Press Releases

Identifying defects in fiber composite materials during the production process will be possible in the future thanks to a novel radar method that automatically and non-destructively monitors the manufacturing process of fiber composite materials such as wind turbine rotor blades. Until now, monitoring has consisted of visual inspections. The Fraunhofer Institute for High Frequency Physics and Radar Techniques FHR collaborated with consortium partners Ruhr University Bochum, FH Aachen University of Applied Sciences and Aeroconcept GmbH to develop an innovative method in the FiberRadar project.

The threat spectrum faced by the European Union is broadening and demands a new and robust capability to complement existing assets and address increasingly complex challenges. The EU-funded project iFURTHER will focus on a disruptive system of systems defence concept that is fit for this purpose and thus is capable of protecting the sovereignty and integrity of the European Union.

Sensor specialist HENSOLDT has agreed to cooperate with the Fraunhofer Institute for High Frequency Physics and Radar Technology FHR with the aim of transforming the technology demonstrator GESTRA (German Experimental Space Surveillance and Tracking Radar) into a series-production ready, operationally deployable system called Custodian. To this end, HENSOLDT has acquired the necessary licenses from the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft and concluded a cooperation agreement.

Commercial aviation uses radar technology in their air traffic control systems to guarantee safe and smooth flights everywhere. For the AKIRA project, Fraunhofer researchers have teamed up with industry partners to develop a novel ground-based radar platform to take the same monitoring capabilities to the world of unmanned aviation. Their vision is one of secure passenger and cargo flights with automated drones in the skies above Germany’s urban centers. Starting on 28 February, a special two-day workshop on »Drone Technology for Logistics Applications« will be hosted by four Fraunhofer Institutes in Wachtberg.

In order to consolidate and expand the existing microelectronic research and development in Germany regarding quantum and neu-romorphic computing, the FMD launched on December 1, 2022, a joint project together with four other Fraunhofer institutes, the Jülich Forschungszentrum and AMO GmbH: The Research Fab Microelectronics Germany — Module Quantum and Neuromorphic Computing (FMD-QNC). The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research is funding the equipment and structural setup required for the project.

The space surveillance radar GESTRA (German Experimental Space Surveillance and Tracking Radar) developed by Fraunhofer FHR on behalf of the German Space Agency at DLR is delivering promising results. As part of a series of mea-surements, several experiments were conducted with the system operated by the German Armed Forces Space Situational Awareness Center (WRLageZ) at the GESTRA site on Schmidtenhöhe in Koblenz.

People use their eyes and ears to pick up on traffic situations involving potential hazards. For self-driving vehicles to do the same thing, they need a whole host of sensors. As the number of sensors they contain increases, however, so too does the amount of space required to fit them in – something that is often incompatible with the vision of designers. Now, researchers at the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft have discovered a method of integrating certain sensors discreetly. Their solution lies in the vehicle’s headlights, where they are combining optical light, radar and LiDAR.

The Fraunhofer Institute for High Frequency Physics and Radar Techniques FHR in Wachtberg, in a consortium with the Ruhr University Bochum, the University of Duisburg-Essen, the University of Wuppertal and the Fraunhofer Institute for Microelectronic Circuits IMS, has been awarded a contract for the terahertz.NRW research network in the "Networks 21" funding program of the MKW.

Future technology on the Thames: the Fraunhofer Institute for High Frequency Physics and Radar Techniques FHR will present the wide range of its capabilities at the 24th European Microwave Week 2021 (EuMW), which will take place in London from April 2 to 7, 2022 after being postponed due to the pandemic. Industry and science will now come together again on site at Europe's leading trade fair and conference for microwave technology, radio frequency engineering and radar. Fraunhofer FHR is participating in EuMW with a joint booth and 11 conference presentations.