The Technische Universität Ilmenau has just successfully completed the "Engineering for Smart Manufacturing (E4SM)" research project.In the interdisciplinary project, scientists, accompanied by an advisory board of top-class research institutions and companies, researched innovative technologies for the intelligent manufacturing and assembly of the future, focusing on the interaction between humans and machines.
Industry 4.0 - the intelligent networking of machines and processes in industry with the help of IT - was once upon a time: with the E4SM project, TU Ilmenau is entering the age of Industry 5.0, which puts people back at the center of manufacturing processes in industry and trade. With the help of artificial intelligence, people and machines are being adapted to each other in such a way that new production tasks can be solved faster and more efficiently than before.
Intelligent machines and robots that help people in industrial production - that was the vision of the E4SM project five years ago. The ambitious goal:The robots were to autonomously coordinate their own actions with those of humans, supported by AI. The focus was on the requirements and special features of the manufacturing and assembly processes of small and medium-sized companies, which predominate in Thuringia, a region dominated by SMEs.
Seven departments at TU Ilmenau worked closely with top-class research institutes and companies on the E4SM project: Honda Research Institute Europe, known for the autonomous humanoid robot "Asimo", Robert Bosch GmbH and the mechanical engineering company Henkel and Roth from Ilmenau with expertise in industrial assembly, the machine and plant designer LASO tech Systems from Suhl, which has extensive knowledge of welding techniques, the Ilmenau-based manufacturer of service robots and robot platforms MetraLabs and TÜV Thüringen with its expertise in safety aspects.