Fraunhofer Institute for Communication, Information Processing and Ergonomics FKIE
Fraunhofer Institute for Communication, Information Processing and Ergonomics FKIE

Aviation and Space

Military and civil aviation stand for cutting-edge technology and innovation. Information and communications technologies are decisive for both system manufacturers and system integrators, as well as industrial service providers.

In this field, the Fraunhofer FKIE bundles all of the relevant activities of its aerospace-related scientific departments and combines specific technical competencies with a profound understanding of the application area. There is a special emphasis on near real-time, interactive situation management at airports. Monitoring, coordination and management are essential in this field due to the heterogeneous system landscape, complex process dependencies, and interference factors that are difficult to anticipate.

Another critical area of work is concerned with the digitalization and integration of data in joint aerospace activities. The focus is on making the most of the opportunities digitalization offers for the optimization of process chains across organizations. This concretely affects cooperation between airlines, airports, ground transportation services, and a range of IT and information service providers. The Bundeswehr in particular relies on the work of the Fraunhofer FKIE to protect its helicopters from enemy fire. Specifically, this involves sensor payloads and fusion concepts for early threat detection.

 

© © aneese/123RF

New threat dimension from the air

Easy and inexpensive access to drones has opened up new attack options for criminals and terrorists, confronting civil security agencies (collectively known as in German as »BOS«) with new challenges. To support these agencies, a German-Austrian joint project called »AMBOS« is currently developing a system to reliably detect drones and, if necessary, effectively defend against them.

More Info
 

© Fraunhofer FKIE

Aerial reconnaissance to protect convoys

In urban environments in particular, protecting convoys is a difficult task. There are too many buildings and obstacles that offer potential attackers opportunities for concealment. The Fraunhofer FKIE has created a reconnaissance system that helps provide a continuous overall situational picture for the Forward Air Controller (FAC) accompanying the convoy and thus detect, track and identify potential threats.

More Info

© Uwe Bellhäuser

Process optimization in aviation

»Intelsys« is a modular and flexibly expandable decision support system that integrates information from disparate data sources to create a common geo-referenced operational picture. An ergonomically optimized operational picture provides users in the complex, safety-critical airport environment with all of the information they need to perform their tasks. The system has already been successfully deployed at the Cologne/Bonn Airport.