The Application Center Industrie 4.0 - Industry-driven Manufacturing, Research and Development

The contribution at hand introduces the Application Center Industrie 4.0. This environment is a highly advanced platform for the cooperative research and development of innovative cyber-physical production systems between the IFF at the University of Stuttgart, the Fraunhofer IPA and cutting-edge manufacturing companies. The paper provides a detailed overview over the concept of the Application Center Industrie 4.0. The IT platform Virtual Fort Knox is concisely described as it serves as a backbone to realize a safe, secure and flexible way to integrate all relevant data and information sources and sinks. This includes humans, IT-Systems and technical components. This concept is then substantiated by the introduction of selected, prototypically implemented demonstrators that offer new ways of understanding and operating manufacturing systems. Afterwards the first example of a strategic cooperation between the Fraunhofer IPA and TRUMPF will be introduced. The paper closes with a summary and an outlook of future activities in the area of the Application Center Industrie 4.0.