Bremen Minister for Economic Affairs, Labour and Europe Kristina Vogt launches a GAIA-X project to develop mixed-reality applications  

As part of a cooperation between the German federal state of Bremen and the Dutch region of South Holland, Kristina Vogt, Minister for Economic Affairs, Labour and Europe, has launched the ‘Mixed-Reality Extension in Space’ project on May 1, 2021. Participants from Bremen successfully presented the results at the Institute for Space Systems of the German Aerospace Center (DLR RY).  

The mixed-reality applications as well as the augmented reality glasses used, can visualise a vast amount of information two and three-dimensionally in the field of vision of the user. This will digitize future processes while simultaneously enabling location-independent work. In this way, digital twins as well as information about tool pre-settings, or target and actual values, can be virtually integrated into the support of process routines. With the help of audio-visual comments, documentation material is also created. This makes it possible to use the process routines that took place as a virtual scenario for optimisation or training purposes.  

The project, supported by the German federal state of Bremen with 420,000EUR, is the first to use the GAIA-X Use Case DASCLab, which was established in 2020.  

Minister Kristina Vogt: “This shows the great innovative potential we have in aeronautics and space. With DASCLab, we are driving the digital transformation of the industry and position the industry for the future. In doing so, we are strengthening Bremen as a location for innovation.” 

In 2020, the digital platform “Digital Aeronautics and Space Collaboration Labs” (DASCLab) was built with basic functions and the GAIA-X use case DASCLab was established at the Federal Ministry of Economics (BMWi). The registration of this GAIA-X use case ensures collaboration opportunities for SMEs, startups and research institutions at regional, national and international level. With GAIA-X, participants are pursuing a European approach for a digital ecosystem. Representatives from industry, science and politics are developing a cloud-based proposal for the design of an independent, next-generation European data infrastructure. 

Under the direction of DLR RY, the analogue mixed-reality use case was analysed, transferred into digital process routines. A demonstrator for a multi-state software and virtual assistance system was implemented in cooperation with RADIUSMEDIA, Airbus Defence and Space, ArianeGroup, OHB System, Valispace, neusta aerospace, the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI), logicline, ZARM Technik and AVIASPACE BREMEN e.V.. The focus was on mixed-reality applications that can be used in the future development of space missions in clean rooms or as part of the construction, integration, verification and testing (AIV/AIT) of aeronautics and space technology.  

While the co-project on the Dutch side is still in its final phase, the participants in Bremen are already looking ahead to further follow-up projects within the framework of DASCLab. The close cooperation between the German federal state of Bremen and South Holland is also to be further strengthened.  

Further information on the digital collaboration platform in the aeronautics and space industry can be found on the DASCLab website (https://dasclab.eu) and the Federal Ministry of Economics website (https://www.bmwi.de/Redaktion/EN/Artikel/Digital-World/GAIA-X-Use-Cases/dasc-lab.html)