JOANNEUM RESEARCH is one of the most important focal points of scientific research and economy in Austria. It has carried out cutting edge research in the European context for the last 30 years in the fields of geological sciences, environment, biotechnology and environmental technology, electronics and information processing, materials and processing as well as economy and technology.
Clock Tower of Graz (Copyright Graz Tourismus)
Clock Tower of Graz (Copyright Graz Tourismus)
Apart from applied research and development JOANNEUM RESEARCH offers custom-designed technical business consulting and vast expertise in interdisciplinary management of complex research contracts at a national and international level. JOANNEUM RESEARCH consists of 5 research institutes with more than 450 employees.
The Institute DIGITAL is a leading international research partner and centre of expertise in the area of information and communication technology. The Institute’s technological and scientific basis includes web and internet technologies, image, video and acoustic signal processing along with remote sensing, communication and navigation technologies. These technologies are implemented in hardware and software development and in application-oriented solutions using scientifically sound methods. The research services are complemented by expertise in prototype development, project management and consulting.
Currently, the Machine Vision Applications Group (Head: Gerhard Paar) of the Institute for Digital Technologies – DIGITAL – is participating in several EC funded projects within the EC Framework Program. It deals with industrial, biometric, environmental and space-related 3D modelling and reconstruction from passive and active vision sensors. In addition to joining international projects, the group holds national project leadership in the Austrian Centre of Competence “Vision+“, and coordinates the 3D vision aspects of the panoramic camera system PanCam on ESA’s ExoMars Rover mission 2016.
For more information visit Joanneum Research.
Team Members
Gerhard Paar
Gerhard Paar is head of the Machine Vision Applications Research Group and Head of the Close Range Photogrammetry Team of the JOANNEUM RESEARCH Institute for Digital Technologies, with 25 years of experience in the field of computer vision and digital photogrammetry. He leads the development team for the photogrammetric tunnel metrology system Dibit, one of the first fully automatic industrial close-range photogrammetry systems for non-expert users world-wide. In this framework, a combination of stereo photogrammetry and laser scan imagery is covered in terms of sensor geometry, sensor fusion, robust behaviour for industrial application, large-data mapping, and surface reconstruction. Gerhard Paar coordinates the ExoMars PanCam 3D Vision Team and is key-researcher for matching within the Austrian Centre of Competence “Vision+” for industrial computer vision cutting-edge development, coordinated the EC FP7-Space Projects PRoVisG and PRoViScout. At present he coordinates the FP7-SPACE Project PRoViDE and the FP7-SME Project De-Montes. He acts as JR-internal project manager of ESA and nationally funded space-related projects.
For more information go to Gerhard Paar’s personal page.
Arnold Bauer
Arnold Bauer is member of the Close Range Photogrammetry Team in the Machine Vision Applications Research Group of the JOANNEUM RESEARCH Institute for Digital Technologies. He is a software engineer & applications developer with expertise and more than 20 years of experience in digital photogrammetry, stereovision, 3D-measurement & reconstruction, and vision-based navigation. In addition to industrial projects (e.g. tunnel measurement system), he participates in several ESA studies to evaluate computer vision for navigation and 3D reconstruction of planetary mosaicing, digital elevation model generation, sensor fusion, and visualisation.
Kathrin Sander
Kathrin Sander is member of the Close Range Photogrammetry Team in the Machine Vision Applications Research Group of the JOANNEUM RESEARCH Institute for Digital Technologies, where she gained expertise and experience in planning, participating and recording planetary robotics field trials (PRoVisG field trials in Tenerife, Mars analog field test at the Dachstein caves by the Austrian Space Forum, PRoViScout field trials in Tenerife). Further, she is engaged in evaluating image data gathered during such missions, mainly the generation of localization and visualization products. Before joining JOANNEUM RESEARCH in 2011, she worked as research assistant at Carinthia University of Applied Sciences in the group for Medical Image Processing and Pattern Recognition after having finished her studies of Media Technology (Digital Image Processing & Computer Graphics) at the Technical University of Ilmenau (DE).
Ben Huber
Ben Huber has a Master’s degree in Information Management from the University of Applied Sciences in Graz (FH-Joanneum 2008). From 2008 – 2010 he worked as a research assistant (PhD position) for the FWF funded Austrian science project “i-MeaS – An Intelligent Image-Based Measurement System for Geo-Hazard Monitoring”. In the course of the project he developed mechanisms for the detection and tracking of corresponding stereo-points from a video theodolite system to be used for a further assessment and monitoring of deformations and land- and rockslide events. Since the beginning of 2011 he is a member of the close range photogrammetry group of the Machine Vision Applications Research Group of JOANNEUM RESEARCH. His main research interests include stereo vision, 3D reconstruction and software engineering.
Felizitas Berner
Felizitas Berner is working in administrative affairs, such as reporting, controlling and publications management. She is the institute’s person in charge for quality Management (DIN EN ISO 9001). Felizitas Berner is working on the several projects of FP7 an assistant to Gerhard Paar on all financial and organizational matters.