The Bottom-up Projects demonstrate how scientific curiosity can lead to technological innovation. They create space for creative approaches and help transform bold ideas into tangible developments.
Innovations by Young Researchers: Four New Bottom-up Projects Launched at ICM
- News
At the InnovationCampus Future Mobility (ICM), four new Bottom-up Projects (BUP) have been launched. This program supports young researchers in developing and independently implementing their own ideas for future-oriented technologies in mobility and production.
The four new projects address topics ranging from resource-efficient drive technology and generative AI to integrated power electronics and adaptive production planning:
EE-ferroPCB-AFM: Electrically Excited Axial Flux Machine Based on Printed Circuit Board Technology
Conventional electric motors often rely on rare earth materials, whose cost and availability are critical. The EE-ferroPCB-AFM project explores a new class of machines where both the stator and rotor are entirely built using printed circuit board (PCB) technology and combined with soft magnetic materials. This enables compact, rare-earth-free, and digitally manufactured drives that can be quickly adapted to new requirements. Manufacturers benefit from lower production costs and shorter development times, while users gain more efficient and sustainable drive systems.
FitLLM: Customized Optimization Heuristics through Local Language Models
In modern production, experts invest significant time and resources to develop effective heuristics for complex planning and optimization tasks. This project investigates how smaller, locally executable language models (LLMs) based on artificial intelligence can automatically generate such heuristics. As a result, planning and optimization processes can be adapted more quickly to new situations, executed securely on local systems, and designed with less development effort.
motorIC: Fully Integrated 3-Phase GaN Motor Inverter with Smart Sensor Technology
<meta charset="UTF-8" />Motor inverters control electric drives but typically consist of many separate components, which increase space requirements, energy use, and costs. The motorIC project is developing the first fully integrated 3-phase motor inverter based on gallium nitride (GaN) for 400/800 V applications. The chip combines power transistors, current sensors, and temperature sensors in a single component—reducing costs, weight, and installation space while increasing efficiency, reliability, and power density.
ARISE: Adaptive Risk-Aware Intelligent Scheduling Engine for Manufacturing
<meta charset="UTF-8" />Unpredictable events such as machine downtimes or supply bottlenecks can quickly push today’s production systems to their limits. The ARISE project is developing an AI-based planning platform that automatically derives production workflows from formal machine capabilities ("skills") and flexibly responds to disruptions using digital twins and optimization algorithms. Production plans are evaluated and recalculated as needed according to time, energy consumption, reliability, and risk. Companies thus gain a resilient, adaptive production control system that enables more efficient resource utilization and flexible manufacturing processes.
With these new Bottom-up Projects, young researchers are encouraged to actively shape research and development in innovative technologies. The projects exemplify an open, interdisciplinary research approach that embraces unconventional ideas with courage and creativity.
Contact
Expert contact:
Thilo Zimmermann
Hear of Research Coordination
fk(at)icm-bw.de
Media contact:
Teresa Mittner
Marketing and Communications
medien(at)icm-bw.de