GMAR

GMAR is the Austrian platform for measurement, automation and robotics technology and sees itself as a complete representation of companies, research institutions, scientific institutions, educational institutions and technicians in Austria.

The GMAR is divided into three departments

• Measuring technology and sensor technology
• Automation, control technology and mechatronics
• Robotics

Additional activities outside the three departments are also supported by GMAR, provided that they are related to the tasks and objectives of the GMAR.

GMAR is well-connected internationally and is active in senior committees, for example, with the International Federation of Automatic Control (IFAC), the International Measurement Confederation (IMEKO) and euRobotics.

In recent years, GMAR members have been involved in more than 20 EU projects and in various projects from the various national research programmes.

The main objectives of GMAR are

• Networking of all interested institutions from research, teaching, science and business.
• Treatment of scientific and technical issues, evaluation of trends and new developments, promotion of scientific and technical development, organisation of relevant conferences and workshops.
• Representation of interests and the promotion of the professional education and training of professionals, scientists and students working in these fields.
• Recommendations for actions in the field of innovation and technology policy, contact persons for ministries and funding bodies with a view to coordinating and supporting support measures, coordination of funding programmes.
• Maintaining contact with the German sister company GMA and the VDI/VDE as well as carrying out national activities within the framework of international associations.
• Combination of scientific research and economic practice.
• Interdisciplinary combination of measurement, automation and robotics technology from electrical engineering and information technology, computer science and mechanical engineering.

As a point of contact for all aspects of measurement, automation and robotics technology as essential future technologies and drivers for sustainable economic growth in Austria, GMAR strives to ensure that all companies active in these areas are research and educational institutions, scientific institutions and individuals.

This is achieved through advisory activities for institutions, through targeted further training in the form of seminars, as well as through the organisation and participation in national and international symposia, conferences, conferences and workshops.

Tradition & Modernity - Together for Austria

As technical systems progress, more and more intelligent and autonomous machines will enrich the man-made living space; in the foreseeable future, autonomous vehicles will chauffeur us humans; Robots are supposed to free us from annoying, dangerous, boring or dirty work.

As with the invention of the steam locomotive or the automobile, it is important to meet the resulting societal challenges in order to create trust in machines in general and robots in particular. GMAR is addressing these challenges and proactively advocating for the development of securely interacting robots.

The aim is to develop robots and other machines in such a way that they can be used safely by everyone. The implementation is based, among other things, on the human-robot relationship, i.e. how AI and robot technology must be developed so that a robot has "trusting skills" in dealing with humans.

The robotics section has the motto "Tradition & Modernity - Together for the Location Austria". Together with partners from industry, research and teaching, we actively shape the scientific as well as the economic developments of trusted robots in Austria.

The GMAR pursues u. a. the goal of translating scientific know-how into industrial solutions. A special focus within the GMAR lies on the Department of Robotics, whose representatives are actively involved in Austrian and European organizations and thereby increase the visibility of domestic industrial and scientific achievements.

In this sense, on the one hand, the GMAR endeavors to promote active participation in Austrian research policy and promotion, and on the other, a national robotics roadmap and a strategic research agenda have been developed as an independent advice center for users.

The fact that it has already been possible to put scientific ideas into practice on numerous occasions illustrates the development of trustworthy robots. Exemplary here are the AIRSKIN® of the Viennese start-up Blue Danube Robotics as well as the completely autonomous "Marie" of the GMAR member incubed IT GmbH as two Austrian success stories.

Blue Danube Robotics GmbH has developed AIRSKIN®, a robust and pressure-sensitive robotic skin that enables robots to work safely with humans in the future.

For the first time, companies can implement an efficient human-robot collaboration. The pressure-sensitive robotic skin forms a comprehensive safety cover for robots and grippers and acts as a collision sensor. Instead of a protective fence, AIRSKIN® is connected directly to the robot controller, so that the collision sensor reacts immediately in the event of a collision between the robot and the "obstacle" and triggers an emergency stop.

In addition, soft pads attached to the skin cushion the impact of force that can occur until the machine comes to a complete standstill. Thus, robots can be used free of fencing and in collaborative applications.

Incubed IT GmbH is a spin-off of Graz University of Technology, which develops innovative software solutions for the operation of intelligent, autonomous transport shuttles.

The software solution from incubed IT GmbH enables a fleet of autonomous mobile robots, called Smart Shuttles, to move freely within a building and without having to specify a path to any destination. In addition, a central authority ensures optimum order distribution to all shuttles and supports mutual coordination from a central point of view.

This makes it possible to keep transport costs as low as possible - with maximum flexibility. Appropriate security certifications of the shuttles ensure cooperation with human colleagues.

aim4np: Automated inline measuring technology for production on the nanometer scale

High-precision in-process metrology is seen as one of the key requirements for future production systems to meet ever-increasing demands for productivity and precision.

The detection of surface properties with nanometer resolution (eg topography, morphology and roughness) for quality assurance and process monitoring directly in the line is becoming increasingly important for production in high technology.

Robot-based measuring systems offer the flexibility to measure at various positions in production, but vibrations in the production environment and in the robot make high-resolution measurements difficult.

The approach to solving this problem lies at the interface of the work areas of the GMAR, measurement technology, automation and control technology as well as robotics. By means of active regulation of the distance and the position of the measuring system relative to the measuring object - in all six degrees of freedom - disturbances due to vibrations of the robot and the production line are compensated. This artificially creates a low-vibration environment for accurate measurements.

As part of an EU project (7th EU Framework Program), this technology was developed and successfully demonstrated by an international consortium of business partners and universities from the Netherlands, Spain, Germany and Austria.

As a result of this cooperation can with high-resolution inspection equipment, such. As atomic force microscopes are measured directly in a production line with nanometer resolution.