The Fraunhofer-Institute for Computer Graphics

is a research organization focusing on the development of product prototypes (hard- and software) and the realization of concepts, models, and solutions for computer graphics and its adaptation to specific application requirements. The work is rounded off by basic research projects and the realization of single devices and computer graphics systems with pilot character. Industry and public funded R&D projects at Fraunhofer-IGD are directly related to current problems in industry, trade, traffic, medicines, and service. Participating in AIM@SHAPE is the department for Industrial Applications, which is concentrating on applying innovations in computer graphics to engineering applications. Latest examples are, for instance, Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, CSCW (Computer Support Cooperative Work) and Knowledge Management applied to Computer-aided Design and Styling as well as to FEM and CFD Analysis.

GraphiTech, Center for Advanced Computer Graphics Technologies,

which in the project is associated to Fraunhofer-IGD, has been founded in July 2002 as joint venture between the INI-GraphicsNET Stiftung, the Cultural Institute of Trento (Istituto Trentino di Cultura) and the University of Trento (Università degli Studi di Trento).

GraphiTech has been established in order to conduct research and development activities in the broad technology area of advanced computer graphics, mixed reality, information and communication systems. The foundation contributes to the transfer of knowledge between the research sector and the industry through the promotion of world-class research in advanced computer graphics technologies and services, in particular, Augmented Engineering, Interactive Systems, E-business and E-commerce, Digital Technologies for media & streaming, Knowledge and Content Engineering, Secure Information Technology, Mixed Reality and Networked Audio, Collaborative Design.

Fraunhofer-IGD and GraphiTech

are two of the core institutes of the INI-GraphicsNET (http://www.inigraphics.net/). Under the leadership of Prof. Dr.-Ing. Dr. h.c. mult., Dr. E.h., Hon. Prof. mult. José L. Encarnação, today this institutional network comprises one of the largest centres for information- and communication technology worldwide.

Major goal of Fraunhofer-IGD and GraphiTech is to promote the state-of-the-art in representing and handling shape semantics to improve the computer-aided support for product development and the product lifecycle as a whole. Their main research contributions to achieve this objective include the following:

• Feature-based and parametric modelling tools that support abstract and intuitive user-interfaces for shape generation based on shape and product semantics, for instance, to be used in virtual environments for design and styling
• Representation of shape semantics and mapping between different application-oriented shape interpretations in terms of shape features to support downstream applications like FEA and CFD, but also assembly, machining and maintenance
• Knowledge-based methods and tools for managing engineering data using shape semantics on different levels of abstraction for reasoning and retrieval