick up these extremely weak gravitational waves. The researchers from the GT-4-ET project want to help significantly improve the hearing of the planned Einstein Telescope in comparison to current gravitational wave detectors. One approach is to cushion the detector even better against vibrations in the ground. To achieve this goal, the team is developing sensors that will provide extremely precise measurements of the movements of the suspended, roughly 200-kilogram, glass mirror. These movements will then be actively suppressed. What's more, GT-4-ET is targeting a new method for measuring tiny fluctuations in laser power and directly compensating for these fluctuations in an integrated system. This will allow the researchers to reduce the noise generated by the detector, which can currently only detect particularly strong signals. Both the motion sensors and noise suppression require the use of new technologies to manufacture the sensors as well as other elements. These technologies could then have applications beyond gravitational wave astronomy in other areas that demand extremely high precision, such as in other fields of astronomy as well as drilling equipment in mining or quantum communication.
Participating Institutes:
Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics (Albert Einstein Institute)
Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering, IOF
Duration: 2022 – 2026
NeuroHum - Neurocognitively-guided modeling of virtual humans for enhanced realism in immersive media
Getting something almost right is often scant comfort. There is not much use in virtual humans almost looking real. After all, that's when they have a more unsettling effect than a stylized cartoon character. Better knowledge of which attributes of an avatar cause this uncomfortable feeling should help to create realistic virtual humans. These could then be used in areas such as animated films, computer games, and immersive media with virtual or augmented reality in which users can immerse themselves. Which attributes of the face, gestures, or posture and movement do computer graphic artists need to devote more attention to in future? To answer this question, the project partners will first conduct neurocognitive experiments using virtual reality to analyze how the human brain reacts to certain differences from a photorealistic figure. This will also teach them more about how we perceive people under natural conditions.
Participating Institutes:
Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications, Heinrich Hertz Institute (HHI)
Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences
Duration: 2021 – 2025