Pro²Future: Fronius Researches Cognitive Systems for Welding Technology

The research being carried out by Pro²Future is intended to enable industrial companies to provide even better insight for their customers in the future using data, and to offer new technologies. Particular focus is being placed on developing cognitive production systems and products. Systems like these are capable of perceiving their environment and reacting to it with decisions and actions. This core area is based on three further research fields: machine perception and awareness, cognitive robotics and cognitive decision systems. By researching these areas, Pro²Future wants to support companies on their path toward ongoing digitalization.

Along with Johannes Kepler University Linz, Graz University of Technology, Upper Austrian Research GmbH, and the company AVL List GmbH, Fronius is one of the five shareholders of Pro²Future. Helmut Ennsbrunner, Head of Pre-Development at Fronius Perfect Welding, brings his experience from welding technology with him: “We are interested in the evolution of human-machine interaction and its application in welding technology: Which assistance systems might manual welding devices offer their users in the future? How can machines best support welders without distracting them? That’s why Fronius decided to buy a twenty percent stake in Pro²Future”. As part of this collaboration, Fronius is also focusing on the subject of predictive maintenance, which is primarily being researched on the basis of data analysis and machine learning. Pro²Future is co-financed by the Austrian competence center promotion agency COMET using funds from the Federal Government and the States of Upper Austria and Styria and should yield some fascinating findings between now and 2025.