Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Media Technology
| Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Media Technology IDMT | |
|---|---|
 Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Media Technology IDMT |
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| Category: | research Institute |
| Carrier: | Fraunhofer Society |
| Legal form of the carrier: | Registered association |
| Seat of the wearer: | Munich |
| Facility location: | Ilmenau |
| Branch offices: | Oldenburg |
| Type of research: | Applied research |
| Subjects: | Engineering |
| Areas of expertise: | Mathematics , computer science , media studies |
| Basic funding: | Federal government (90%), states (10%) |
| Management: | Joachim Bös |
| Employee: | approx. 100 (permanent staff) |
| Homepage: | www.idmt.fraunhofer.de |
The Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Media Technology IDMT is an institution of the Fraunhofer Society for the Promotion of Applied Research and is located in Ilmenau . Its activities can be assigned to applied research and development in the subjects of engineering and mathematics in the fields of computer science and media studies .
history
The history of the institute in Ilmenau begins in 2000 with the establishment of the Fraunhofer Working Group for Electronic Media Technology (AEMT) as a branch of the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS in Erlangen .
In the first few years, the working group developed a new sound system that enables extremely realistic audio playback in any room. The listening experience is based on the principle of sound field synthesis , which was invented at the TU Delft ( Netherlands ). The system was presented to the public for the first time in 2003.
On January 1, 2004, the branch was converted into an independent Fraunhofer Institute, and the IDMT became the 58th Fraunhofer Institute. Since June 2004 the institute has been located on the campus of the Technical University in Ilmenau.
In August 2008, the hearing, speech and audio technology project group was founded as a branch of the Fraunhofer IDMT in Oldenburg. The project group has been called the institute part since 2018. At the Hannover Messe 2019 , the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft and the Lower Saxony Ministry for Science and Culture (MWK) signed a declaration of intent for the branch in order to transfer it to its own Fraunhofer Institute for Hearing, Speech and Neurotechnology.
Research and Development
The key topic of Fraunhofer IDMT is the development of new media technologies for professional markets and for the entertainment sector.
Research is carried out in the following business areas:
- Acoustics
The Acoustics division develops 3D audio technologies and tools for the production and reproduction of spatial sound as well as for the virtual simulation and optimization of acoustic product properties. Current development work also deals with the control and design of miniaturized loudspeakers, among others based on MEMS technology.
- Media Management and Delivery M2D
The Media Management and Delivery business area offers solutions for the automatic annotation, search and quality control of audio and video material as well as for the management, processing and interactive use of audiovisual content.
- Industrial Media Applications IMA
The Industrial Media Applications IMA business area combines the years of expertise of Fraunhofer IDMT in the areas of intelligent acoustic measurement technology, audiovisual signal analysis, machine learning and security-related technologies and thus generates new solutions for use in industrial environments.
Hearing, speech and audio technology branch
The Hearing, Speech and Audio Technology division focuses its work on the transfer of research findings from the areas of human hearing perception and human-technology interaction into technological applications. The applied research also focuses on improving speech intelligibility, personalized audio reproduction and acoustic speech and event recognition. These focuses are applied in the areas of consumer electronics , traffic and automotive , production and telecommunications . Another focus is on mobile neurotechnologies for recording brain activity outside of the laboratory
The branch of the institute for transfer to its own Fraunhofer Institute for Hearing, Speech and Neurotechnology is funded by the Lower Saxony Ministry for Science and Culture and the Volkswagen Foundation.
3D sound
Of particular importance is the sound system developed in Ilmenau before the appointment to the Fraunhofer Institute for realistic audio playback in any room. The system with the name IOSONO is based on the principle of sound field or wave field synthesis and, with the help of many loudspeakers, creates a natural and spatial sound impression over almost the entire playback room. The new technology can be used wherever surfaces are to be exposed to natural sound. These include theaters, live stages, multimedia installations, discos, planetariums and virtual reality applications. The particular advantage of this technology is that a natural spatial sound impression is possible over a large area of the reproduction room.
A company called IOSONO GmbH was founded as a spin-off in December 2004 to market the system's hardware and software worldwide . The spin-off has been part of Barco since September 2014 . The place of business is Das KinderMedienZentrum Erfurt.
- The system was set up at the Bregenz Festival in 2004 . To implement the sound concept, 820 loudspeakers were installed around the audience area of the floating stage.
- Since July 13, 2006 the Mörbisch Seefestspiele on the Mörbisch floating stage on Lake Neusiedl have been equipped with IOSONO technology. Each of the approximately 6,200 listeners can perceive the singing of the artists and their movements on the stage from the direction from which they actually come. The lake stage is the largest open-air operetta stage in the world.
Fraunhofer IDMT continues to work on the development of three-dimensional sound reinforcement solutions and with SpatialSound Wave is now offering a compact solution that can be easily integrated into existing systems as an add-on component with a significantly reduced loudspeaker setup.
Cooperations
Fraunhofer IDMT is a member of various Fraunhofer-internal competence networks.
- As a member of the Fraunhofer Digital Media Alliance , an amalgamation of four Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft institutions, the institute works on key components for digital cinema . The spectrum of work ranges from camera and storage technology to innovative 3D audio systems, tracking systems for virtual studios, projection and transmission technology to system solutions for digital archiving .
- The Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) alliance comprises 13 institutes that work on assisted living and personal health solutions.
In addition to internal networks, Fraunhofer IDMT works closely with university institutions. These include a. the Electronic Media Technology department of the Technical University of Ilmenau, which covers the basic research needs of the Fraunhofer IDMT and is supported by the double functions of the institute director (also head of the department). The IDMT is also involved in the inter-faculty Institute for Media and Mobile Communication IMMK. The aim of the IMMK is to conduct research together across faculties and to train students in an interdisciplinary manner. The main topics are media technologies and their applications, mobile communication, production and reception of media content and wireless transmission and sensors.
There are also close cooperations with the Oldenburg Jade University , the Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg and the Berlin University of the Arts . The hearing, speech and audio technology department is also part of the " Hearing4All " cluster of excellence at the University of Oldenburg.
Infrastructure
More than 100 people are employed at Fraunhofer IDMT, the majority of whom are scientists and technicians. There are also over 60 student assistants and graduate students. The operating budget of Fraunhofer IDMT (as of 2013) consists of around 45 percent public and other income, 18 percent industrial income and 37 percent basic funding from the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft.
The Fraunhofer IDMT has been headed by Joachim Bös since October 1, 2019.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Fraunhofer IDMT: The hearing, speech and audio technology project group in Oldenburg is to become the Fraunhofer Institute. In: https://www.idmt.fraunhofer.de/ . Fraunhofer IDMT, April 2, 2019, accessed on June 22, 2020 .
- ↑ SpatialSound Wave , accessed November 8, 2017
- ^ Allianz Ambient Assisted Living , accessed on November 8, 2017
- ^ Institute for Media and Mobile Communication IMMK , accessed on August 11, 2015
Coordinates: 50 ° 41 ′ 1 ″ N , 10 ° 55 ′ 55.9 ″ E