The FZI Forschungszentrum Informatik ("Research Center for Information Technology"), is a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

research institute for applied

computer science Computer science is the study of computation, information, and automation. Computer science spans Theoretical computer science, theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, and information theory) to Applied science, ...

and

informatics Informatics is the study of computational systems. According to the Association for Computing Machinery, ACM Europe Council and Informatics Europe, informatics is synonymous with computer science and computing as a profession, in which the centra ...

research and technology transfer. It was established in 1985 by Wirtschaftsministerium Baden-Württemberg and Karlsruhe University (now the

Karlsruhe Institute of Technology The Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT; ) is both a German public research university in Karlsruhe, Baden-Württemberg, and a research center of the Helmholtz Association. KIT was created in 2009 when the University of Karlsruhe (), founde ...

). The goal of the FZI is to research and develop innovations for the benefit of society and to qualify researchers for their work. FZI has very close collaborations with

(KIT), but is not affiliated to KIT Karlsruhe. The FZI has its headquarters in

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( ; ; ; South Franconian German, South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, third-largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, after its capital Stuttgart a ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, and also runs a branch office in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

, Germany.

Task and research areas

According to its statutes, the task of the non-profit research institution is to bring the latest scientific findings in

information technology Information technology (IT) is a set of related fields within information and communications technology (ICT), that encompass computer systems, software, programming languages, data processing, data and information processing, and storage. Inf ...

as practicable solutions to companies and public institutions. In doing so, the FZI qualifies young people for an academic career, a professional entry into business or even the leap into self-employment. The members of the Board of Scientific Directors, around 25 professors from various universities, accompany the research groups at the FZI – bundled into six research divisions – with their professional, scientific excellence in the disciplines of informatics, economics, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering and legal sciences. As a non-profit foundation under civil law (German:

Stiftung A Stiftung () (properly ''Stiftung'', pl. ''Stiftungen'') is an institution or foundation that, with the aid of a property, pursues a purpose determined by the founder. A ''Stiftung foundation'' exists to give effect to the stated, non-commercial ...

), the FZI works for and in cooperation with companies and public institutions of all sizes: from small businesses to corporations and administrations at regional, federal and EU level. The interdisciplinarily working scientists at the FZI dedicate themselves to the following fields of application of informatics: *

Education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

, research and

administration Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal: the process of dealing with or controlling things or people. ** Administrative assistant, traditionally known as a se ...

* Services and

commerce Commerce is the organized Complex system, system of activities, functions, procedures and institutions that directly or indirectly contribute to the smooth, unhindered large-scale exchange (distribution through Financial transaction, transactiona ...

Energy Energy () is the physical quantity, quantitative physical property, property that is transferred to a physical body, body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of Work (thermodynamics), work and in the form of heat and l ...

* Buildings and public space *

Healthcare Health care, or healthcare, is the improvement or maintenance of health via the preventive healthcare, prevention, diagnosis, therapy, treatment, wikt:amelioration, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other disability, physic ...

* Information and communication technology *

Mobility Mobility may refer to: Social sciences and humanities * Economic mobility, ability of individuals or families to improve their economic status * Geographic mobility, the measure of how populations and goods move over time * Mobilities, a conte ...

transport Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional Motion, movement of humans, animals, and cargo, goods from one location to another. Mode of transport, Modes of transport include aviation, air, land tr ...

ation and

logistics Logistics is the part of supply chain management that deals with the efficient forward and reverse flow of goods, services, and related information from the point of origin to the Consumption (economics), point of consumption according to the ...

* Production * Supply and disposal

Memberships and engagements

The FZI is an innovation partner of KIT, as well as a member of the innovation alliance innBW and a shareholder of the innovation alliance Karlsruhe TechnologyRegion. In May 2015, the FZI and the German Informatics Society (GI) also announced their strategic partnership that aims to promote pathways of education in the field of informatics, political agenda-setting and a positive and contemporary understanding of ICT in society. Together with the entrepreneur network CyberForum e.V., the FZI coordinates the DIZ , Digital Innovation Center.

Branch office in Berlin

The FZI Research Center for Information Technology has its headquarters in Karlsruhe and, since 2011, also runs a branch office in Berlin. The office in the German capital also serves as a showcase for the activities of the Karlsruhe headquarters and is intended to support the cooperation with federal ministries and Berlin-based representations of major associations and organizations. In line with the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Economy, the FZI in Berlin represents the innovation alliance innBW of Baden-Württemberg.

House of Living Labs

The FZI House of Living Labs encompasses all Living Labs of the FZI that are set up to cover the subjects Future Mobility, Industrial Intelligence, Security and Law, Service Robotics, smartEnergy, smartHome/AAL, and Software Innovations. It offers companies a space to discuss and further develop their research approaches or products jointly with FZI scientists. The "Living Labs" research concept aims to involve users right from the start in the product development and to test partial results in environments that are as close to reality as possible. The idea of the FZI House of Living Labs extends this concept based on the approach of the "Out-of-Box-Thinking": For the benefit of scientists and industrial partners, the adjacent existence of various application areas in the FZI House of Living Labs is designed to facilitate the development of new solutions that reach beyond their own subject area. In 2014, Stefan Hellfeld described the FZI House of Living Labs as being set up in such a way that a complete daily routine can be mapped: You wake up in the FZI Living Lab smartHome/Ambient Assisted Living, then make your way to work in the FZI Living Lab Automotive or smartMobility. You pass your day, for example, in the FZI Living Lab "Service Robotics", working jointly with industrial robots in production, before returning home in the evening. Thus, at the FZI, the concept of the FZI House of Living Labs is understood as an extension of the "Living Labs" research approach."EFRE-Programm Baden-Württemberg"
Ministerium für Ländlichen Raum und Verbraucherschutz Baden-Württemberg, retrieved March 2020.

References

External links

*
Official website FZI House of Living Labs
1985 establishments in West Germany Computer science institutes in Germany Research institutes established in 1985 Education in Karlsruhe {{Germany-university-stub