Corporate Technology - Rolf Hellinger

Corporate Technology 

Network of Competencies – Partner for Innovations 

www.ct.siemens.com

Editorial 

Driving Tomorrow’s 

Innovations 

In this age of global competition, the definition of 

the “innovator as a creative entrepreneur,” which 

was coined almost a century ago by Austrian economist 

Joseph Schumpeter, is more relevant than ever before. 

However, developing a successful innovation today involves 

far more than developing new technical solutions 

and hoping that the market will shout “Hurray!” Today’s 

creative entrepreneur must not only know what is 

technologically feasible but also what customers want 

and how the worldwide value chain can be optimized 

in a way that enables new solutions to be implemented 

quickly and inexpensively. 

Increasingly, the essence of many innovations lies 

in a mastery of the connections within a complex network 

of knowledge concerning applications and domains. 

For example, those who deal with decentralized 

energy supply systems must understand sources such 

as wind, sunlight, biomass and cogeneration plants — 

as well as associated control systems, energy storage 

systems, and communication interfaces. Those who 

control this range of variables most effectively will be 

the winners. In another example, the miniaturization 

of the analytic devices that are used for process automation 

and laboratory diagnostics addresses the 

interfaces between biology, chemistry, physics, electronics 

and data processing. As a result, innovations 

in this area require a mastery of interdisciplinary and 

cross-departmental knowledge. 

What can we conclude from this? First, that the days 

of closed doors in the laboratory are over. Research on 

almost all promising issues is being conducted worldwide. 

Consequently, the overriding aim is to bring together 

the world’s best minds in order to create innovations. 

Intelligent brains don’t have more nerve cells 

than average ones; they have more synapses. By anal- 

2 Corporate Technology 

Prof. Dr. Hermann Requardt is CEO of Siemens’ Healthcare Sector, 

Chief Technology Officer and Head of Corporate Technology, 

and a member of the Managing Board of Siemens AG. 

ogy, today’s innovators need synapses connecting 

them with colleagues within their companies as well as 

with universities, research institutes, key customers, 

and start-ups. This intensification of “open innovation,” 

in addition to its own research activities, is one of the 

key tasks of Corporate Technology (CT) at Siemens. 

Second, an integrated technology company such as 

Siemens must also aim to promote interdisciplinary 

activities, exploit cross-sector synergies, utilize shared 

platforms and standards, and attain a leading position 

in the areas of technology and patents — and here too, 

CT plays an important role. 

And third, today’s innovators should not overlook 

the fact that new markets bring new challenges with 

them. In the future, emerging markets such as China 

and India will take on leading roles in the global economy, 

but these countries’ requirements are different 

from those of today’s highly industrialized countries. 

Above all, products in these countries must be robust 

and reliable, simple to use and maintain, and priced in 

line with consumers’ buying power. 

At Siemens, we call these solutions “S.M.A.R.T. 

products,” and the development of these products is a 

major focus of our researchers at CT. Above all else, the 

creative entrepreneurs of our time must be open to the 

world, interdisciplinary, and market-oriented. They are 

characterized not so much by an obsession with detailed 

professional or process knowledge as by their 

courage to explore new paths, develop bigger ideas 

and, above all, take a hard look at major problems that 

demand solutions. The crucial questions they ask 

themselves are: “How can I do this better? And what 

must I do in order to become better myself?” That’s because 

here, as elsewhere, the operational motto is: “If 

you stop getting better, you’ll soon stop being good.”

Contents 

Corporate Technology — Siemens’ central research unit 

Research and development have been the lifeblood of this 

integrated technology company since its founding in 1847. This 

booklet provides comprehensive insights into the tasks and targets 

of the central research unit and presents current examples that 

illustrate the major role played by Corporate Technology in the 

successful innovations of the Siemens Sectors. The booklet also 

reports on international research partnerships and offers brief 

profiles of selected inventors and innovators at Siemens. 

14 

16 

10 

12 

14 

16 

18 

20 

22 

24 

26 

28 

30 

32 

33 

34 

36 

Facts and Figures 

A Network of Expertise 

Interview with Reinhold Achatz 

Synergies: Lifeblood of the Company 

Corporate Research and Technologies 

A World of Discovery 

Materials & Microsystems 

Why Materials Matter 

Production Processes 

Perfecting Factories before they Exist 

Power & Sensor Systems 

Masters of Energy Efficiency 

Software & Engineering 

The Invisible Foundation of Business Success 

Information & Communications 

Systems That Never Stop Learning 

Siemens Corporate Research 

A Technology Greenhouse 

CT China 

Growing Technologies for China and the World 

CT India 

High-tech Innovations for Developing Nations 

CT Russia 

Simulating and Optimizing Materials 

Roke Manor Research 

R&D in the Best British Tradition 

CT Japan and CT Singapore 

Bridges to Cutting-edge Research in Asia 

Siemens Technology Accelerator 

Spinning off New Companies 

Technology-to-Business Centers 

Translating Ideas into Businesses 

Strategic Marketing 

Inventing the Future 

38 

46 

54 

56 

58 

60 

62 

64 

65 

66 

Examples of Research Partnerships 

Munich Technical University: Quantum Computer 

University of Linz: Digital Graffiti 

Research programs: Medico, Health-e-Child 

Berkeley: Carbon Nanotubes 

Boston: Detecting Cancer Cells with Light 

Russia: Energy Technology and Nanoceramics 

China: S.M.A.R.T. Technologies 

Researchers, Inventors and Innovators 

Rupert Maier — Inventors Inside 

Maximilian Fleischer — Sniffing out New Sensors 

Wolfgang Rossner — King of Ceramics 

Sebnem Öztunali — Self-Organizing Networks 

Bernhard Stapp — Luminescent Plastics 

Vishnu Swaminathan — S.M.A.R.T. Cameras 

Andrey Bartenev — Spontaneous Process Dynamics 

Dorin Comaniciu — Fusing Information 

Martin Stetter — Understanding Thinking 

Shun Jie Fan — More Efficient Biotechnology 

Corporate Intellectual Property and Functions 

Patents, Standards, and Synergies 

Interview with Winfried Büttner 

Intellectual Property Represents the Future 

Intellectual Property 

Securing Intellectual Property 

Standardization & Regulation 

Establishing Standards and Defining Markets 

Environmental Affairs & Technical Safety 

Climate Protection and Energy Efficiency 

Chief Technology Office 

The Integrated Technology Company 

CT T: eCar Project 

New Look at Electric Cars 

Contacts and further information 

Publications, Internet, Jobs, and Careers 

Corporate Technology 3

Research and Development at Siemens 

Research and development (R&D) are the key driving forces 

behind the innovations that safeguard the future of a company. 

That’s been true of Siemens ever since the company was founded 

in 1847. Today the company employs some 32,300 researchers 

and developers worldwide who work on innovations that secure 

existing business and open up new markets. In business year 

2008, Siemens spent €3.8 billion on R&D. That represents 

4.9 percent of its sales and some €17 million per workday. With 

around 2,875 employees worldwide, Corporate Technology plays 

a key role in R&D at Siemens, 

A Network of Expertise — 

A Partner for Innovation 

Corporate Technology (CT) and its worldwide 

network of experts is a powerful 

innovation partner for Siemens’ business 

units. The organization provides expertise 

regarding strategically important areas to 

ensure the company’s technological future, 

and to acquire patent rights that safeguard 

the company’s business operations. Against 

the background of megatrends such as climate 

change, urbanization, globalization, 

and demographic change, CT focuses on innovations 

that have the potential to change 

the rules of the game over the long term in 

business areas that are of interest to 

Siemens. 

The Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at 

Siemens, Prof. Hermann Requardt, who also 

serves as the Head of Corporate Technology, 

is at the heart of the innovation network. For 

an integrated technology company such as 

Siemens, it is vital to develop technological 

synergies beyond its individual operational 

units — within the Siemens Sectors and between 

them, as well as between the Sectors 

and Corporate Technology. One of the responsibilities 

of the CTO is to make sure that 

these possibilities are fully exploited (see p. 

64). Another responsibility is to analyze the 

company’s technological foundations and 

generate powerful momentum for improvement. 

In addition, the CTO is charged with 

increasing the efficiency of research and development 

activities and creating open innovation 

networks all over the world — both 

inside and outside the company. 


A major role in Siemens’ innovation activities 

is played by Corporate Research and 

Technologies (CT T, see pp. 10-37). The 

2,250 men and women who work within 

CT T’s global research network focus primarily 

on key technologies and cross-sector 

technologies that have strategic significance 

for more than one business unit. 

For example, researchers are working on 

pioneering technologies in areas such as 

materials development and software, production 

processes and system integration, 

energy and sensor technology, imaging 

processes, and information and communication 

technology. 

In its Global Technology Fields (GTF), CT T 

brings together experts from globally operating 

research teams all over the world in order 

to pool their expertise and become a preferred 

innovation partner for the Siemens 

Sectors. Together with the business units, 

CT T is working on the development of new 

solutions in numerous application-oriented 

projects. 

In order to ensure efficient and effective 

operations, a large proportion of the budget 

of Corporate Research and Technologies is 

covered through project agreements with 

the business units, which serve as its customers. 

CT T also receives corporate funding 

for the long-term development of new technologies 

and the establishment of new areas 

of expertise. All in all, CT T is responsible 

for approximately 7.5 percent of Siemens’ 

total expenditure on research and develop- 

Berkeley 

Siemens research 

locations (CT T) 

Princeton 

ment. This figure is made up of contract research 

for the Sectors (about 60 percent), 

corporate financing (31 percent), and external 

funding (9 percent). 

Particularly important factors for CT T are 

its close connections with its customers and 

top universities. These enable CT T to offer 

faster and more target-oriented solutions 

that are ideally adapted to local requirements, 

and also to be perceived as an appealing 

employer for the brightest candidates. 

That’s why CT T has supplemented its locations 

in the U.S. and Europe in recent years 

by opening research centers close to its business 

operations — for example, in Beijing, 

Moscow, Bangalore, and Singapore — and 

has expanded its cooperation with top universities. 

CT T research teams are now 

located in the world’s most important technology 

strongholds: Princeton, New Jersey 

(see p. 22); southern England (see p. 30); 

Munich, Erlangen, and Berlin, Germany; 

Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia (see p. 

28); Beijing and Shanghai, China (see p. 24); 

Bangalore, India (see p. 26), Singapore and 

Tokyo, Japan (see p. 32). 

In all of these places, CT T researchers are 

supporting Siemens business units with 

their product development, maintaining 

contacts with universities, analyzing global 

trends, and observing developments in their 

local markets. In addition, “incubators” such 

as the Siemens Technology Accelerator in 

Munich (see p. 33) and the Siemens Technology-to-Business 

Centers in Berkeley, Cali- 

Romsey

St. Petersburg 

Moscow 

Berlin 

Erlangen 

Munich 

Beijing 

Bangalore 

Shanghai 

Research Budget 

€ 3’‘8 

92.5% 

7.5% 

Siemens 

R&D 

9% 

60% 

31% 

CT T 

budget 

Singapore 

External 

funding 

Contract 

research for 

the Sectors 

Corporate 

financing 

Tokyo 

fornia, and Shanghai (see p. 34) discover 

new business ideas and guide them to market 

success in cooperation with partners inside 

and outside Siemens. 

Safeguarding these innovations and 

Siemens’ intellectual property from competitors 

is the job of Corporate Intellectual 

Property and Functions (CT I, pp. 54-63). 

The approximately 550 experts who work at 

CT I’s 19 locations around the world support 

the company’s development of strategies for 

registering, safeguarding, and using property 

rights. CT I also represents Siemens on 

committees for the establishment of international 

norms and standards, advises the 

company on the environmental compatibility 

and technical safety of products and 

processes, and provides the Sectors and the 

regional units with technical and marketrelated 

information. Corporate Intellectual 

Siemens’ Ranking at Patent Offices Worldwide 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

… 

… 

25 

Bosch 

Siemens 

Daimler 

Denso 

Infineon 

GM 

BMW 

VW 

ZF Friedrichshafen 

BSH 

GE 

0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 

German Patent 

and Trade Mark 

Office 

(published 

patent 

applications) 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

Philips 

Samsung 

Siemens 

BASF 

Matsushita 

Bosch 

LG Electronics 

Sony 

Nokia 

Fujitsu 

Mitsubishi 

GE 

Property and Functions is also responsible 

for the global management of all Siemens 

patents — approximately 55,000 patents in 

all. 

That makes Siemens one of the most innovative 

companies in the world. In business 

year 2008 alone, Siemens employees 

registered some 8,200 inventions and applied 

for approximately 5,000 patents — 

that’s 37 inventions and 23 patent applications 

per working day. The top positions 

occupied by Siemens in the international 

statistics reflect the company’s innovative 

strength (see diagrams above). 

The complexity of the technologies involved, 

the broad range of applications they 

cover, and Siemens’ global operations increasingly 

require international cooperation 

in research and development — in other 

words, open innovation. Siemens enters into 

European 

Patent Office 

(patent 

applications) 

0 1000 2000 3000 4000 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

IBM 

Samsung 

Canon 

Matsushita 

Intel 

Toshiba 

Microsoft 

Micron 

HP 

Sony 

Siemens 

Hitachi 

GE 

United States 

Patent and 

Trademark Office 

(patents granted) 

Figures for 2007 

0 1000 2000 3000 4000 

Employees Invention Registrations 

Corporate Intellectual 

Property and Functions: 550 

Corporate Research and 

Technologies: 2,250 

2,875* 

* with Roke Manor Research (included in CT) 

Other 

functions: 75 

Industry 

40% 

CT 

13% 

8,200* 

Other 

7% 

Healthcare 

23% 

Energy 

17% 

* 37 inventions a day in business year 2008 (220 working days) 

more than 1,000 partnerships with universities, 

research institutes, and industrial partners 

every year (pp. 40-45). About half of 

these partnerships involve Corporate Technology 

— and these collaborations are an indispensable 

means of developing strategically 

important technologies. By sharing 

ideas with scientists from outside the company, 

Siemens researchers keep abreast of 

the latest findings resulting from fundamental 

and applied research all over the world. 

Meanwhile, universities also reap huge 

benefits from their partnerships with 

Siemens. Rather than conducting research 

in a purely theoretical, application-free vacuum, 

they remain close to the issues that are 

important to industry. In addition, for many 

young scientists, cooperation of this sort is 

so exciting that they eventually decide to 

work for Siemens. 


Interview 

Synergies: Lifeblood 

of the Company 

Why are innovations important for 

Siemens? 

Achatz: Innovations have been one of the most 

important factors in Siemens’ success from the 

very beginning. Our goal is to be a technological 

trendsetter in all of our fields of business in 

order to safeguard competitive advantages for 

our customers. Achieving this goal requires an 

optimal alignment of technology and patent 

strategies, innovation processes, the creative 

input of employees, and investment in research 

and development. That’s what it takes to enable 

Siemens to fully exploit the strengths of an 

integrated technology company. Corporate 

Technology (CT) is a key part of this alignment. 

What type of added value does Corporate 

Technology actually generate? 

Achatz: An integrated technology company 

thrives on synergies. And in order to exploit as 

many synergies as possible, Siemens research 

isn’t structured in line with the three Siemens 

Sectors of Energy, Industry, and Healthcare; 

instead, it operates in a cross-sectional and 

cross-divisional manner. This allows us to 

effectively develop multiple impact technologies 

— in other words, those that offer 

benefits across all Sectors and Divisions. 

Such developments include new materials, 

production processes, and sensor systems, 

innovative software architectures and 

processes, knowledge management systems, 

and intelligent information and communication 

solutions. The Siemens Sectors and Divisions 

have the expertise in terms of products, 


Reinhold Achatz heads Corporate 

Research and Technologies, 

Siemens’ central research unit. 

Industry and Security: Innovative Wireless Solutions 

Although their high data transfer rates make wireless networks potentially 

the ideal solution for machine-control applications that could greatly 

enhance the flexibility of manufacturing facilities, to date such networks have 

been largely limited to office communications . The problem was that 

wireless commands might be delayed, thereby disturbing precisely aligned 

manufacturing processes. With this in mind, engineers from Siemens 

Industry Automation and a research team from Corporate Technology (CT) in 

Berkeley led by Raymond Liao have developed and marketed Industrial WLAN 

(IWLAN), a wireless solution that for the first time achieves the robustness 

and reliability required for industrial applications. IWLAN reserves data 

transfer rates for critical data such as control commands, while its redundant 

antennas and time-monitored signal transmission ensure permanent wireless connections within 

a factory. Emergency cut-off functions can also now be guaranteed with wireless technology, as is 

already the case with wireless PROFINET applications. IWLAN is based on the WLAN standard, so it 

can easily be integrated into existing networks and Ethernet systems, which is why many 

customers, such as those from the automotive industry, are taking advantage of Siemens’ head 

start — approximately 18 months — in this area. 

Many innovative solutions in emerging markets such as India are now often based on “high tech, 

low cost” developments, which have attracted a lot of attention in the form of solutions marketed 

by CT as “S.M.A.R.T.” technologies (see p. 26). One example involves intelligent cameras 

developed especially for industrial applications such as optical product-quality monitoring. These 

cameras are also being used in traffic control systems, security applications, and building 

management systems. Indian CT researchers are working closely with Siemens Corporate 

Research in Princeton, which is developing specialized algorithms adapted to real-time 

applications and to the cameras’ “low-performance” processing. One CT project in India involves 

development of optimized solutions for traffic-monitoring systems that improve image quality in 

twilight conditions, among other things. Plans also call for security cameras that will use 

embedded software to wirelessly communicate with one another, thus opening the door to 

seamless surveillance from one camera to the next.

Whether simulating turbines (right and 

bottom) or developing wireless networks 

for industry (left) — CT researchers are a 

big part of innovation at Siemens. 

Energy and the Environment: Solutions for Gas and Wind Turbines 

Climate change has led to entirely new attitudes to environmental protection and energy 

efficiency. On the one hand, emerging markets require more and more energy, but global CO2 

emissions also must be substantially reduced. Siemens’ environmental portfolio includes many 

technological solutions developed to help reconcile this apparent conflict of interests. One such 

solution is the world’s largest gas turbine, which is located at a power plant operated by the E.ON 

energy company in the town of Irsching, Germany. With an output of 340 megawatts, the unit is 

not only capable of supplying the population of a city the size of Hamburg with electricity; in 

combination with a steam turbine, it also achieves world-record efficiency of more than 60 

percent. To do this, the gas turbine’s blades need to withstand temperatures of between 1,200 

and 1,500 degrees Celsius. This is possible only by means of a sophisticated cooling system and 

innovative materials, such as a heat-insulating ceramic coating only 300 micrometers thick on an 

adhesive layer that protects against oxidation. This arrangement has made it possible to extend 

the service life of turbine blades from 4,000 to 25,000 hours. Because a ruined blade can cause 

millions of dollars in damages, researchers at Corporate Technology (CT) are simulating potential 

stresses and developing methods for determining permissible stress limits and for forecasting 

service life. Such simulations and tests include the aging behavior of coatings and layers, as well 

as temperature changes and tests of stability and fracture mechanics. 

Offshore wind parks on the high seas are becoming 

increasingly important in the alternative energy mix. CT 

researchers have developed a concept that enables wind 

power facilities to monitor themselves while improving their 

electrical output. The concept uses wirelessly networked 

sensors on the masts, rotor blades, and inside the turbines 

that measure wind force, wind direction, and vibrations. 

Each mast is equipped with a computer that evaluates the 

data and can intervene in the unit’s operation via actuators. 

The system can use wind force readings to predict sudden gusts and make needed adjustments to 

the rotor blades, thus significantly reducing stress loads. Windmills in the first row, which are hit 

first by the wind, can transmit data to the windmills behind them, allowing them to optimize their 

positions in anticipation of gusts. This boosts the wind park’s electrical efficiency, compared to a 

setup where each windmill optimizes its own electricity yield. Before going into large-scale 

operation, the concept is being tested at the Nysted wind park in Denmark. 

systems, and customer requirements, while 

CT researchers contribute their extensive 

understanding of fundamental technologies, 

mathematical models, and software 

development processes. We at CT also possess a 

lot of knowledge about future trends, not least 

due to the contacts we maintain with numerous 

universities and research institutes. It was 

actually many years ago that we developed our 

unique procedure for strategic planning for the 

future — our “Pictures of the Future.” Together 

with our various business units we are 

continually studying important trends, such as 

those related to the future of rail transport, 

sustainable energy supplies, and the lighting 

systems of tomorrow. 

Can you outline a few examples of new 

technologies that Siemens researchers 

are currently working on? 

Achatz: Take energy and sustainability, two 

topics that are the subject of much discussion 

around the world. At a very early stage in the 

dialogue on these subjects, CT developed a road 

map of key technologies that will be needed to 

ensure an efficient, sustainable, cost-effective, 

and secure supply of energy. This includes 

everything from exploiting new fossil energy 

sources, such as oil sands, to the separation and 

storage of climate-damaging carbon dioxide. 

The most important thing here is to further 

increase the efficiency of conventional power 

plants, with the development of new materials 

allowing for the highest possible combustion 

temperatures to play a key role. We will also see 


Interview 

demand for energy storage solutions, 

intelligent power grids, and new, entirely 

electric-powered vehicles. It’s also important to 

move forward with renewable energy by 

optimizing the electricity yields of wind parks 

and solar-thermal facilities, for example. We’re 

taking a similarly comprehensive approach with 

regard to industrial issues that include the 

modeling, planning, and automation of the 

entire value chain — from safety technologies 

to the conceptualization of energy-efficient 

buildings. Our research in the area of healthcare 

is focused on new imaging procedures, medical 

information systems, and intelligent knowledge 

management processes that bring together 

laboratory diagnostic results with those 

obtained from imaging systems and epidemiological 

studies. 

How do you bring together your worldwide 

expertise in all the different technological 

fields you’re involved in? 

Achatz: That’s the job of our Global Technology 

Fields (GTFs), which concentrate on issues that 

will have the biggest impact on our sector and 

divisional business operations. 

The GTFs bring together experts from diverse 

departments around the world, and this can 

include anyone from specialists for ceramics, 

medical imaging, energy storage, and selforganizing 

systems to those for oil and gas 

technologies, product cycle management, and 

new solutions geared toward emerging 

markets. The directors of the GTFs have global 

responsibility for their respective fields — 

regardless of whether they’re located in 

Princeton, Beijing, Bangalore, St. Petersburg, 

Munich, Berlin, or Erlangen. This setup 

encourages thinking beyond CT’s departmental 

boundaries. It also brings us closer to a system 

of global responsibility for specific topics that 

ensures incorporation of the best resources and 

minds in a given situation. We also participate in 

application-based projects with the business 

units, since our specialized divisions are 


CT researchers are optimizing medical 

imaging techniques (below) and 

combining traditional Chinese 

medicine with the latest technology. 

Health Care and Computers: A Healthy Combination 

Computers with sophisticated knowledge at their 

disposal will increasingly be used to support physicians 

with diagnoses and treatment decisions, thus ensuring 

faster, safer, and more efficient decision-making 

processes. One such application, known as syngo Auto 

EF (Ejection Fraction), has been on the market since 

2005. Ejection fraction is a standard unit for measuring 

the amount of blood ejected by the heart during a 

contraction, as a fraction of the ventricle’s total blood 

volume. The traditional method for measuring this 

involves visually estimating or manually determining the value. It takes a human specialist around 

30 seconds to do this — but syngo Auto EF can perform the calculation in just a few seconds. The 

software uses pattern-recognition procedures and can be trained with examples from a database 

of actual clinical cases. Experts at Siemens Corporate Research (SCR) in Princeton worked with 

colleagues from the Ultrasound Division to develop the system, which doesn’t require an exact 

depiction of the heart’s contour, or even perfect image quality. The system is now available in all 

Siemens ultrasound devices that are outfitted with cardiologic functions. 

It doesn’t always take completely new technology to improve health care, however. A good 

example of this is seen in China, where Corporate Technology has set itself the goal of combining 

Western and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in order to optimize procedures that are 

thousands of years old. The researchers’ first success here was in combining acupotomy with 

magnetic resonance tomography (MRT). Acupotomy is a specialized type of acupuncture that is 

used to treat movement-associated disorders such as chronic pain, slipped discs, and arthritis. The 

technique calls for making small cuts in muscles and tendons, with the aim of improving the 

patient’s bio-mechanical balance. In such cases Western medicine generally relies on painkillers 

and operations, some of which even involve removing parts of a disc. Acupotomy, on the other 

hand, is only a minor micro-surgical procedure whose effectiveness has been clinically proven. 

Until now, doctors who have practiced this technique have done so according to their feeling and 

experience. Unfortunately, this has led in some cases to blood vessels or nerves being severed or 

damaged. But used in conjunction with MR tomography, the procedure can support accurate 

navigation. State-of-the-art imaging systems can thus help to make traditional Chinese medicine 

safer, while increasing the likelihood that these ancient techniques can be successful in Western 

countries as well.

Innovation Careers: Synergy at Work 

CT’s 3D pattern recognition technology 

offers applications from facial recognition 

to the detection of anomalies in turbine 

blades and hearing aids. 

What do automatic face recognition, chassis calibration, turbine error analyses, 

and in-ear hearing aid adjustments have in common? At first glance, perhaps 

nothing. At Siemens, for example, these processes are the responsibilities of 

different Sectors, such as Industry, Energy, and Healthcare. Nevertheless, a 

unique new technology known as color-coded triangulation, which was 

developed at Corporate Technology, has significantly improved all of them. 

Color-coded triangulation enables precise three-dimensional object-surface 

data to be obtained in a cost-effective manner in real time. 

Computer scientist Dr. Frank Forster began developing the procedure in 2000 as 

part of a Siemens-commissioned doctoral dissertation that was also linked to a 

European research project. Forster perfected a simple principle: a pattern of light is projected onto 

a target object while a camera takes a picture of the object. The light pattern is deformed to a 

varying degree depending on the object’s surface geometry. An algorithm uses this deformation 

data to reconstruct the shape of the object, practically in real time and down to the last tenths of 

a millimeter. Forster’s pattern of hundreds of parallel color strips arranged in order can be 

generated using a conventional slide. 

A prototype of the measuring system was first used for 3D facial recognition in 2003, when 

demand for security technology was very strong. The system’s advantage is that 3D recognition is 

virtually error-proof. The exact three-dimensional shape of a face, unlike a photo, is very hard to 

imitate. And the procedure can be used in other areas — without need for major adjustments. 

Thanks to their close ties to customers, CT researchers were able to quickly apply the technique to 

exactly the kinds of solutions their customers were looking for. For instance, the Industry Sector 

applied Forster’s procedure to chassis calibration in vehicle assembly. Here, the chassis’ spinning 

wheels are illuminated by a color pattern and then measured. The development team had to fine 

tune the system to precisely determine the wheels’ properties and optimize the measuring 

station’s dimensions. In another application, the measurement device’s size had to be reduced to 

fit it into a small 3D scanner — the “Siemens iScan” now used in hearing aid applications. This 

scanner makes it possible to digitize auditory canal imprints, which are often made of silicon, and 

then e-mail the data to a hearing aid manufacturer. The procedure is even used by the Energy 

Sector to compare the shape of turbine blades with 3D data from a database, and quickly identify 

even the smallest cracks or imperfections. Color-coded triangulation is also used outside of 

Siemens, for example as the basis for software used by plastic surgeons to precisely plan 

operations and visualize the results beforehand. 

ultimately responsible for the accumulation of 

expertise in areas such as materials, software, 

and production processes. 

How important is it that research 

at Siemens takes place around 

the world? 

Achatz: It’s extremely important. Being close to 

customers and knowing their requirements is 

just as crucial to industrial researchers as the 

contacts they maintain with top universities and 

research institutes. An international structure 

enables us to stay in tune with the times, obtain 

the best people for our teams, and integrate 

various cultures and research approaches into 

the organization. Through our Centers for 

Knowledge Interchange we maintain very close 

ties with several universities, including Munich 

Technical University, RWTH Aachen, Tsinghua 

University in Beijing, Tongji University in 

Shanghai, M.I.T. in Boston, and the University of 

California in Berkeley (see p. 40). 

What makes research at Siemens 

appealing to job applicants? 

Achatz: Many university graduates — and 

especially those in the technical and natural 

sciences — see Corporate Technology as an 

ideal gateway into the world of Siemens. For 

one thing, it offers fascinating research 

opportunities across a broad range of 

technological fields. What’s more, none of this 

involves research for its own sake; everything is 

clearly targeted toward some aspect of 

business. At CT, researchers can experience, and 

help shape, the process by which an idea is 

transformed into a new product used 

worldwide. After a couple of years, these young 

researchers can — and should — transfer into 

one of our Divisions to take on new and exciting 

assignments, whether in development, 

production, sales, strategy, or service. In other 

words, Siemens offers all researchers with an 

entrepreneurial spirit an unbelievable variety of 

possibilities — all over the world. 


Corporate Research and Technologies 

A World of Discovery 

Innovations are one of Siemens’ key success factors. The company’s goal 

is to be a technological trendsetter in all of its fields of business. Corporate 

Research and Technologies is playing a crucial role in this endeavor. 

New materials support many 

innovations at Siemens. Page 12 

Planning and testing factories 

— long before they exist. Page 14 

Enhancing efficiency and 

finding green solutions. Page 16 

Improving the quality and performance 

of software products. Page 18 

Systems that keep learning even while 

they’re in operation. Page 20 

Optimizing imaging technologies for 

medicine and other fields. Page 22 

Why innovations tailor-made for China 

are going global. Page 24 

S.M.A.R.T. innovations for India’s information 

technology sector. Page 26 

Nanostructures and failure analysis are 

the strengths of CT Russia. Page 28 

British research: producing a wealth of 

applications. Page 30 

CT in Japan and Singapore: Using Asian 

expertise effectively. Page 32 

Providing know-how to support 

start-ups and new ideas. Pages 33, 34 

Looking into the future to establish 

Siemens as a trendsetter. Page 36 

10 Corporate Technology

While specialists in the Siemens Sectors and 

Divisions are familiar with their customers’ 

needs and have plenty of product and system 

expertise, the roughly 2,250 employees who 

work at Corporate Research and Technologies 

(CT T) worldwide contribute their in-depth understanding 

of fundamental technologies, models, 

and trends, in addition to extensive software 

and process know-how, to Siemens’ integrated 

technology company. 

In order to exploit as many synergies as possible, 

CT T’s expert teams are not set up in line 

with Siemens’ Energy, Industry, and Healthcare 

sectors, but instead function on a cross-sectional 

and cross-divisional basis. The areas of expertise 

at CT T cover information and communication 

technologies, new materials, smart 

sensors and cameras, self-learning software, 

and the simulation of complete production 

processes. An additional key to Siemens’ success 

is the international nature of CT T, which operates 

major facilities at locations in the U.S., the 

UK, Germany, Russia, India, Singapore, China, 

and Japan. These international hotspots give 

Siemens the advantage of being able to incorporate 

crucial input from customers and top universities 

into its research. 

Below: Achieving a data transmission rate of 

one gigabit per second through a polymer fiber. 


Materials & Microsystems 

Materials research has always had a big impact on Siemens’ product 

and systems business. Products benefiting from this work range 

from detectors for the latest generation of CT scanners and new 

materials for LEDs to special coatings for turbine blades in power 

generators, lead- and halogen-free materials for the electronics 

industry, and sophisticated systems for analyzing nanomaterials. 

More than 215 specialists are involved in these cross-sector 

technologies at CT MM, where the focus is on evaluating environmental 

impact and finding solutions that conserve resources. 

Why Materials Matter 

Researching new and enhanced materials is 

in some respects similar to the process of innovation. 

Decisive advances are not only a result 

of radical new discoveries, but also of new 

approaches to combining basic ingredients that 

are already familiar. The professionals at Corporate 

Technology’s Materials & Microsystems (CT 

MM) division do both. In addition to synthesizing 

new materials, they combine well-known 

substances to produce completely new compositions. 

And when the latter is done in the right 

way, the result can be a customized material 

with properties that are improved or often completely 

new. Essential to all this is a precise understanding 

of the atomic structure of materials 

and of the kinds of properties these structure 

produce. Equally essential is to have a full command 

of the entire technological chain of 

causes and effects, from raw materials and processing 

to system integration and, ultimately, 

recycling. To achieve this, researchers rely on 

the latest findings from a variety of interdisciplinary 

fields, including nanotechnology, rapid 

prototyping, combinatorial chemistry, modeling, 

and simulation. 

Success stories in this area include a joint 

project carried out by CT MM and Siemens subsidiary 

Osram concerning the use of ceramic luminescent 

materials for light-emitting diodes 

(LEDs). The use of special luminescent material 

mixtures is now making it possible to produce 

LEDs that emit a broad palette of color shades. 

This is not something to take for granted. Such 

semiconductor materials normally produce 

very pure colors, making them suitable only for 


a limited color range. With the development of 

what are known as “conversion” or “inorganic” 

phosphors, however, it is already possible to 

make blue LEDs emit light of a green, yellow, 

red, or neutral white tone, and the same will 

soon apply to ultraviolet LEDs. At the same 

time, Osram has already launched an LED with a 

luminosity of over 1,000 lumens — enough to 

outshine a 50-watt halogen lamp. With that 

kind of brilliance, Osram’s “Ostar Lighting” is 

able to provide desk lighting from a height of 

two meters. These new-generation LEDs, which 

use 80 percent less energy than incandescent 

lamps of equal brightness, are thus ready to unlock 

a billion-dollar market for general lighting 

applications. LEDs are already used in various 

fields — as backlights in monitors, for example, 

in vehicle cockpit lighting, brake lights, and 

now even for headlights. In a discipline known 

as light engineering, experts at CT MM are developing 

new types of lighting that involve a 

combination of luminescent materials with 

photonic crystals, which makes it possible to 

precisely control and enhance the color, intensity, 

and propagation of light. 

Walls of Light 

A logical development from this field is the use 

of materials specially tailored to produce organic 

LEDs (OLEDs). Developed only a few years 

ago, these ultra-thin luminescent plastics offer 

very high contrast and are suitable for video applications. 

Their most common area of use is in 

displays, but OLEDs are also well-suited to deliver 

evenly-cast colored or white light across 

large areas. 

This paves the way for completely new applications 

and lighting effects in fields including 

architecture, advertising, and interior design. 

Potential products include illuminated wallpaper, 

luminescent ceiling units, and flexible, 

transparent walls of light. Together with engineers 

at Osram, researchers from CT are pushing 

ahead with the development of OLED-based 

light sources that are suitably long-lived and 

consistently bright. 

When it comes to the detectors used in CT 

scanners, which produce high-resolution, 

three-dimensional X-ray images of the inside of 

the body, speed is of the essence. In the latest 

CT scanners, the X-ray source and detectors are 

rotated around the patient’s body three times

every second. This delivers X-ray images of a 

beating heart, for example, with unprecedentedly 

high resolution. This is made possible by 

the use of an “Ultra Fast Ceramic” (UFC) detector 

material. Jointly developed by experts at CT 

MM and Siemens’ Healthcare Sector, this ceramic 

material converts X-rays into light signals 

in less than ten microseconds, ensuring fast delivery 

of image sequences. In other words, the 

resolution of the X-ray image and the radiation 

dosage depend directly on the speed of the detector 

material. 

Here, once again, advances are in the 

pipeline. New and even faster detectors and 

their associated materials and components are 

being developed or are already undergoing 

testing. The objective is to deliver images of an 

even higher contrast, which would make it possible 

to provide more information on the tissue 

structure of a scanned section of the body. To 

engineer such a detector material, Corporate 

Technology researchers must push to the very 

limits of what is physically and technically feasible. 

Meanwhile, use of a new technique is enabling 

researchers to set new standards in 

terms of anticorrosion treatment. Using a 

process known as “cold gas spraying,” machine 

parts exposed to hostile elements are coated 

with a metal powder, which is applied with extreme 

precision by propellant gas traveling at 

several times the speed of sound. Even metallic 

composite materials can be precisely applied to 

all the contours of a part, without the need for a 

metal melt. 

When there is a need for detailed investigation 

of individual substances, especially harmful 

ones such as lead or cadmium, experts at CT 

have their very own analytics lab. With access to 

millions of dollars’ worth of ultra-sensitive 

equipment for chemical and physical analysis, 

they are even able to detect impurities diffusing 

through the nanometer-thick layers of a computer 

chip. If necessary, they can do this on the 

scale of individual ions and molecules. 

Controlling Chemical Processes 

Companies in the chemicals, pharmaceuticals, 

and medical sectors are under increasing pressure 

to bring new products to market fast. This 

means ensuring that new substances and 

processes move from the research stage to the 

CT MM researchers analyze substances 

(left), develop new materials for LEDs and 

microprocess technologies (right), and 

investigate fire-resistant coatings (below). 

production stage as quickly as possible. Here, 

the use of microprocess technology is opening 

up entirely new approaches. Researchers at CT 

are currently working on a number of microprocess 

systems in which the reactive substances 

are first converted into ultrafine structures 

before being mixed and chemically 

reacted with one another. The parent materials 

are fed in at the start of the process, and the 

new product continuously emerges at the end. 

The resulting increased ratio of surface area to 

volume means the process can be controlled 

with greater precision. This in turn makes it possible 

to control chemical processes in new ways 

and, in many cases, to deal with explosive mixtures 

in a microreactor much more efficiently 

than is the case with conventional plants. This 

marks another advance toward the realization 

of safer processes and facilities. 

Given the increasing scarcity of many natural 

resources worldwide and the ongoing need 

to protect the environment, it is becoming more 

and more important to possess expert knowledge 

of materials and the technological skills to 

translate them into new products. At Siemens 

Corporate Technology this kind of knowledge 

has been pooled into a Center for Eco Innovations, 

which conducts environmental assessments 

of individual product designs as well as 

quantitative evaluation of environmental performance 

over a product’s entire life cycle. Such 

audits have already been carried out on 

Siemens products as varied as blast furnaces, 

protective conductors, and building system 

components. 


Production Processes 

The Production Processes (PP) team is a valuable partner for 

planners in Siemens’ Business Sectors. Using advanced simulation 

systems, the team’s approximately 150 experts design and optimize 

entire process chains and their associated factories, help to reduce 

technical and financial risks, and fine tune remote maintenance 

tools with a view to minimizing costs. 

Perfecting Factories 

before they Exist 

When it comes to planning factories, nothing 

is more important than getting production 

lines up and running in the shortest possible 

time. But avoiding errors before ground is broken 

is also essential. That includes ensuring that 

everything from workstations to production lines 

is designed as ergonomically as possible, and 

that all processes are set up in a manner that ensures 

optimized throughput. Although this may 

sound like a tall order, it’s exactly what the Production 

Processes (PP) Division specializes in. PP 

is the place where factories are born as 3D simulations. 

Here, virtual components are carried 

down simulated assembly lines in near real time, 

with animated human figures or robots working 

on them along the way. Such simulations make it 

possible to discover errors — such as a robot arm 

that’s too large to be used at a particular workstation 

— before they can cause real-world problems. 

Siemens experts have been working with digital 

factories for around twenty years. The true 

art of their virtual planning activities involves being 

able to determine which parts of a simulation 

actually require detailed data. For example, a material 

flow simulation can do without it; but a 

complex assembly simulation cannot. The Production 

Processes Division uses objects from a 

digital library to the greatest extent possible. The 

particular talent of the Division’s specialists lies in 

their ability to come up with the best solution for 

each application, in some cases utilizing their 

own user interfaces. Experts at PP also write their 

own simulation programs if no solution for a particular 

problem is available. 


It was such a situation, in fact, that led the Division 

to design — in cooperation with the Technical 

University of Munich — the PlantCalc planning 

tool that compares production locations in 

order to analyze their profitability. Use of this 

technique at a Siemens manufacturing location 

in northern Germany made it possible to show 

the facility’s managers that under certain conditions 

expansion of production in Germany would 

make more economic sense than transferring 

production to Eastern Europe. Here it was discovered 

that the optimization possibilities offered by 

the facility made it the best option, despite the 

higher wages paid in Germany. 

Optimized planning doesn’t guarantee perfect 

implementation, however, as steps need to 

be taken to ensure harmonized interaction between 

hardware and software, between mechanical, 

electronic, and information technology, 

and between developers, procurement specialists, 

and plant construction firms. In other words, 

the complete solution, which often consists of 

technologies from different Siemens divisions 

and external suppliers, must be brought together, 

installed, and put into operation in accordance 

with a tight schedule. The financial risk 

here increases with the complexity of the project, 

which can involve anything from a power plant 

to a factory or a subway line. 

Production Processes has developed a 

method known as Siemens Risk Analysis (sira) 

that minimizes such risks by identifying them at 

an early stage. sira provides a graphic depiction 

of risk probability in the form of symbols such as 

spheres whose color, size, and position represent 

the chances of a particular risk in combination 

with its potential financial effects and the level of 

risk consciousness in the project team. This socalled 

sira.iris summarizes the complete project 

risk situation in just one image. To date, PP researchers 

have used sira to generate 110 risk 

analyses. One of these was carried out for the 

subway system in Oslo, Norway, where a new 

brake developed by Siemens has been used for 

the first time. The situation was a textbook example 

of risk analysis with major consequences 

if, for example, a need for additional testing had 

resulted in delayed delivery of the component. 

CT’s risk analysts also enjoy an outstanding reputation 

among power plant construction companies 

where they are routinely called in to examine 

projects above a certain size and level of 

technical complexity with sira. 

80 

60 

40 

20 

New Tool Quantifies Risk 

100 

% Probability 

0 

€1 

thousand 

€10 

thousand 

€100 

thousand 

● Low ● Medium ● High risk 

€1 

million 

€10 

million 

€100 

million 

Qualitative risk

After a solution has been 

successfully implemented 

for a customer, Siemens is 

often requested to ensure 

its smooth functioning 

for many years. 

In this capacity, the 

company provides services 

from a central location 

that enable it to 

correct problems quickly 

and at reasonable cost. 

Such remote maintenance 

operations are much less expensive 

and time consuming than 

sending out technicians to facilities that 

are located all over the world. But there’s much 

more to this service than just a hotline. Thanks to 

state-of-the-art communication systems and 

high-performance data transfers, remote maintenance 

extends all the way to complete system 

management and support. 

Remote servicing features enable an expert 

team to continually monitor the condition of a 

facility, analyze sensor and operating parameter 

data, and identify faults in good time — for example, 

when monitoring of an important status 

parameter provides early warning of a defect in a 

bearing. Remote maintenance staff can then service 

the machine during an idle shift, for instance. 

At the same time, security issues, software 

errors, and IT-based configuration problems 

can be dealt with by installing new software and 

patches. The ability to do this is particularly useful 

with facilities where unexpected downtimes 

Work at CT PP focuses on refining remote 

maintenance systems (left), producing 

increasingly realistic digital factories 

(center), and project risk analyses (right). 

can be very expensive — for example, 

with medical systems, 

offshore wind 

power plants, or power 

plant gas turbines. 

Along with other 

CT divisions, a team 

from CT PP now specializes 

in improving 

and enhancing these 

remote services. Their 

goal is to create a comprehensive 

range of solutions 

through the combination 

of innovative technologies 

and CT expertise in areas such as highperformance 

diagnostic systems, state-of-the-art 

monitoring technology with software agents, 

and advanced remote collaboration systems such 

as the Visual Service Support System (VSS). The 

latter sharply reduces the chances that technicians 

will have to visit a facility in the future, as 

VSS is a mobile data transmission system that 

sends live images and sounds to a service center 

via mobile radio networks. This makes it possible 

for an on-site worker wearing a headset 

equipped with a camera and microphone to 

transmit live data to specialists regarding machine 

conditions and for specialists to guide the 

worker to the spots they need to see. When used 

in combination with other remote services that 

are already available, such systems will further 

increase the effectiveness of remote maintenance 

operations and significantly reduce response 

times and repair and maintenance costs. 

PLM Technology Center: 

Rapid Development of 

Market-Ready Products 

Many new solutions for bringing high-quality 

products to market in a rapid and flexible manner 

— and at a low cost — are now being developed 

by manufacturers in virtual environments 

with the help of digital tools and with the participation 

of suppliers and customers. Part of what 

is known as product life cycle management 

(PLM), this methodology results in a huge variety 

of interlinked processes for everything from 

innovation and specification-management to 

design, simulation, production, testing, maintenance, 

and recycling. The products involved are 

frequently associated with a complex combination 

of mechanical, electronic, and software systems. 

In order to support the Siemens Divisions with 

their activities in this area, CT opened a PLM 

Technology Center in Munich, Germany, in October 

2008. Two additional centers are scheduled 

to open in Princeton, New Jersey, and Beijing, 

China, in 2009. The purpose of these 

centers is to consolidate the PLM expertise of 

various CT departments — from software architecture 

to virtual design and from factory optimization 

to visualization technologies and optimized 

user interfaces — while at the same time 

highlighting best-practice solutions and future 

trends. An additional goal is to assist individual 

units with their specific development processes, 

analyze their technologies, processes, organizational 

structures, and resources — and combine 

these to create an optimized workflow. Finally, 

the centers provide their internal customers 

with CT innovations that help them bring their 

products to market as quickly as possible. Such 

helpful innovations include seamless digital development 

processes that obviate transfers between 

incompatible media, special remote 

maintenance services, and optimal solutions for 

integrating virtual products into the real world. 


Power & Sensor Systems 

With its approximately 200 

employees, the Power & Sensor 

Systems team is researching 

a range of innovative and 

environmentally-friendly 

solutions for applications in 

energy, automation, building 

management and medicine. 

Masters of 

Energy Efficiency 

Oil and gas have become expensive commodities. 

Their prices are a source of concern 

for automobile drivers and home owners as 

much as for operators of factories and power 

plants. In this state of affairs, many people are 

once more turning their attention to coal, which 

has remained relatively stable in price and will be 

available in sufficient quantities for a long time. 

The drawback is that per kilowatt-hour generated, 

the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from 

coal-fired power stations are almost twice as 

high as those from natural gas-fired combined 

cycle power plants. The solution may lie in carbon 

capture and storage (CCS) techniques in 

which carbon dioxide from power plants is separated 

and securely stored. 

One such technique is the post-combustion 

capture process, with which the CO2 in coal-fired 

power plants can be separated after combustion. 

In this case, approximately 90 percent of the CO2 

in the flue gas binds to a special CO2 scrubbing 

agent in an absorber and is thereby removed. So 

far, however, this technique has reduced power 

plant efficiency by about ten percentage points. 

Using modeling and simulation tools, experts at 

Corporate Technology’s Power and Sensor Systems 

Division are therefore analyzing the complete 

separation process and trying to optimize it 

in close collaboration with Siemens Fossil Power 

Generation Division and its units. 

Another way to reduce energy consumption 

and CO2 emissions is to optimize the electrical 

grid by cutting load peaks and normalizing the 

utilization of the network. Whenever possible, 

such an optimization should avoid situations in 


which power plants operate at less efficient partial 

loads or even at no load in order to be able to 

react quickly to an increase in demand. In the future, 

however, it will become even more difficult 

to balance supply and demand, because the proportion 

of fluctuating power generators — such 

as wind turbines and solar systems — will continue 

to increase. With this in mind, a team of experts 

at CT PS is studying a wide variety of energy 

storage methods. 

Focusing on Energy Storage 

Air compression is a case in point. Here, excess 

energy is used to compress air and store it under 

high pressure. Then, if an energy bottleneck occurs, 

the compressed air can be used to generate 

electricity, which is fed into the grid. 

Surplus energy can also be used to decompose 

water into oxygen and hydrogen. In its 

stored state, the energy density of the latter is 

ten times greater than that of compressed-air 

reservoirs. Here too, researchers at the Power 

and Sensor Systems Division are working on 

strategies for realizing economical energy storage. 

In the process, they are relying on Siemens’ 

extensive experience in developing fuel cells and 

electrolysis systems. 

The same applies to a different technology 

known as “supercaps” — double-layer capacitors 

that have a very high energy density of 2,000 to 

10,000 watts per kilogram and can be charged 

and discharged in a few seconds. These marvels 

of energy storage can absorb the braking energy 

of a train, for example, and release it again when 

the train starts up. 

Another example of an energy saving system 

is a ship propulsion system developed by CT PS in 

cooperation with Siemens’ Marine Solutions and 

Large Drives Groups. The propulsion system will 

be used for the first time in 2012. Thanks to its 

use of high-temperature superconductivity 

(HTS), the rotor in this propulsion system incurs 

no electrical losses, which increases its efficiency 

compared to conventional electrical drives. At 

the same time, the superconducting rotor coils 

have a current density 100 times greater than 

that of conventional copper coils. This makes it 

possible to reduce the weight and volume of the 

propulsion system by up to 50 percent, which 

cuts raw material and energy requirements. 

In the Russian region of Siberia, on the other 

hand, raw materials prices play a minor role. This 

comes as no great surprise, considering that this

area, which is approximately 25 times as large as 

Germany, is rich in mineral resources and extraction 

sites. However, these sites are often located 

a long way from infrastructures. There is therefore 

a need for remote monitoring systems capable 

of identifying defects in machines and 

pipelines via sensors. 

This is an ideal application area for CT PS. After 

all, scientists in this unit are working on more 

than just gas sensors that can measure and monitor 

air quality in buildings (see p. 47). They are 

also researching small, self-organizing sensor 

probes which, thanks to intelligent software, can 

monitor the status of production equipment 

such as pumps or compressors on the basis of 

their vibration characteristics or other data such 

as temperature and oil levels and can thus report 

abnormalities before a failure occurs. Anomalies 

are transmitted by radio from sensor to sensor to 

the next valve station, and via its mains connection 

to the next control center. As this process 

doesn’t require high transmission powers, the 

sensors can operate practically maintenance-free 

for a long time. If one sensor fails, neighboring 

sensor nodes organize themselves and automatically 

compensate for the defect thanks to decentralized 

channel assignment. Other places where 

these small measuring instruments might be 

used include industrial facilities and manufacturing 

sites. 

CT PS is researching these small wireless measuring 

instruments in collaboration with four 

other CT units, including CT SE (see p. 18) and CT 

IC (see p. 20). Power & Sensor Systems is responsible 

for developing the sensors’ power manage- 

CT PS sets standards with developments 

such as oil sand induction, a superconducting 

marine motor (center left), 

and sensor technologies (right). 

ment, electronics, adaptation to radio standards, 

and wireless interfaces. 

Like Siberia, Canada is an important supplier 

of oil. In Canada, which has huge oil sand deposits, 

bitumen has been extracted from the surface. 

In the case of deeper deposits, it is separated 

from sand using a steam cycle. In this 

process, steam is pumped into the oil sand for 

several weeks. The pressure in the deposit increases, 

the slurry becomes more permeable, 

and the bitumen separates and flows into a 

drainage line. CT PS has now developed a much 

more environmentally friendly method in which 

the wet sand is heated by electromagnetic induction, 

so that the bitumen can be separated from 

the sand. 

In this technique, an induction cable several 

centimeters in diameter runs parallel to the 

steam line in the earth. When the operator sends 

electrical energy into the reservoir, an alternating-current 

field is created around the cable, and 

this field generates eddy currents in the conductive 

sand. These currents slowly heat up the mineralized 

water on the oil sand grains. Droplets of 

bitumen can then separate from the grains of 

sand and flow into the drainage pipe. In combination 

with the conventional introduction of 

steam, up to 20 percent more oil can be extracted 

this way while reducing specific water 

consumption. 

The induction technique therefore also illustrates 

how CT PS is developing cost-effective, 

highly efficient technologies for the conversion, 

storage, and use of energy for industrial 

processes. 

Detecting Contaminants 

New ways of ensuring water quality are 

being studied in research projects at CT 

PS. One example is electrical biochip 

technology, which can be used to 

quickly detect a wide variety of 

pathogens and toxic substances in water. 

Insecticides, for example, impede 

the actions of certain enzymes. To detect 

these kinds of toxic substances in 

water, researchers have therefore integrated 

enzymes into specially developed 

biosensors. Electrical voltages can 

be used to measure whether the enzymes 

are functioning or whether they 

are blocked. This biochip technology 

can be used not only to detect insecticides, 

but in a variety of applications. In 

hospitals, for instance, it can be used to 

detect pathogenic strains of E. coli bacteria 

that are resistant to antibiotics. In 

this case, researchers use antibodies 

that bind to the constituent materials of 

these bacteria and thus make them detectable 

by means of an electrical 

biochip. By contrast, the optical technique 

used to date requires light 

sources and fluorescence dyes that 

make it possible to detect target substances 

with a CCD camera and an optical 

sensor. Biochip technology is thus 

much more compact and energy-efficient. 


Software & Engineering 

Siemens invests nearly €2 billion a year in software and employs 

some 20,000 software developers to drive crucial innovations all 

over the world. At Corporate Technology’s Software and Engineering 

(CT SE) team, 275 experts are involved in developing new processes, 

methods and tools, as well as providing project management 

and consulting services to improve the quality and capabilities 

of Siemens’ software products. CT SE specialists are located in 

Munich, Erlangen, Bangalore, Beijing, Moscow, and Princeton. 

The Invisible Foundation 

of Business Success 

It’s weightless, invisible, and flexible. It ships 

anywhere in seconds, consumes no resources, 

and can give virtually any product a 

unique identity — in the office, in production 

environments, and at home. It’s software, and 

at Siemens it has become an essential ingredient 

in the corporate formula for success. 

To an ever increasing extent, practically 

everything — from power plants to production 

lines and medical technology — will be governed 

by software. Software is also causing farreaching 

changes in traditional disciplines such 

as engineering, where It supports the entire 

value chain, from design to production planning, 

and from the development of new user interfaces 

to the implementation of advanced 

maintenance services. 

Software is finding its way into all kinds of applications. 

At Siemens’ Pervasive Computing 

Lab, for instance, researchers are testing proces- 


sors and sensors that are embedded in everyday 

items together with their software — whether 

it’s in lighting, air conditioning systems, window 

blinds or washing machines. Researchers want 

to determine whether the use of these devices is 

feasible in environments that are fully networked 

and always online. The vision of Pervasive 

Computing developed by CT SE provides answers 

to questions such as what the energy 

management of, or communication among, 

networked systems should look like, and how to 

provide such systems with a high degree of dependability 

and robustness. 

The Smart Home Lab provides an ideal setting 

for investigating how users will interact 

with tomorrow’s pervasive and highly integrated 

information systems. Researchers are 

also trying to find out how such systems can 

save resources by exchanging information and 

how they can lead to the automation of many 

functions in the area of building technology — 

and eventually to the smart, real-time, networked 

management of entire cities. So comprehensive 

is this vision that it includes the integration 

of data from public transit systems, 

power plants, decentralized energy supply systems, 

and the healthcare sector. For example, in 

the future, traffic lights might be linked to traffic 

flow information through real time data exchanges 

with electric vehicles and recharging 

stations. Local recharging stations, on the other 

hand, would ask decentralized energy providers 

how much energy each one of them was able to 

deliver. The objective in such urban applications 

would be to optimally manage available resources 

through IT systems. 

In hospitals and factories today the information 

technology landscape is often built up from 

a range of different vendor-supplied applications, 

including some programs developed inhouse, 

and numerous databases — a combination 

that is far from being optimally coordinated. 

Working in parallel are various coexisting systems 

with different life cycles and product versions, 

client-server applications and Web-based 

technologies that are often incompatible and offer 

redundant functions. Getting all these applications 

and their data sets to work together can 

be complex and expensive. 

How can these challenges be overcome with 

a view to creating an IT environment in which 

the components of all applications are seamlessly 

integrated? One way would be to create 

uniform interfaces between components on the 

basis of open standards. The advantages of this

concept are obvious: costs would be reduced 

and quality and flexibility would be increased, in 

spite of constantly growing user requirements. 

In order to create such an environment, what is 

needed above all is an open, service-oriented 

architecture (SoA). 

In view of this, one strategic focus of Software 

and Engineering is the integration of internal 

and external demands pertaining to application 

programs for manufacturing and business 

processes. This concept, which is known at CT SE 

as “holonic integration,” offers many advantages, 

such as the containment of IT costs, 

enhanced flexibility, a high degree of communications 

consistency, the integration of services, 

and synergy among applications. In contrast 

to hierarchically organized systems, holonic 

systems are based on the cooperation of autonomous, 

independently operating units. 

Automated Software Production? 

Strategic Holonic integration is at the root of 

new, decentralized models of automation and 

communication, as well as the trend toward an 

SoA-based IT architecture. Researchers at CT SE 

are therefore investigating how existing SoA 

paradigms can be applied to embedded systems 

without having to make compromises regarding 

reliability, real-time availability or limited hardware 

resources. In the context of the EU’s NESSI 

(Networked European Software and Services Initiative) 

program, CT SE is focusing on SoA-based 

solutions for evolving trends such as 3D worlds, 

cloud computing, and SoA4PLM (SoA for Product 

Lifecycle Management). 

Writing software is tedious, time-consuming, 

and prone to human error. So how about automating 

this process? That’s the vision behind 

model-based software engineering. Studies 

now being conducted at CT SE and at several associated 

universities indicate that, in principle, 

the modules needed for a program can be identified 

by a model interpreter — basically a software 

tool — and interconnected to build a functional 

system. The development of such a tool 

would mean a significant reduction in the amount 

of time needed to produce software systems. 

With this in mind, Software developers at CT 

SE are working to design programs simply as formal 

models that can then be translated into program 

code by a model interpreter. The advantages 

of this technology are clear: errors are 

minimized, individual modules can be used in 

multiple applications, costs can be reduced, and 

customer requirements can be addressed flexibly. 

CT SE is also deeply involved in the optimization 

of development engineering. For instance, 

in the steel industry steps are being taken to 

standardize the engineering of entire plants. 

Specialists from CT SE are working together with 

experts from Metal Technologies to develop a 

methodology for systematically reusing pre-developed 

and standardized modules. Together, 

they have defined a new, standard approach in 

engineering, which integrates the structures of 

plants, processes, and available software tools 

into the Siemens collaborative data management 

system — the so-called PLM Teamcenter. 

Such a strategy offers enormous savings in 

terms of time, and can reduce costs between 10 

Solutions from CT SE range from intelligent 

networking and new interfaces in the 

Pervasive Computing Lab (left) to optimizing 

luggage handling systems (right). 

and 20 percent. To this end, CT SE offers comprehensive 

consulting services for the definition 

and implementation of concepts for modularization, 

standardization, and reuse. 

In situations where downtime is prohibitively 

expensive, such as at factories and power 

plants, for example, new software packages 

have to be integrated while such facilities are in 

operation without interrupting crucial 

processes. Accordingly, CT SE is investigating 

the use of the latest multi-core chips, which contain 

two or more independent central processing 

units (CPUs). Studies have shown that with 

CT SE’s new “Chip by Chip” software, it is possible 

to perform a software upgrade via one processor 

while other CPUs ensure that crucial processes 

continue to function without interruption. 

With a view to optimizing its own software 

development processes, Siemens relies on a program 

called the Software Initiative (SWI), which 

is managed by CT SE. This program is designed 

to improve software development efficiency 

while at the same time reducing costs. To do so, 

the SWI encourages the company-wide use of 

repeatable development processes, promotes 

the identification of synergies, and stresses the 

importance of sharing best practices throughout 

the company, especially when it comes to 

cutting-edge software topics. 

In order to do all this, the initiative relies on a 

global network of experts in practically all of 

Siemens’ units. That’s an important prerequisite 

for creating connections between the 20,000 

software engineers who work for Siemens all 

over the world. 


Information & Communications 

No area of industrial society today can get by without the benefits 

of information and communications technology. The same applies 

to Siemens’ Energy, Industry, and Healthcare Sectors, which receive 

support from the Information & Communications team (CT IC). 

More than 250 specialists are involved in topics such as intelligent 

and autonomous systems, network technology and multimedia 

communications, IT security, knowledge management, and user 

interface design. 

Systems that 

Never Stop Learning 

Many of today’s industrial applications 

would be lost without intelligent systems. 

Take the steel industry, for example, where the 

material properties of finished product can be 

precisely defined in advance. This requires the 

use of an intelligent temperature control system 

that can optimally adapt to varying production 

parameters and, for example, spray precisely the 

right amount of water onto hot steel to cool it 

down at exactly the right moment. The same 

applies to the power industry, where a procedure 

by the name of “nonlinear model predictive 

control” is used to ensure optimum turbine operation. 

This technology not only ensures that turbines 

adapt to the task at hand, but also that 

their control system learn on the job. 

Similarly, information and communications 

technologies (ICT) now plays an important role 

in power distribution and manufacturing. Mobile 

robots and their auxiliary localization systems 

are increasingly being used in automated 

production lines. CT IC experts 

have developed a driverless 

forklift that does not require a 

complex or expensive guidance 

infrastructure before being 

able to operate in a given 

area. Instead, it is fitted with 

an autonomous navigation 

system (ANS) developed in a 

joint project between CT and 

Siemens’ Industry Sector. CT 

IC contributed a series of basic 

technologies for ANS, including 

a system for the interpre- 


tation of three-dimensional landmarks. This dispenses 

with the need for any special infrastructure, 

since ANS can determine its current position 

by fusing data from a combination of 

sensor sources. Other areas of application include 

service robots that are used for cleaning 

and monitoring duties. 

A very new area of research at CT is data 

transfer by means of visible and infrared light. 

January 2008 saw the launch of an EU project in 

this field. 

OMEGA, which was initiated by France Telecom, 

involves CT IC along with over 20 partners, 

all working to develop this technology. In particular, 

the project is investigating the use of fluorescent 

tubes and LEDs for this purpose. Besides 

being used for lighting and signaling, these can 

also be modulated, via their power supply, to a 

frequency of up to 20 megahertz and thus utilized 

for wireless data communications. This 

form of optical communication is already being 

tested with high-performance 

LEDs such as the Ostar from 

Osram. Given their high frequencies, 

these devices are 

not characterized by disturbing 

flickering. Nor do they produce 

any stray radio radiation 

— an advantage of great interest 

to hospitals, for example, 

where highly sensitive 

measuring equipment can be 

interfered with by the technology 

currently used for wireless 

data transfer. 

Away from the work environment, more and 

more people now favor more environmentallycompatible 

products and systems that generate 

little or no “electrosmog.” As part of the OMEGA 

project, a prototype is being developed to show 

that ceiling lights can be modulated in such a 

way that they can be used, for example, to 

download video content at a rate of approximately 

100 Mbit/s. 

Optimized Interfaces 

Attractive and user-friendly interfaces are likewise 

crucial to the success of many different 

products and systems. Indeed, good user interface 

design (UID) can also relieve user stress 

and thus reduce the likelihood errors. 

In partnership with marketing and development 

teams at the Siemens Sectors, experts 

from CT’s Information & Communications Division 

analyze end users’ needs with a view to creating 

new interface concepts and enhanced visual 

design. In addition, they implement new 

components and prototypes, which are put 

through their paces in usability tests. The products 

and systems tested in this manner range 

from train cockpits and washing machines to 

medical equipment and control technology for 

power plants and automation systems. Experts 

from CT IC thus help all Siemens divisions worldwide 

to design optimal user interfaces. 

An example of such work is the design of the 

Siemens web site, which reached the top of the 

Financial Times Bowen Craggs Index 2008, making 

it one of the best corporate web sites worldwide.

As the average age of the population increases, 

user interface designers are working on 

the introduction of a technology that will revolutionize 

their field: voice activation, particularly in 

connection with multimodal solutions. Intuitive 

voice command and voice dialog systems will do 

much to make mobile devices and more complicated 

applications easier to use. 

At CT IC, researchers are investigating new 

approaches to voice interaction technologies 

and using voice analysis techniques for new applications. 

Proven technologies in the areas of 

voice recognition and voice dialog as well as 

speech synthesis and speaker verification will 

provide the basis for new and convenient solutions 

in this field. 

Such applications include control systems for 

devices and equipment, the analysis and evaluation 

of voice input, and non-contact access to industrial 

plants and production lines. Solutions already 

realized here range from voice recognition 

systems in the operating room to biometric systems 

for password reset management. 

In the future, the emphasis will be on adapting 

such solutions to a variety of acoustic environments, 

both industrial and medical, as well 

making them compatible with all major languages. 

Other points of focus include further enhancing 

the quality of comprehension in order to 

make voice interaction an integral part of efficient 

workflows. Of great benefit in all of these 

enterprises has been a high level of international 

cooperation with other research teams throughout 

CT. 

Automated steel cooling with water (left), 

autonomous robots (below), data transfer 

via white LEDs (center), and intuitive user 

interfaces are examples of intelligent ICT. 

In fast-moving global markets, the rapid and 

efficient transfer of knowledge and information 

in particular is becoming increasingly important 

— not least for companies divided between different 

locations. At the same time, more and 

more people are now part of social networks. 

Support for such networks in the form of knowledge 

management technologies such as Web 

3.0-based applications is therefore another new 

area of research interest at CT IC. The focus here 

is on so-called social software applications, 

which provide access to the Internet and intranets, 

and facilitate data sharing within corporate 

networks and beyond. The best-known examples 

of these are blogs and wikis. 

When it comes to the quality, security, and 

reliability of collaborative platforms and virtual 

forums, Siemens researchers apply particularly 

high standards. A case in point is the Siemens 

blogosphere. This and similar applications are 

based on open source software that has been 

adapted to Siemens’ specific requirements. Using 

this first-ever fully transparent and companywide 

platform, all Siemens employees can now 

communicate and exchange data with one another. 

IC experts were also substantially involved in 

the establishment of the Siemens Portal — 

Siemens’ intranet — and, on the basis of the expertise 

gained from implementing this project, 

they now offer other companies customized solutions 

for their specific needs. This involves not 

only knowledge management for employees, 

but knowledge management within technical 

systems. 

Maximum Security 

RFID tags have a key role to play in logistics, 

where they can help ensure fast, cheap, 

and accurate delivery of goods of any kind. 

The use of RFID tags is already common 

practice in areas of manufacturing with a 

large number of components, such as the 

automotive industry. Thanks to wireless 

technology, these tiny electronic circuits are 

both writable and readable at a distance. 

The key research concerns in this field are 

data protection, data security, and the detection 

of forgeries. CT experts have now 

been able to endow low-cost RFID tags 

with the same level of security as is offered 

by smartcards, thus paving the way for 

their use in mass markets. For a long time 

this appeared to be an impossible challenge, 

given the highly restrictive parameters 

involved. These include RFID tags’ very 

small area, the low amount of energy and 

computing capacity available, and the need 

for very fast processing times. Nonetheless, 

Information & Communications Division 

researchers have been able to develop a 

secure authentication process on the basis 

of new types of cryptographic algorithms 

by means of which the genuineness of an 

RFID chip can be verified by a reader device 

within a tenth of a second. The technology 

behind this process has been optimized 

with respect to size, energy consumption, 

and processing requirements so that it can 

now be operated on a tiny RFID chip. 


Siemens Corporate Research 

Siemens Corporate Research (SCR) in Princeton, New Jersey (USA) 

is Siemens’ largest research center outside Europe. For more than 

thirty years, leading organizations in the private and public sectors 

have turned to SCR for its expertise in breaking down barriers to 

innovation and delivering real business value. With more than 300 

scientists, engineers, and technology experts, SCR is helping its 

customers and strategic partners grow their businesses in the fields 

of healthcare, automation, production, energy, industry, and 

information and communications. 

A Technology 

Greenhouse 

As communication has become more complex 

and demanding, Siemens has brought 

strong and trusted leadership as a solutions 

provider to a broad range of industries. Today, 

SCR serves as a “technology greenhouse” in 

which new ideas are nurtured and existing technologies 

and business processes are enhanced. 

As a result, SCR partners have been able to harvest 

and harness innovations to improve their 

businesses, resulting in long-lasting benefits. 

The medical sector is a case in point. For instance. 

In order to learn more from diverse diagnostic 

imaging techniques, SCR is developing a 

variety of data analysis and fusion technologies. 

However, research has been hampered by the 

heterogeneity of the imaging environment 

where, particularly when it comes to the transition 

from animal models to human testing, formats, 

data sizes and software are often worlds 

apart. With this in mind, SCR researchers working 

under a contract from the National Institutes 

of Health’s Cancer Biomedical Informatics Grid 

program have developed XIP (Extensible Imaging 

Platform), an open platform that, for the first 

time, offers a standardized basis for analyzing 

images from any source, be it cellular, 

histopathological, preclinical, or radiological. 

XIP is made possible by a new plug-in architecture 

that allows thousands of software modules 

to be pieced together. This supports breakthrough 

multi-resolution imaging technology 

developed and patented by Siemens, which 

makes it possible to integrate and correlate in 

vitro microscopic and in vivo macroscopic imaging 

data. 


SCR researchers are also working with experts 

from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, 

Maryland to develop software that will 

help cardiologists and radiologists pinpoint and 

treat myocardial infarctions. Using a new user 

interface developed by SCR, the researchers succeeded 

in combining real-time images generated 

from a specially-designed MR catheter — 

while the catheter was being guided toward a 

patient’s heart — with three-dimensional MR 

images of the patient’ s upper body. Once in the 

heart, the catheter could be used to direct therapy 

in areas near a myocardial infarction since 

dead cells take up a contrast agent and therefore 

appear bright in MR images. In this way, doctors 

can precisely detect the location of a myocardial 

infarction. 

State-of-the-art medical technology is also 

needed for the diagnosis of lung cancer. This 

type of cancer, which is the number one cancer 

killer worldwide, can be very difficult to detect 

because a single CT chest scan can result in more 

than 1,000 cross-sectional images. Evaluating 

these images places significant demands on radiologists’ 

ability to cope with their workloads, 

which can involve some 40 scans per day. 

In view of this, Siemens has launched syngo 

Lung CAD (computer-aided detection), an automated 

application for the localization of small 

nodules in the lungs. The product can detect 

nodules as small as three millimeters in size. Like 

a spell checker in a word processing program, 

syngo Lung CAD can sift through hundreds of 

images and detect any structures that fit a specified 

list of nodule characteristics. 

Even the most practiced and knowledgeable 

researchers can be at a disadvantage when analyzing 

and predicting outcomes from massive 

volumes of data — a situation that can reduce 

the scientific merit of results even as time and 

cost issues increase. With this in mind, SCR’s 

bioinformatics team has come up with a new application 

known as Interactive Knowledge Discovery 

and Data Mining (iKDD), which identifies 

patterns in huge, heterogeneous and complex 

databases. The application will enable the pharmaceutical, 

clinical research, agricultural, and 

biodefense sectors to analyze huge volumes of 

data stemming from different sources and to determine 

hidden patterns in order to zero in on 

probable outcomes and make actionable recommendations. 

The ability to make sense of huge and heterogeneous 

masses of data is also being applied to 

the continuous monitoring of complex systems 

such as gas turbines, medical equipment, and 

entire power plants. SCR’s condition monitoring 

team develops technologies, algorithms and 

software solutions for sensor-based monitoring, 

diagnostics, and early fault detection in large, 

expensive systems where around-the-clock productivity 

is essential. Condition monitoring can 

help increase system availability and reliability 

while significantly reducing downtime, the 

chances of catastrophic failures, and enabling 

more efficient maintenance management. 

Siemens’ PowerMonitor technology, for instance, 

has been successfully used for several 

years to monitor a fleet of 250 gas turbines from 

a control center in Orlando, Florida.

SCR is a leader in the development of new 

imaging processes, such as the visualization 

of nerve paths (left) and a platform that 

allows analysis of images from any source. 

Another key area of research and development 

at Siemens Corporate Research is automated 

image processing. Here, for instance, SCR 

has achieved outstanding results in areas that 

include security systems, traffic monitoring and 

quality control in production. As in healthcare, 

the objective is to automatically interpret imaging 

data and to combine the information gathered 

by many sensors in a way that provides actionable 

information. For example, surveillance 

cameras can already independently identify 

anomalies such as unattended pieces of luggage 

in airports, people in subway stations who are 

dangerously close to the tracks, and cars driving 

through tunnels in the wrong direction. Earlier 

generations of surveillance systems frequently 

produced false alarms, but today’s systems have 

achieved an accuracy level of over 95 percent 

and have very low rates of false alarms. 

Earlier systems could be thrown off by reflections, 

occlusions and high levels of contrast, but 

the latest systems based on intelligent algorithms 

can continuously track objects in motion, 

extract relevant data, and hand off data to other 

cameras when the target object moves out of 

their field of view. This permits security personnel 

to focus on deciding whether events require 

action or not — something people are still better 

at than any program. 

As Siemens Corporate Research teams with 

its customers in the U.S., its leadership in vision 

systems, automation and control, healthcare, 

and analytical systems impacts Siemens in all of 

its business sectors. 

For more, visit: www.scr.siemens.com 

Virtual Factories and Optimized Buildings 

Long before tomorrow’s factories exist, they can be seen, analyzed, and meticulously tested in 

the virtual world. That’s the idea behind a new, multifaceted tool suite (top photo) that was 

developed by a research team from Siemens Corporate Research in collaboration with colleagues 

from Siemens’ Industry Sector. For the first time, this program allows mechanical, electrical, and 

automation engineers to work collaboratively on the same planning and development projects. 

When integrated with simulation tools from Siemens Product Lifecycle Management Software, 

this technology could result in new ways of developing products. For instance, it could be used to 

automatically generate information for production processes on the basis of product 

specifications. To take just one example, after a product designer has determined the surface 

properties of a product, the system would automatically choose the right production process in 

order to fulfill these specific requirements. Ultimately, this is a technology that uses extremely 

precise simulations of products and production processes to automatically generate the correct 

layout of the factory and the processes that are needed to manufacture the product exactly as it 

was produced in the simulation. This reduces costs and shortens the product development 

process. 

Another SCR project is designed to reduce building energy 

consumption, which accounts for 40 percent of all the 

energy used worldwide and 21 percent of all greenhouse 

gas emissions. The “High Performance Buildings” project is 

headed by SCR experts and involves employees from 13 

Corporate Technology departments and the Building 

Technologies division, as well as researchers from eight 

universities and research institutes, such as Berkeley, 

Carnegie Mellon, TU Munich, and the Fraunhofer 

Gesellschaft. The project’s objective is to seamlessly 

network the expertise required in modern building systems 

by linking important cross-sector technologies such as 

sensors, automation, security technology, remote 

maintenance, and insulation technologies, including 

nanoparticle coatings. The objectives go well beyond 

reducing energy consumption or conserving resources 

such as water; they also include optimization of the entire 

lifecycle of a building. 


CT China 

Corporate Technology has been expanding rapidly in China since 

2004. In Beijing and Shanghai more than 200 men and women 

are committed to developing unique innovations tailored to the 

needs of the world’s most populous country and — in conjunction 

with the Siemens Sectors — successfully launching them on the 

global market. 

Growing Technologies 

for China and the World 

Keep up the pace" is Dr. Arding Hsu’s favorite 

saying. Hsu, who is head of Corporate Technology 

(CT) in China, uses it constantly. And 

he’s not just referring to the tremendous 

growth of the Chinese economy, which is running 

in high gear compared to much of the rest 

of the world. What he is talking about are his efforts 

to push ahead rapidly with setting up a 

new research center that will bring Siemens research 

closer to the Chinese market and 

strengthen cooperation with local partners. 

Hsu, who is Chinese-born, but Western-oriented, 

studied in the U.S., lived there for 30 

years, and worked for Siemens for 24 years before 

moving to Beijing in 2004. 

Founded as a small research unit in 1999, CT 

China has been extensively expanded since 

Hsu’s arrival. Today, with over 200 CT employees 

in Beijing and Shanghai researching technologies 

in the environmental, energy, health 

and industrial fields, CT’s China operation is the 

largest Siemens research institute in the Asia- 

Pacific region. The research team concentrates 

on the development of technologies and solutions 

that are optimally tailored to the Chinese 

market, and yet have the potential for success 

on the global market. The first priority for these 

innovations, according to Hsu, is that they 

should be S.M.A.R.T., the acronym for “simple, 

maintenance-friendly, affordable, reliable and 

timely to market.” 

In a rapidly changing country such as China, 

this is easier said than done. One look at the 

traffic congestion in Chinese megacities illustrates 

the problem. Bicycle riders once defined 


city landscapes, but today traffic jams are just as 

much a part of the picture. Beijing, for example, 

has changed in appearance and size on an almost 

daily basis over the past few years. There 

are now more cars in Beijing than bicycles, and 

the number of daily car rides increased from 11 

million to 20 million between 1986 and 2002. 

Experts expect this figure to increase to as many 

as 40 million daily car trips by 2010 – and that’s 

just in Beijing. To prevent traffic chaos, the city 

has earmarked about two billion euros for new 

roads, traffic control systems and the development 

of public transportation through the year 

2010. 

Traffic Patterns and Mobile Phones 

Traffic analyses are an indispensable tool for 

city planners who want to identify which of 

these solutions are most needed, and where. 

However, the methods usually applied today – 

whether they’re low-tech roadside systems, or 

high-tech license plate recognition – are all too 

time-consuming in fast-growing China. 

Siemens researchers have therefore developed 

a solution to simply, quickly and inexpensively 

analyze a whole city’s huge and evergrowing 

volume of traffic. To accomplish this, 

CT China makes use of an existing infrastructure 

– the mobile phone network. Today, a large 

proportion of the urban population already 

owns a mobile phone and cellular wireless networks 

cover large Chinese cities in their entirety. 

What’s special about the Siemens solution 

is that it uses the mobile phone 

infrastructure to pinpoint millions of mobile 

phones, register their movement patterns, and 

thus reconstruct the city’s traffic conditions in 

real time. This is being realized by a server used 

by CT China that is connected to the mobile 

phone network with a separate data transmission 

line. The server receives mobile phone signals 

picked up from the network in anonymous 

form. The Siemens solution takes advantage of 

the existence of many small network cells between 

individual wireless masts. 

A special software program allows the system 

to pinpoint the mobile phone signals, compare 

them with a street model of the city, and 

generate an up-to-date picture of the momentary 

traffic situation. All in all, the process is expected 

to be about eighty percent cheaper than 

conventional traffic analyses. CT China, together 

with Tongji University in Shanghai, is already 

testing the solution in other parts of 

China. 

With regard to data transmission in industry, 

the focus is often on increasing production 

times while simultaneously reducing system 

maintenance costs. To achieve this goal, many 

companies are therefore using so-called machine 

condition monitoring systems in their 

production facilities. These systems allow specially-trained 

experts to carry out a detailed diagnosis 

of all of a machine’s process parameters, 

even from a remote location. On the basis 

of the resulting information, experts can detect 

imminent faults or damage from even the 

smallest changes – for example, from an analysis 

of gearbox vibrations – before the fault or 

damage actually occurs.

In fast-growing economies such as China’s, 

however, demand for such experts still outstrips 

supply. That’s why Siemens CT China is developing 

a user interface machine (UIM) for the Chinese 

market that processes highly detailed condition 

monitoring information. It displays 

retrieved content in a form that is understandable 

to non-engineers, for example, by automatically 

identifying data that indicates imminent 

damage. The device is also designed to be 

highly compatible and easily connected to existing 

systems with no need for special installation 

processes. That makes it simple to use and 

saves installation costs. What’s more, the machine’s 

automatic online updates will supply it 

with new interpretation algorithms as they become 

available. Algorithms are being developed 

by CT China in collaboration with the prestigious 

Xi´an Jiaotong University. 

In another research project, CT China is 

working on optimizing the production of 

biotech products – for example medicines or 

foodstuffs enriched with bacterial cultures. 

Biotechnology is based on findings from biochemistry, 

microbiology and process technology. 

Microorganisms, such as yeast cultures, 

are cultivated in bioreactors for the production 

of proteins or nucleic acids. Finely balanced parameters, 

such as nutrient constitution and biomass 

concentration, are crucial for obtaining 

the best possible process conditions inside reactors. 

Even the smallest variations influence the 

physiological state of microorganisms, including 

their growth and secretion of target bioproducts. 

But until now, there has been no 

method for controlling these parameters with 

absolute precision during reactor operation – 

for example through the use of reliable, realtime 

sensors that automatically monitor and 

control the bioprocess. 

In a project called “Automation for Life Sciences,” 

CT China has now developed the world’s 

first in-situ biosensor platform for industrial applications 

– a technology that, until now, has 

been limited to the medical sector. (“In-situ” describes 

the measurement of substances directly 

in their field of activity.) The platform’s Biosensors 

monitor the quality of microorganisms by 

measuring, among other things, cell concentration 

and size distribution, as well as the concentration 

of nutrients in real time. Project experts 

also incorporated highly developed control 

strategies in the system. These allow biosensors 

to measure current process values, compare 

them with stored optimum values, and then automatically 

forward change requests to a digital 

control system. The system, in turn, adaptively 

adjusts the parameters in question, such as the 

nutrient concentration, which alters the bioprocess 

to an optimal state. The result is greater 

efficiency throughout the process as well as improved 

product quality. 

The principal target group for the new 

biosensor platform consists of biopharmaceutical 

and biotech companies, where pilot trials 

have already been extremely successful. Initial 

test runs have shown a tenfold increase in productivity 

and have achieved significantly 

shorter cycle times compared with existing production 

processes. 

With new solutions for traffic analysis 

(left), biosensor platforms (center), and 

machine diagnostics, CT China may soon 

be in a position to affect global markets. 


CT India 

India, Asia’s second largest market and a center of expertise in 

information technology (IT), can look back on half a century of 

success as a Siemens location. In Bangalore, the Silicon Valley 

of the subcontinent, CT India employs more than 80 researchers 

and engineers who handle complex issues related to integrated 

hardware platforms, intelligent cameras for security and 

automotive applications, medical systems and software 

optimization, embedded systems, renewable energy solutions, 

and “S.M.A.R.T.” innovations for all three Siemens sectors. 

High-Tech Innovations 

for Developing Nations 

Siemens can look back on a history of more 

than 50 years in India. Today, the company 

has over 18,000 employees at 35 locations in 

the country, including 5,000 researchers, developers, 

and software engineers. The company 

operates 18 production facilities in the 

fields of power transmission, automation, medical, 

and building technologies. With the expansion 

of Indian industry, demand for products 

and solutions that can meet the needs of the local 

market is growing rapidly. 

Considering these figures, there was good 

reason for Corporate Technology to open a research 

center for local Siemens customers, as 

well as those in other countries, in Bangalore in 

April 2004. Since then, the CT team has undergone 

rapid development under the direction of 

Dr. Mukul Saxena, a top Indian researcher who 

began with just a handful of employees. Today, 

CT India and its 80 researchers and developers 

handle complex issues related to integrated 

hardware platforms, intelligent cameras for security 

and automotive applications, medical 

systems, and software optimization. 

S.M.A.R.T. innovations are at the very top of 

the agenda for CT India. The acronym stands for 

Simple – Maintenance friendly – Affordable – 

Reliable – Timely to market. That means developing 

high-tech, low-cost innovations that are 

reliable and, whenever possible, maintenancefree. 

The sophisticated solutions developed by 

CT India are tailored to the specific needs of local 

customers. In short, the challenge is: “how 

can I develop a high-tech product for only one 

tenth of what it would cost in the U.S.?” 


This is among the questions being addressed 

for the healthcare sector, for instance, by researchers 

working on very flexible client-server 

architectures that distribute large volumes of 

3D image data throughout a network of lowerperformance 

computers — and which can also 

process this data within the network in real 

time. In this connection, CT scientists in India 

are working closely with Siemens Corporate 

Research (see p. 22) in Princeton, New Jersey, 

which has assigned specialists to Bangalore for 

the project. 

Flexible client-server architectures would 

enable surgeons in operating rooms to access 

computer tomography images in real time — 

without any need for high-performance computers. 

The computing resources provided by 

many background computers would be used in 

a way that would make it possible to call up images 

via a workstation with the help of special 

visualization software. 

Cameras with Brains 

One of the many examples of S.M.A.R.T. innovation 

from CT India is an inexpensive camera 

equipped with a digital signal processor. The 

camera offers several benefits. Its components 

are up to 80 percent less expensive than those 

of other cameras, its technology provides an 

enhanced level of functionality, and it is perfectly 

suited to applications in India. 

Siemens has become a preferred supplier in 

the field of computer-aided image processing 

(machine vision) for Indian customers, largely 

because of the know-how of CT India experts in 

this field. For example, Siemens has provided 

the Indian Tobacco Company’s Bangalore factory 

with 20 S.M.A.R.T. cameras, infrared 

lamps, and sensors. The resulting system projects 

infrared light on cigarette paper in order to 

check its thickness — a step that allows factory 

employees to quickly determine whether a machine 

contains the right paper for one of six different 

types of cigarettes the company makes. A 

variation of this machine vision approach was 

also developed for a principal supplier of the 

Tata Nano car in order to automatically check 

the washers for cylinder head seals. This in turn 

has led to additional orders for other production 

sites. CT India has thus developed low-cost automation 

solutions for the Indian market that 

may be applicable to the world market. 

Another increasingly important area is the 

development of embedded software for driver 

assistance systems, including lane assistants, 

which are early warning systems that prevent 

car and truck drivers from inadvertently leaving 

the lane they’re traveling in. Various types of 

optical systems are used here to determine a vehicle’s 

actual position within a lane. Systems 

like these would normally require a high level of 

computing power packed into a small area — 

but CT’s experts in Bangalore are now looking to 

develop a small and reliable system that can reduce 

the time needed for lane tracking computations 

by 80 percent without any loss of precision. 

Corporate Technology is also handling the 

associated software-hardware adaptations, and 

vice versa. Its solution spectrum therefore encompasses 

the entire embedded system.

A major initiative at Corporate Technology 

India is the development of decentralized 

healthcare solutions for emerging markets. A 

system of this sort is particularly important in 

markets such as India due to the absence of a 

closely-meshed healthcare infrastructure. With 

this in mind, Corporate Technology India is 

planning to develop S.M.A.R.T. solutions in two 

areas. On the one hand, the company is developing 

a customized software architecture that 

makes it possible to centralize all of a hospital’s 

information systems, thus facilitating management 

and retrieval of patient data, telemedicine 

databases, and even inventory in a single 

system. On the other hand, researchers are 

seeking to develop technologies that will accelerate 

diagnostics, independent data registration, 

patient recognition, and communications 

with nearby medical facilities. 

To name one example, CT India is now developing 

a handheld fetal heart rate monitor, 

which will make it possible to perform quick fetal 

diagnoses even in remote areas. Such a device 

already exists — but it uses bulky and expensive 

ultrasound technology. But plans call 

for it to be replaced by small microphones, 

which will make the unit much more compact 

and robust. 

Siemens innovations made in India include 

an inexpensive yet highly functional 

S.M.A.R.T. camera. The device is finding 

applications in industrial automation. 

Moving forward, CT India will focus on sustainable 

solutions for emerging markets, while 

leveraging technologies to address regional 

challenges. For instance, over 250 million people 

in India do not have access to electricity, and 

over 800 million people do not have access to 

basic healthcare. Experts at CT India are therefore 

developing solutions for distributed, decentralized 

power generation that are based on 

renewable energy. They are also addressing the 

healthcare needs of rural areas throughout India. 

The team is working on solutions that will 

help to ensure environmentally-sustainable energy 

security. 


CT Russia 

Although CT Russia is one of the more recent additions to the 

Siemens family of corporate R&D locations, it has already made 

a name for itself in the fields of materials science, energy 

conservation, industrial automation, and software engineering. 

Since its establishment in 2005, the organization’s workforce 

has risen from two to 45. Along with its headquarters in Moscow, 

CT Russia now also operates a research facility in St. Petersburg 

— the world’s most northerly city with a population of more 

than one million. 

Simulating and Optimizing 

Materials and Systems 

Russia is not only one of Germany’s most important 

trading partners; it’s also a key market 

for Siemens. It was therefore only logical 

that the company decided to open a Corporate 

Technology office in the world’s largest country 

in 2005. Since that time, CT Russia’s director, 

Martin Gitsels, has built up the office’s Moscow 

headquarters and has also established a second 

location in St. Petersburg. Today, CT Russia employs 

45 men and women whose research 

focuses on the development and processing of 

industrial materials, innovative concepts for 

combustion in turbines, state-of-the-art technology 

for oil and gas production, and softwareintensive 

automation systems. The organization 

also works closely with partner institutes and 

universities in Moscow and St. Petersburg in all 


of these fields (see p. 44). Gitsel’s team of researchers 

has already achieved noticeable successes 

with innovations in areas such as gas 

turbines, heat exchanger technologies, and 

process automation. 

Nanostructured Materials 

The Russian researchers’ work in the field of 

modern industrial materials mainly involves the 

development of new types of nanostructured 

materials that have huge surface areas in relation 

to their volume. This innovative property 

makes possible completely new functions in a 

huge range of industrial applications. Among 

other things, plans call for nanostructured ceramic 

materials to be used as heat-insulating 

layers in gas turbines, as they are much more 

elastic and less brittle than the ceramic layers 

that are now in use, and therefore last longer as 

well. Other aspects of materials research in Russia 

include high-performance metal alloys and 

computer-aided materials development systems 

whose specialized software enables CT engineers 

to simulate the composition and behavior 

of a material all the way down to the atomic level. 

Staff at CT Russia also employ mathematical models 

and software to optimize material designs. 

Predicting Crack Paths 

The latest example of work in this field is the 

“Crack Path Prediction” project, which is designed 

to prevent different kinds of materials 

from cracking. To this end, researchers are developing 

various fracture mechanics simulation 

methods that analyze how cracks spread under 

static and dynamic stresses, and how components 

can fail as a result. The goal here is to use 

the information gained from analyses of multilayered 

components to predict fracture behavior. 

Multi-layered components can be found in 

many Siemens products and solutions, including 

turbine blade coatings that need to withstand 

temperatures of well over 1,000 degrees 

Celsius. Results from the Crack Path Prediction 

project have already made it possible for Gitsels’ 

team to simulate these coatings under actual 

operating conditions and thus precisely analyze 

how cracks develop and propagate. 

Thanks to this research, CT Russia is, for example, 

making it possible for Siemens engineers 

to develop very high quality gas turbines and individual 

turbine components. Research in the

field of chemical-thermal gas dynamics is also 

contributing to the progress being made here. 

This type of research involves the simulation of 

complex combustion processes, with a focus on 

answering questions such as how hot gases expand 

during combustion, what kind of turbulence 

arises, what temperatures are present in 

which areas, which types of chemical processes 

take place, and which pollutants form under 

which conditions. 

Researchers are examining these questions 

with two main goals in mind: improved energy 

efficiency and significantly reduced pollutant 

emissions. These objectives are being driven primarily 

by new regulations around the world that 

necessitate the use of low-pollution combustion 

technologies. CT Russia is thus looking to develop 

not only new combustion units that operate 

on hydrogen, but also control systems that 

regulate the thermodynamic parameters of gas 

flows on turbine blade surfaces in a manner that 

optimizes turbine performance. 

These simulations and tests of gas dynamics 

can also be used to improve other components, 

such as rapidly rotating mechanical bearings that 

rest on a gas cushion. CT Russia is developing associated 

technologies here with the Moscow 

Power and Engineering Institute. The resulting 

innovations could replace the oil-lubricated 

bearings used to date, thereby dramatically 

reducing friction losses in turbochargers and 

compressors, while at the same time increasing 

efficiency. Here, development engineers use 

specially-modeled numerical simulations that 

enable them to analyze these complex 

processes at a lower cost and with less effort 

than ever before. 

One of the major beneficiaries of this work 

will be Siemens’ Energy Sector divisions, which 

will be able to develop better-performing products, 

enjoy shorter development times, and minimize 

their development-associated risk. Researchers 

expect to achieve the latter through 

the application of failure analysis and prevention 

in the field of software engineering. 

Machines that Monitor Themselves 

CT Russia already offers a variety of intelligent 

solutions in the field of risk analysis, some of 

which are capable of assessing the condition of 

a system and enabling effective remote maintenance 

should a problem occur. Here, the team 

is focusing on new algorithms and methods 

that enable machines to monitor themselves, 

learn from failure analyses, and thus optimize 

their own operation. Such algorithms from CT 

Russia have already established themselves as 

part of various software solutions used to monitor 

processes for industrial production, power 

generation, and oil and gas extraction. 

Among the innovations developed by the research 

team is the Vibrations Diagnosis Module 

(VDM), which has now been brought to the prototype 

stage. The VDM is a learning-enabled 

software package that combines different machine 

learning techniques for failure analysis 

and prevention. These techniques originated in 

the Siemens Machine Learning Library, a platform-independent 

software library. VDM analyzes 

sensor data on parameters such as gearbox 

CT Russia employs experts in nanostructured 

materials (left), failure analysis 

and prevention software (center), and 

combustion process analysis. 

oscillation frequencies and surrounding conditions 

to generate an assessment of the state of a 

component. Predefined threshold values learned 

from database examples enable the module to 

register initial changes caused by wear and tear 

or defects at a very early stage . 

In the future, the system will be used for remote 

monitoring of distant oil fields, for example 

in Siberia — in other words, in places that 

are difficult to reach for monitoring and maintenance 

purposes. In particular, it will thus become 

possible to effectively monitor pumps and 

generators for oil extraction, as well as the compressors 

needed to transport oil and gas 

through pipelines. 

Reliable analysis of oscillation frequency 

spectrums, like that offered by the VDM, is important 

because system oscillations fluctuate 

constantly as a result of the extreme weather 

conditions that prevail in such regions (temperatures 

as low as minus 50 degrees Celsius in the 

winter and as high as 40 degrees in the summer). 

The remote monitoring system may also 

soon be applied to oil fields whose pressure is 

too low for economical extraction. Here, a 

chemical treatment process developed by CT 

Russia will increase pressure, thus enabling oil to 

be extracted from the fields once again. 

When creating software-intensive systems 

such as the VDM, CT researchers primarily focus 

on software development technologies and sophisticated 

software architectures and platforms. 

Their goal is to establish a solid technological 

foundation largely based on modeling 

and simulation tools. 


Roke Manor Research 

Roke Manor Research Ltd., an R&D center founded over 50 years 

ago, has belonged to Siemens since 1990. The center’s approximately 

470 employees are leaders in communications technology 

and network and sensor systems. The researchers’ innovations 

are extremely varied, ranging from true-to-life simulations of 

TV studios, to RFID chips for the maintenance of trains, new 

solutions for computer and magnetic resonance tomographs, 

and optimized wind turbines. 

Research in the Best 

British Tradition 

In the course of its history, which goes back 

more than 50 years, the Roke R&D center located 

in Romsey in southern England has acquired 

a broad range of knowledge in the fields of communication, 

sensor technology, and software for 

corporate applications. So it’s no surprise that 

the center offers a huge spectrum of innovative 

services for developing commercial solutions and 

systems. In recent years, Roke’s participation in 

major projects of this kind has grown by leaps 

and bounds, in large part because its researchers 

are able to deliver innovations for every phase of 

a product’s life cycle, from testing of the initial 

concept to market launch. 

Intelligent vision systems play a large role 

in a major project that Roke helped implement 

within a team led by Siemens Traffic for 

Transport for London (TfL), the integrated 

body responsible for the Capital's transport 

system. To cut traffic levels and congestion 


in central London, TfL introduced the central 

London Congestion Charge in February 

2003. A standard £8 daily charge applies to 

vehicles driving within the Congestion 

Charging zone, Monday to Friday 07:00am 

to 6.00pm. Drivers who have not paid the 

charge by midnight on the next charging 

day after they travel in the zone are liable to 

be issued a Penalty Charge Notice of £120, 

which is reduced to £60 if paid within 14 

days. The Congestion Charge is one of the 

largest schemes of its type in the world. Vehicle 

registration numbers are observed by 

1,360 cameras at 338 sites, located both on 

the boundary and within the zone. Almost 

1.5 million images are captured and 

processed every charging day. Roke's task in 

this project was to develop an enterprise 

scale, a high availability data management 

system for handling this data. 

Two other successful examples of the 

British research company's activities are 

from the medical sector. Engineers from 

Roke have developed a system that enables 

computer tomographs (CT) to communicate 

their data significantly faster than in the 

past. The values measured in the rotating 

part of the machine are transmitted by contactless 

means from a transmitter in the rotating 

part to a stationary receiver on the fixed 

part. The next generation of CT scanners, 

which are to be equipped with this system, 

attain a data transfer rates of 8.5 gigabits per 

second. By comparison, today’s machines 

achieve a transfer rate of five gigabits per 

second. The Roke innovation thus allows 

larger volumes of data to be transferred in 

the same time, allowing the generation of 

sectional views with higher resolution and 

ultimately resulting in better data quality.

In another successful project, Roke’s scientists 

are working on a so-called wireless patient 

coil to be used in magnetic resonance tomographs 

(MRT), eliminating the need for cables. 

The wireless patient coil is a magnetic coil that 

acts as a transmitter and receiver in one. It is 

placed on the body part to be examined before a 

patient is positioned in the magnet aperture of 

the system. In the past, the signals were transmitted 

and received using multiple cables. With 

the Roke solution, the system transfers the information 

via numerous wireless modules that are 

mounted on the array. The advantage of this system 

is improved comfort for the patient as well 

as for doctors and nurses, as the device can be 

handled much more conveniently. After all, 

there are no longer any attached cables to worry 

about. In addition, higher patient throughput 

times are possible. 

By contrast, wireless communication technologies 

have been used in the industrial sector 

for the automation of factory processes for 

many years now. However, for cost reasons, 

they have been used only in applications where 

cables would be difficult to install. But today, the 

availability of less expensive and more flexible 

technologies is attracting companies’ interest in 

the increased use of wireless technologies. 

The implementation of such technologies in 

industrial processes is another of Roke’s strong 

points. The research center has extensive expertise 

in the areas of data transmission, networking, 

latency, and security issues. Roke has provided 

consulting to the UK regulatory authority 

Ofcom on this topic and currently chairs one of 

the 802 working groups of the Institute of Electrical 

and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), whose 

tasks include the establishment of IEEE standards, 

such as the wireless LAN standard IEEE 

802.11. Thanks in large part to Roke’s tremendous 

store of knowledge in this field, Siemens is 

today one of the world’s leading suppliers of 

such solutions for the industrial sector. 

Another successful Roke development uses 

RFID chips installed under trains to monitor 

maintenance-intensive components such as 

axles and wheelsets. The readers mounted on 

the platforms record data transmitted by the 

chips fitted underneath a rail vehicle, which enables 

them to identify individual components 

and send relevant information such as the components’ 

mileage to the database of a maintenance 

workshop. Thanks to this information, 

railroad operators could record, for example, the 

distance covered and the resulting wear and 

tear on the rolling stock of their trains — and 

thus service components that play an important 

safety role in a timely fashion. Roke has already 

demonstrated the operational feasibility of this 

development in practical tests. 

A current research project with applications 

in the energy sector illustrates the wide range of 

development fields handled at Roke. The project 

deals with wind turbines and the electromagnetic 

effects they can have on other systems. 

These white giants have now become an indispensable 

means of power generation, but they 

also potentially generate interference with 

ground-based radar systems. Roke has therefore 

developed an in-house software tool that can 

Roke Manor Research is setting standards in 

many areas — be it London’s toll system 

(left), RFID systems on trains, and data 

transmission for tomographs (right). 

model the radar cross-section of a turbine and 

predict its effects on surrounding radar stations. 

The tool can also identify aspects of the design 

or the location that could be optimized. 

Another project, this one for the TV industry, 

focuses more on image processing algorithms 

than on cameras. Together with Siemens IT Solutions 

and Services (SIS), Roke is planning to 

use machine vision techniques for the virtual 

mapping of a real-life studio set. Thanks to this 

solution, film sets and follow-up scenes can be 

constructed and optimized on a computer, 

three-dimensionally and precisely matching the 

design models, together with all the camera angles 

and cable runs instead of having to carry out 

complex lighting settings and other adjustments 

only after the set has been built. This makes it 

possible to avoid set-up faults in the first place, 

thus saving considerable time and costs. The result 

could be a tremendous reduction of program 

filming times and, since sets often have to 

be rented, of rental costs as well. 

By applying its extensive “bag of tricks,” Roke 

has already demonstrated the technologies and 

algorithms it needs to implement this virtual 

mapping approach. In this case the research division 

used its RAT (Roke’s Autonomous Traveller) 

robot, which captures images of its environment 

via cameras and then uses the images to develop 

a virtual model of the studio in real time 

that can be processed with currently available visualization 

tools. Roke has been developing these 

types of algorithms for the three-dimensional 

interpretation of the real world for many years. 

For more information visit www.roke.co.uk 


CT in Tokyo and Singapore 

Corporate Technology has 

branches in Singapore and 

Japan. In Tokyo, technology 

analysis and research partnerships 

top the agenda, while in 

Singapore the focus is on 

exploiting expertise in waste 

water treatment and drinking 

water preparation. 

Bridges to Cutting-Edge 

Research in Asia 

Robotics, energy storage systems, materials 

research and high-speed trains are just a few 

of the areas in which Japan’s researchers are at 

the cutting edge of developments worldwide. 

One of the tasks of Corporate Technology in 

Tokyo, which sees itself as a hub for technological 

collaborations, is to exploit this research. The 

unit aims to recognize trends as they appear on 

the Japanese market, which plays a key role in 

the dynamically growing Asian economy. Beyond 

that, the Tokyo branch also looks for partnerships 

and strives to bridge cultural differences 

between Japan and the West. 

One of the successful projects that CT initiated 

and managed in Japan involved the investigation 

of the vibration properties of Shinkansen 

and Velaro high-speed trains. Researchers from 

Siemens and the Institute for Industrial Sciences 

at the University of Tokyo created 3D models of 

the two trains’ swivel trucks and subsequently 

simulated their operational vibrations. Because 

small tunnel cross-sections and other local factors 

cause the Japanese Shinkansen to suffer 

from pressure fluctuations, it was not clear 

which of the two vehicles would perform best. 

The Velaro has a purely mechanical solution 

based on a roll stabilizer. The Shinkansen, on the 

other hand, uses a sophisticated, electronically 

controlled semiactive shock-absorbing system 

that offers advantages in terms of comfort — as 

shown in simulations. However, the Velaro also 

achieved outstanding comfort values. In the 

meantime, researchers in Japan and in Europe 

are looking at potential combined applications 

for the two concepts. The results are thus simul- 


taneously providing valuable information for 

further development of the swivel trucks. 

The CT team is also preparing further partnerships 

with regard to energy storage devices, 

nanocomposites, new coating methods for ceramic 

materials, and other research areas. 

Singapore: Water Expertise 

Water technology is the focus of CT’s activities 

in Singapore, where the Industry Sector 

maintains a global competence center. Water 

is of strategic importance to Singapore, which 

wants to reduce its imports of this resource. In 

fact, the city state has been using Siemens water 

treatment technology for many years. 

Research in this area is progressing particularly 

through the efforts of the team from CT. 

Among other things, this team is involved in the 

development of a new seawater desalination 

system that will consume at least 50 percent less 

energy than conventional technologies. As part 

Researchers in Tokyo compare the Velaro 

train’s swivel trucks with those of the 

Shinkansen. In Singapore, CT is optimizing 

water filter membranes (below). 

of this project, CT researchers are investigating 

new ion-exchange membranes that remove 

salts from liquids. In other projects, experts are 

testing the wettability of hollow fiber membranes, 

such as those used to remove dirt from 

water. This work is designed to optimize the 

leakage tests for membrane modules. In addition, 

CT researchers are improving porous materials 

whose adsorption properties allow them to 

remove pollutants and heavy metals from water. 

The overall goal is to reduce the cost of such systems 

and to significantly increase their absorption 

capacity. 

Experts are also researching new electrodes 

for the electrochemical treatment of water. Such 

electrodes are frequently made of platinumcoated 

titanium, in other words, two expensive 

metals, one of which — titanium — is difficult to 

work with. The researchers believe that the electrodes 

could one day be made of electricallyconducting 

plastics instead. Such plastic electrodes 

could even be injection molded.

Siemens Technology Accelerator Light switches from EnOcean do not need 

external sources of energy. The energy 

expended when a person presses a switch 

produces enough power to do the trick. 

Not all of the inventions conceived at Siemens can be turned 

into products at the company. Nonetheless, many of these 

inventions are innovative, patented technologies that promise 

to be successful on the market. To ensure that these 

opportunities are not wasted, the Siemens Technology 

Accelerator (STA) was established in 2001. STA is a 

wholly-owned Siemens subsidiary that is affiliated with 

Corporate Technology. The subsidiary’s mission is to 

detect and market potentially profitable innovations. 

Spinning off 

New Companies 

Very often, the best way to engage in external 

marketing is to create a new spin-off 

company. That’s where Siemens Technology Accelerator 

comes in. During the first phase of a 

spin-off’s existence, STA supports the founders 

in every way — be it legally, financially, organizationally 

and in terms of collaboration with investors. 

Everybody profits from this. On the one 

hand, partners and investors gain access to innovative 

technologies and Siemens’ global network. 

On the other, the founders receive professional 

assistance and Siemens earns money 

from the implementation of developments that 

originated at the company, even if the final 

products are not related to its core business. 

The establishment of the current world market 

leader for cable-free and battery-free radio 

sensor solutions, EnOcean, was ultimately the 

result of a completely new idea. Researchers at 

Siemens Corporate Technology (CT) had developed 

and patented radio sensors that do not require 

external energy sources. The sensors obtain 

their operating current from energy 

expended, for example, when pressing a switch 

or from small differences in temperature. Together 

with STA, a team analyzed which areas 

offered the best market opportunities. After determining 

that the new technology was superior 

to conventional products for lighting and status 

switches in building installation technology applications, 

the STA team looked for pilot customers 

and drew up a business plan. 

In addition to five Siemens employees, who 

decided to switch to spin-off company EnOcean 

as founders, STA recruited other experts and 

helped the spin-off to conclude its first financing 

round. The latter can be a particularly grueling 

challenge for new companies, since they need 

significant amounts of capital before generating 

any sales. STA quickly managed to find respected 

venture capital providers for EnOcean’s 

business idea. That allowed the company, which 

is based in Oberhaching near Munich, Germany, 

to expand rapidly. 

During this process, EnOcean greatly benefited 

from Siemens’ diverse business relationships. 

The new company rapidly became known 

worldwide thanks to various showcase projects, 

such as the 236-meter-high Torre Espacio office 

building in Madrid, Spain, which was fully 

equipped with EnOcean’s cable-free radio sensor 

technology. 

Another STA spin-off is Pyreos, which is 

based in Edinburgh, Scotland. In 2007, STA established 

Pyreos as a company that develops 

and produces innovative infrared sensors that 

are used in motion detectors, for example, and 

in cameras. To meet its production requirements, 

it was important that the company be located 

close to specialized semiconductor technology 

suppliers. With this in mind, STA not only 

selected a location in Scotland that offered the 

ideal mix of technological conditions for the 

spin-off’s operations; it also found outstanding 

experts for Pyreos’s management team as well 

as venture capital investors who specialized in 

the local market. 

After STA has concluded a spin-off company’s 

initial foundation phase, venture capital investors 

increasingly take over the task of financ- 

ing the new company. These financiers can include 

Siemens Venture Capital, which is also a 

wholly-owned subsidiary of Siemens. However, 

STA, and thus Siemens, always keeps a minority 

share in such spin-off companies until they are 

either ready for their IPO or are acquired by another 

company. Both of these events mark the 

end of a successful foundation and build-up 

phase. 

Another means of externally marketing 

Siemens technologies is through licensing. This 

is especially the case with regard to innovations 

that potentially impact different fields. For example, 

Siemens uses color-coded triangulation 

— a cost-effective method for recording threedimensional 

surface data in real time and with 

great precision — to inspect turbine blades and 

as scanners for the production of hearing aids 

(see p. 9). However, the technology is also wellsuited 

for security systems that require precise 

face recognition. Although the Siemens Building 

Technologies Division was greatly interested 

in such solutions, it did not wish to develop the 

product itself. 

Experts at STA therefore looked for a partner, 

who could further develop the technology and 

also make it available to Siemens. STA therefore 

chose the world market leader in face recognition, 

L1 Identity Solutions, to which it granted a 

license. This gives Siemens access to the new security 

technology at advantageous terms without 

having to take part in product development. 

Even though the technology is therefore being 

externally marketed, it optimally serves 

Siemens’ interests. 


Technology-to-Business-Centers 

Siemens’ Technology-to-Business 

Centers in Berkeley, California, 

and Shanghai, China, search for 

promising innovators outside 

Siemens, incubate new ideas, 

develop business plans, 

introduce innovative 

products to markets, and 

launch start-up companies. 

Translating Ideas 

into Businesses 

Siemens Technology-to-Business Centers 

(TTB) were founded by the company’s current 

Industry, Automation, and Drive Technologies 

Divisions together with Corporate Technology. 

Their mandate is to systematically explore 

and transform external technologies into breakthrough 

product innovations — and thus also 

promote growth opportunities for Siemens’ core 

business. Here, TTBs actively carry out research 

at universities, research labs, early-stage companies 

and other sources. TTBs analyze new technologies 

and business cases — particularly 

those that could revolutionize whole sectors — 

and then work with inventors and Siemens business 

units to launch new products and solutions 

on the market. 

TTBs may also invest in start-ups that have 

strong technology synergies with internal research 

and development activities. All of this 

provides young companies with the opportunity 

to quickly become part of Siemens’ global environment 

and exploit associated benefits. As of 

September 2008, TTBs had established 29 technology-based 

businesses, 19 of which produce 

new Siemens products and ten of which are independent 

companies with Siemens as a shareholder. 

Located near San Francisco, just a stone’s 

throw from the campus of the University of California, 

Berkeley, and in the heart of the most vibrant 

venture capital market on earth, TTB 

Berkeley, which was founded in 1999, offers a 

channel for Siemens sponsors to access worldclass 

high-tech innovations (www.ttb.siemens. 

com). Home to a diverse spectrum of research 


and technology centers for global players, the 

San Francisco Bay area has drawn in leading 

high-tech companies, innovators, and investors, 

creating an extremely innovative environment. 

TTB Berkeley’s close proximity to this environment 

allows it to regularly invite entrepreneurs 

and innovators to face-to-face meetings to discover 

emerging technologies and gauge the attractiveness 

of associated opportunities. 

The high concentration of angel investors — 

affluent individuals who provide capital for a 

business start-up — and venture capitalists in 

this area enables TTB Berkeley to discover attractive 

opportunities and reduce its investment 

risks by entering into partnerships with prospective 

start-ups. 

TTB Shanghai was founded in 2005 to take 

advantage of the opportunities that the world’s 

fastest-growing market offers, and to leverage 

the country’s potential for innovation. China offers 

not only an exciting environment for inventors, 

but also the potential of attracting millions 

of new customers. Opportunities in China have 

drawn a vast number of innovative companies 

from all over the world, providing a rich environment 

for TTB Shanghai to scout for new start-up 

prospects. 

Price pressures arising from new and existing 

competitors emphasize the fact that cost-effective 

and innovative solutions are critical for longterm 

success. To strengthen Siemens’ portfolio, 

TTB Shanghai is positioned to mine China’s innovation 

know-how and use it to develop cost-effective, 

groundbreaking solutions that can revolutionize 

existing markets. 

Selected Projects 

Wireless Industrial Communications: Wireless 

LAN — also known as WiFi technology — 

has become ubiquitous in industry. Many customers, 

however, were slow to adopt it due to 

concerns about whether it could meet their realtime 

information requirements. What’s more, 

solutions were hindered by a multiplicity of devices 

that were based on different standards. 

With this in mind, TTB identified an expert 

from Columbia University who had applied economics 

models to computer networks and had 

shown that special quality of service requirements 

could be addressed by standard networks. 

His work led to a project developing software 

for a WLAN technology for industrial applications 

that was capable of guaranteeing real-time 

traffic (see p. 6). The resulting project, which

was realized by Siemens’ Industry Automation 

Division, is known as SCALANCE W. It was the 

first technology of its kind to open up the industrial 

WLAN market by providing a standard-compliant 

solution that met all customers’ requirements. 

Saving Energy with Computer Chips: Progressive 

Cooling, a TTB start-up, may have an 

answer to the ravenous electricity demand of 

server farms. Thanks to increasing Internet usage, 

the market for data centers, each of which, 

on average, uses about 500 servers, is growing 

by ten percent a year. According to Jonathan 

Koomey, a professor at Stanford University, all 

such centers worldwide already consume the 

equivalent of the power produced by 14 power 

plants, each with a capacity of 1,000 

megawatts. 

What can be done? Progressive Cooling may 

have an answer: a looped “wick” that uses capillary 

force to pump heat away from hot spots on 

processors and graphic cards. Unlike the heat 

pipes that often cool today’s processors, which 

are circular and made of copper or nickel oxide, 

the device from Progressive Cooling is flat and is 

made of silicon, allowing it to cover — or perhaps 

eventually become — a processor’s shell. 

What’s more, its patented chemical etching 

technique is capable of producing millions of 

uniform, densely-packed pores per square centimeter. 

As a consequence, heat can be channeled 

away so effectively that fans can potentially 

be downsized, thus cutting power demand 

and noise. 

Progressive Cooling is convinced that this 

new technology could enhance data center energy 

efficiency and open the door to higher 

computing power without increasing space requirements. 

Another start-up that was established with financial 

support from TTB is Cyclos Semiconductor, 

which will exploit a novel chip design technology 

developed by researchers at the 

University of Michigan. The new solution’s key 

feature is the recovery of electrical energy from 

the processor’s cycle and logic circuit, which 

could reduce electricity consumption and heat 

development in processors by 30 to 75 percent. 

The new chip design can therefore operate in a 

manner similar to hybrid cars, in which recovered 

braking energy is used to recharge the batteries. 

This kind of energy recycling can benefit 

many types of devices, from cell phones to 

servers. Nothing comparable is currently on the 

market, and Cyclos Semiconductor is now working 

together with Siemens to find areas in which 

the new technology could initially be used. 

High-Performance Spectrometer: The analysis 

of chemical compounds during production 

requires the highest level of precision. Analytical 

instruments must therefore offer the best possible 

price-performance ratio. But to achieve a 

high signal-to-noise ratio, most producers employ 

expensive components as well as moving 

parts that increase a device’s price while simultaneously 

reducing its reliability and speed. In 

view of this, TTB has entered into a partnership 

in Shanghai with start-up Beijing ChinaInvent In- 

TTBs aid researchers from Cyclos Semiconductor 

(left) and Progressive Cooling 

(right), and help develop products such as 

the first I-WLAN and a new spectrometer. 

strument. The specific objective is to develop a 

high-end near infrared (NIR) spectrometer for 

the price of a low-end instrument. 

By inventing a smart method of coding dispersed 

light and by replacing specialized components 

with off-the-shelf MEMs (micro-electromechanical 

systems), the cost of the 

spectrometer is expected to be less than half 

that of a high-end machine. The new instrument 

benefits from high optical throughput, which allows 

it to offer a significantly improved signalto-noise 

ratio. What’s more, the instrument does 

not use bulky moving parts, thereby increasing 

its speed and reliability. This innovative near infrared 

spectrometer presents many opportunities 

for future process control and on-line product 

quality monitoring systems. Possible areas of 

application include bioreactor monitoring and 

the classification of coal types for power plants. 


Strategic Marketing 

Identifying technologies that offer major growth potential, 

anticipating future customer needs, funneling information on 

strategic trends to internal and external partners, and supporting 

the image of CT as a core R&D competence center — experts at 

Strategic Marketing (CT SM) are doing all of these things with 

a view to making Siemens a trendsetter in as many 

business fields as possible. 

Inventing the Future 

For nearly a decade Corporate Technology’s 

Strategic Marketing (CT SM) department has 

worked closely and consistently with Siemens’ 

business Sectors to develop a package of powerful 

measures designed to optimize the company’s 

R&D activities in a systematic and sustainable 

manner. The results can be seen in the 

company’s “Pictures of the Future” projects – visions 

that employ two opposing, yet complementary 

approaches: extrapolation from the 

world of today and “retropolation” from the 

world of tomorrow – to indicate which technologies 

offer the greatest potential. 

Extrapolation, the first perspective, may be 

seen as road-mapping – in other words, projecting 

the technologies of today into the future. Here, 

the aim is to anticipate, as precisely as possible, 

the point at which certain things will become 

available or when a need for them will arise. 

Retropolation, on the other hand, involves 

working backwards from a probable scenario of 

the future that includes factors such as social, 

political, economic and environmental developments, 

technological trends and customer requirements. 

By backtracking to the present from 

the “known facts” of the future, Pictures of the 

Future specialists attempt to identify the kinds 

of challenges that need to be overcome to get to 

the future. 

By combining extrapolation and retropolation, 

CT’s strategic marketing experts can draw 

up Pictures of the Future that reveal which 

changes will impact the company’s areas of activity. 

A systematic, ongoing process, the development 

of Pictures of the Future helps the com- 


pany to quantify future markets, detect discontinuities, 

anticipate customer requirements, and 

identify new technologies with large growth potential 

and mass appeal. 

All of this serves to open up new business 

opportunities for Siemens and enable the company 

to create a uniform vision regarding its 

technological future. The Pictures of the Future 

have thus become one of the most useful instruments 

for optimizing R&D strategy. These forays 

into the world of tomorrow not only provide a 

coherent view of the future; they also show the 

company how to get there — which is the big 

difference between “inventing the future” and 

merely forecasting it. 

Recent Projects 

Energy transmission and distribution: This 

project produced a detailed vision of the future 

energy transmission and distribution environment 

leading up to the year 2020. Here, CT SM 

worked closely with the Power Transmission and 

Power Distribution divisions. It also conducted 

more than 100 interviews with external experts 

in order to analyze global and regional market 

trends and the impact they will have on 

Siemens’ business operations. The project team 

succeeded in identifying new business opportunities 

and the most interesting technologies for 

the energy sector. 

Along with projecting the impact of trends 

such as global warming, diminishing resources, 

and growing urbanization, researchers were 

also able to pinpoint the advent of more efficient 

power transmission technologies. Distrib- 

uted power generation, advanced energy storage 

systems, and intelligent networks will play a 

key role here in conjunction with sensor integration 

and the development of sophisticated information 

and communication technologies. 

Rail systems: The “Picture of the Future Rail” 

project predicts a promising economic future for 

rail transport, which will, however, be accompanied 

by several technological challenges. To create 

this picture, CT and the Mobility Division analyzed 

the future of rail transport systems in the 

period between now and 2025. 

Among other things, the project team found 

that globalization, economic growth, and demographic 

changes will lead over the next 20 years 

to a more than 30 percent increase in rail passenger 

volume and a 65 percent increase in rail 

freight volume. Differing local conditions will, 

however, cause markets to be very country-specific, 

and some markets within certain countries 

will also be extremely heterogeneous. “These results 

played a key role in our ability to fine-tune 

our business concepts,” says Friedrich Moninger, 

a project manager at the Mobility Division. 

Lighting systems: The “Picture of the Lighting 

Future” project examined the trends, technologies, 

and customer requirements that will shape 

developments in the lighting systems market 

over the next ten to 15 years. Among other 

things, researchers determined that more and 

more complete lighting systems consisting of 

lamps, light-emitting diodes (LEDs), sensors, 

and electronic systems will be sold in the future. 

Such systems will be able to utilize data from 

motion and other sensors to adapt themselves

to constantly changing conditions, thereby saving 

energy. The technologies of tomorrow will 

be based primarily on LEDs and organic LEDs 

(OLEDs), which will make possible revolutionary 

developments such as transparent light sheets, 

luminescent tiles, and illuminated ceilings. The 

researchers utilized the results of their project to 

produce detailed scenarios for various areas and 

applications, and these scenarios have led to numerous 

business ideas for Osram. 

Strategic Account Management 

Strategic Account Management is a key unit at 

CT SM. Strategic account managers (SAMs) 

identify business issues that are relevant to 

Siemens Sector customers and important for CT 

and then issue strategic recommendations. 

They also serve as intermediaries between all CT 

research departments and their customers. In 

this capacity, they manage customer relations, 

support regional integration, and serve as a pool 

of knowledge and expertise. They also identify 

customer requirements and possibilities for cooperation, 

and provide customers with complete 

or customized profiles of the technologies 

and consulting services offered by CT. 

All of this ultimately serves to enhance the 

reputation of corporate research departments at 

Siemens, because SAMs are the first point of 

contact to the product and development environment 

for the Sectors. Moreover, their active 

feedback helps to maintain an optimal networking 

culture between CT and its customers. 

Strategic Account Management thus complements 

the work of Key Account Managers at 

Corporate Technology, who establish and ensure 

access to customers at all levels of the hierarchy. 

Strategic account managers comprehensively 

support the Key Account Management 

organization in all of its strategic and operational 

tasks. 

Communication and Cooperation 

By facilitating contacts with external cooperation 

partners and serving as a link for Technology 

Division questions regarding national and 

European research programs, CT SM opens the 

door to a worldwide research network with 

academia and industry. While major parts of bilateral 

university cooperation programs are performed 

in the context of contract research, precompetitive 

cooperation in potentially risky 

industry-driven research networks is often supplemented 

by public funding. In addition, CT SM 

represents Siemens’ R&D policy positions on the 

strategic level at governmental offices and industrial 

associations. 

In addition, information media such as the CT 

Siemens researchers utilize holistic 

scenarios to study future trends in areas 

such as energy supply (left), digital health 

(center), and lighting systems (right). 

intranet customer platform, the ct news service, 

and Pictures of the Future magazine (co-published 

by CT SM) enable CT SM to enhance 

Corporate Technology’s profile as an innovation 

engine for Siemens and a center of expertise for 

R&D activities. 

CT SM works with Siemens Corporate Communications 

to publish the corporate research 

and innovation magazine Pictures of the Future, 

which was launched in 2001 and primarily targets 

external readers. Its main edition is published 

twice a year in English and German, and 

country-specific editions are published periodically 

in Chinese, Russian, French, Spanish, 

Portuguese, and Turkish. The magazine has 

some 100,000 readers worldwide, including researchers 

and developers at leading universities 

and institutes, customers, partners, government 

and industry representatives, and journalists. 

Pictures of the Future magazine offers varied 

and detailed insights into current R&D topics, 

focusing on key future trends such as those analyzed 

in Pictures of the Future projects. 


Research Cooperation and Innovators 

Partnerships with Experts 

The keys to successful research are outstanding employees and a well-crafted network 

of experts. That’s why Siemens is involved in more than 1,000 research partnerships all 

over the world — and Corporate Technology accounts for about half of them. 

A quantum leap for future information 

processing. Page 40 

Using Digital Graffiti to make a 

university campus transparent. Page 41 

Data-based systems for the early 

diagnosis of diseases. Page 42 

Carbon nanotubes thinner than a human 

hair but harder than steel. Page 43 

Breast cancer therapy: Detecting cancer 

cells with light. Page 44 

Lengthening turbines’ service life with 

nanoceramics. Page 44 

Research in China: The interplay of 

institutions. Page 45 

How sensors ensure optimal air and 

temperature conditions. Page 47 

Baking a key component for Siemens: 

Ceramics. Page 48 

Self-organizing computer networks. 

Page 49 

Intelligent cameras from India for transport 

systems and industry. Page 50 

Research on gas extraction in the Arctic 

Sea. Page 51 

Improving medical imaging technology 

with smart solutions. Page 52 

From a mystical riddle to the first 

industrial biosensor platform. Page 53 


Berkeley 

Princeton 

Siemens AG is currently 

involved in strategic 

partnerships (CKIs) with: 

U.S. 

Massachusetts Institute 

of Technology (MIT), Boston 

University of California, Berkeley 

Europe 

RWTH Aachen University 

Technical University of Berlin 

Technical University of Munich 

Freiberg University of Mining and Technology 

University of Greifswald 

Technical University of Denmark, Copenhagen 

China 

Tongji University, Shanghai 

Tsinghua University, Beijing 

Romsey 

Germany 

CT locations 

CT partnerships

Partnerships with leading international universities 

and research institutes are indispensable 

for Siemens’ research and development 

activities. Such partnerships allow the 

company to keep abreast of current developments, 

recruit the best employees for its teams, 

and integrate diverse cultures and research approaches. 

That’s why Siemens enters into more 

than 1,000 research partnerships every year 

with universities, research institutes, and indus- 

St. Petersburg 

Moscow 

Bangalore 

trial companies all over the world. The company’s 

global network of partnerships provides it 

with in-depth insights into the latest findings of 

basic and applied research throughout the world 

— and that applies to the Siemens Sectors as 

well as Corporate Technology, which is responsible 

for about half of these partnerships (see illustration). 

There are several good reasons why 

the universities and research institutes are interested 

in working with Siemens. For many re- 

Beijing Tokyo 

Singapore 

Shanghai 

Other important 

Siemens partners: 

University of Calgary 

Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh 

Centre de Recherche Informatique de Montréal 

Eindhoven University of Technology 

Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich 

Technical University of Kaiserslautern 

University of Erlangen-Nürnberg 

Fraunhofer Society 

Dresden University of Technology 

Johannes Kepler University, Linz 

Budapest University of Technology and Economics 

St. Petersburg State University 

Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay 

German Institute of Science 

and Technology (GIST), Singapore 

searchers and engineers, contacts with industry 

are important for ensuring that their work will 

have practical applications. Many researchers 

later go on to work at Siemens, where they contribute 

their know-how to create innovations 

that have a major impact on the future (see the 

short profiles of some innovators starting on p. 

46). Some 93,000 scientists and engineers work 

for Siemens worldwide — and almost 15,500 of 

them were hired in business year 2008 alone. 


Research Partnerships 

A Global Network 

of Top Scientists 

Munich Technical University: Quantum 

Leap for Information Processing 

Computer performance is a key success factor in virtually all fields of 

research that Siemens is involved in. Today’s computers, which work 

with binary codes, are not ideally suited to many calculation tasks, 

which is why a quantum computer would offer a much better option 

for the future. Experts believe that such a computer would be much 

faster than today’s units in terms of its ability to recognize patterns in 

many applications such as image processing, detecting viruses, and the 

analysis of genetic databases. A quantum computer would also be able 

to reliably read hand-written addresses on envelopes and more 

effectively monitor technical facilities. 

In cooperation with Munich Technical University, researchers from 

Corporate Technology have now taken a giant step toward improved 

information processing with quantum computers by successfully 


According to Henry Ford, “Thinking is the hardest work there is.” 

Which is why Corporate Technology (CT) is constantly on the lookout 

worldwide for the most capable minds to participate in joint research 

projects. CT initiates nearly half of the more than 1,000 partnerships 

Siemens enters into every year with universities, research institutes 

and industrial partners. In doing so, it ensures its participation in 

much of the most exciting basic and applied research being 

conducted around the world. 

completing the first-ever experiment to create an artificial neural 

network on a simple quantum computer. 

Specialists from CT’s Learning-Enabled Systems department have 

been working with artificial neural networks for many years now. Such 

networks operate in a manner similar to that of the human brain and 

are especially suited to pattern recognition operations. They are able to 

learn and can be trained via examples. The idea behind placing neural 

networks on quantum computers is to ensure more efficient processing 

of the huge amounts of data associated with pattern recognition. 

Instead of bits, quantum computers work with data units known as 

quantum bits, or qubits. These units are capable of assuming different 

states simultaneously, and can also be entangled with other qubits in 

a special type of quantum correlation. Because of these properties, 

computer calculations with qubits are much faster — and more complex 

— than operations with conventional bits. 

In his Siemens-sponsored doctoral dissertation, quantum computer 

programmer Rodion Neigovzen simulated a complete system consisting 

of a quantum computer and a neural network. He then created a 

program to run on it that can compare a bit pattern consisting of various 

colors with stored sample patterns, and subsequently calculate the 

degree of similarity between them. Researchers at Munich Technical 

University then worked closely with Neigovzen to carry out a feasibility 

study for the system in an NMR spectrometer. Here, a room-temperature 

solution of sodium formate was used. Among other things, this 

compound contains one carbon and one hydrogen atom. In strong 

magnetic fields, the nuclear spins of both particles each form one qubit 

with two possible states. The quantum computer signals measured in 

the feasibility study corresponded extremely closely to the signals 

calculated and postulated by Neigovzen, thereby confirming that the 

researchers’ algorithm for a quantum computer delivers accurate results 

in practice.

International cooperation at Siemens is a classic 

win-win-situation. Scientists at universities 

and research institutes benefit from the fact that 

partnerships with Siemens take their research 

out of the realm of pure theory and give it practical 

significance for industry. Many young scientists 

find this so exciting that they later choose to 

work for the company — a big plus for Siemens, 

which stands to benefit from recruitment of 

“high potentials” who may be just about as important 

to the company as the actual research 

results produced by such cooperative research. 

One of the most intensive forms of cooperation 

involves sponsorship agreements with se- 

University of Linz: Information Wherever 

and Whenever it’s Needed 

Students at Johannes Kepler University in Linz, Austria, no longer have 

to waste time looking for lecture halls or trying to locate friends using 

cell phones. That’s because they live on a “Smart Information Campus,” 

which means they always have access to information about the things 

they need to know at the university. What makes this possible is a 

technology known as Digital Graffiti that was developed by Prof. Gustav 

Pomberger (above) and coworkers at the University in cooperation with 

Siemens CT. Digital Graffiti combines text, sound, and image messages 

in a comprehensive information and localization system that stores such 

messages as virtual graffiti that is accessible by means of a cell phone, 

PDA or laptop. WLAN access points have been installed both indoors and 

outdoors throughout the entire campus. A server transmits and receives 

news and messages to and from the access points and is also capable of 

lected universities that enjoy an outstanding scientific 

reputation. Partnerships of this kind have 

been enriched over the decades by commissioned 

projects, joint projects, and teaching assignments 

for experts from Siemens. The number 

of such sponsorship programs has risen 

dramatically in the course of the last three years, 

and the programs are now being conducted 

with some 60 universities. 

A case in point is the agreement between 

Siemens and Munich Technical University, 

which goes back more than a hundred years and 

has led to numerous spectacular successes. The 

most recent of these was the experimental cre- 

ation of an artificial neural network on a quantum 

computer (see p. 40). 

In order to link itself even more closely with 

scientific institutes, Siemens has established 

Centers of Knowledge Interchange (CKIs) at selected 

universities. Each center is managed by a 

Siemens specialist, who has his or her own office 

on campus. These specialists coordinate cooperative 

projects, organize workshops and 

company-sponsored competitions, help to support 

scholarships, and arrange for dissertation 

research to be carried out at Siemens locations. 

Siemens currently operates ten CKIs, five of 

which are in Germany (Munich, Berlin, Aachen, 

localizing the position of each point. As soon as the server recognizes 

that a registered user is on campus, it sends personalized content 

(messages, relevant information) to his or her terminal. Users can define 

what type of information they wish to receive and for which individuals 

they wish to remain “virtually visible.” Students can get a message via 

their PDAs that a lecture has been moved to another hall — or that the 

nearest coffee machine is right around the corner from them. Users can 

also write their own graffiti and have it transmitted to, and stored at, a 

specific access point. These messages become visible to their 

addressees as soon as the latter enter a predefined radius around the 

access point. Digital Graffiti is a location-based service that can be used 

in many different areas, including logistics and tourism. For example, 

scientists from Siemens and the university have also installed a virtual 

museum guide based on the same principle in the State Museum in Linz. 

The system guides visitors through the museum via PDA, providing 

information in the form of texts, images, voice output, and Web links. 



Freiberg, and Greifswald). The work carried out 

at all CKIs — both in Germany and abroad — focuses 

on the technological fields and markets 

that Siemens deems important for the future. 

For example, the CKI established at the Technical 

University of Denmark in Copenhagen in the 

spring of 2007 boasts extensive research expertise 

in the area of renewable energy sources. 

Siemens has also set up two new CKIs in Beijing 

and Shanghai. In recent years, a number of 

doctoral students at Beijing’s elite Tsinghua University, 

including several from its renowned 

Computer Science Department, have aligned 

their dissertations with specific Siemens re- 

Image Semantics: 

Theseus Medico 

Researchers at Siemens Corporate Technology 

are developing a platform known as Medico that 

brings together all the available medical imaging 

data for a specific patient, while also incorporating 

information from other patients with similar 

conditions. 

Medico will combine medical knowledge for the 

first time with new image-processing methods, 

knowledge-based information processing 

techniques, and machine learning technologies. 

The system will thus be able to autonomously 

interpret images of anatomical structures such 

as bones, blood vessels, and organs, and also 

recognize any abnormal changes to them. The data will then be automatically catalogued and 

linked with reference images and treatment reports from several databases. Siemens experts are 

focusing initially on 3D data sets from tomography devices (CT/MR) in order to close the existing 

semantic gap in a predefined area between unstructured image data and medical terminology. 

“Semantic” refers in this context to the ability of a computer program to understand image 

content. An initial series of tests for the Medico prototype is planned for 2009 at Erlangen 

University Hospital. 

Medico is one of six application scenarios in Theseus, a program launched by Germany’s Ministry 

of Economics and Technology that focuses on Web 3.0, which makes information content available 

and understandable to computers. The program’s objective is to work with unstructured data to 

develop a general method that ensures order and hierarchy in systems like Medico. Siemens’ 

partners in the Medico project include the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence, the 

Fraunhofer Institute for Computer Graphics Research, and Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich. 


search topics. And researchers at the venerable 

Tongji University in Shanghai are working with 

Siemens scientists on ways to bring together traditional 

Chinese medicine and modern medical 

technologies (see p. 8). Siemens also operates 

CKIs at the renowned Massachusetts Institute of 

Technology (MIT) in Boston and the University of 

California at Berkeley. Although cooperation 

with these universities is still very new, it has already 

produced promising results. For example, 

Siemens and the Berkeley Sensor and Actuator 

Center (BSAC) are working closely together on 

methods to enable carbon nanotubes to be used 

in new products (see p. 43). 

A partnership between Siemens and the Johannes 

Kepler University of Linz, Austria, has existed 

for approximately 20 years. Among other 

things, the university’s Institute for Business Information 

Systems/Software Engineering has 

developed software that CT expanded into a 

complete information system that is now being 

used on campus (see p. 41). 

Another joint project — Smart Home — is 

looking into the application possibilities for pervasive 

computing, which involves the complete 

networking of all of the processors, sensors, and 

network connections housed in everyday items 

found in homes and offices (see p. 18). 

EU Research Program: 

Helping to Heal Sick Children 

Very little knowledge and experience is to be 

found outside of leading children’s hospitals when 

it comes to treating rare diseases that affect young 

people. Many doctors therefore waste valuable 

time searching for experts and information in 

medical emergencies involving children. The 

Health-e-Child platform, a project initiated by the 

European Union, can be a big help here. The 

platform focuses on heart disease, infectious 

diseases, and brain tumors.

One example of how Siemens is embarking 

on a new path with a university is offered by the 

Study of Health in Pomerania, Germany, (SHIP) 

project, which is now being conducted by the 

University of Greifswald. This study is the world’s 

largest ever undertaken on the relationships between 

illness, living conditions, and genetic predisposition. 

Siemens scientists are developing 

algorithms for the study that are capable of recognizing 

patterns in unstructured patient data 

that encompasses some 150 million individual 

pieces of data per patient. The algorithms will be 

used to help answer questions such as: Is there 

such a thing as a genetic predisposition for liver 

As the lead partner in the project, Siemens is 

coordinating a cooperative effort between IT 

specialists from companies, universities, and 

research centers and experts from four renowned 

children’s hospitals — the Great Ormond Street 

Children’s Hospital in London, Hospital Necker in 

Paris, the Giannina Gaslini Institute in Genoa, and 

the Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesù in Rome. 

The objective of the project is to make available to 

pediatricians a Web-based database that can also 

be used to prevent illnesses, recognize them at an 

early stage, and plan follow-up treatments for the 

patients. The database contains patient records 

from all of the participating hospitals, which 

experts have linked with relevant medical research 

results. 

The project’s long-term plans also call for Health-e- 

Child to provide pediatricians with instruments 

that will facilitate their decisions concerning 

treatment options. This will require the integration 

of traditional biomedical data and new sources of 

information from fields such as genetics and 

proteomics. Siemens CT is therefore developing 

procedures that use such data to create points of 

reference for pediatricians, as well as techniques 

for filtering out relevant patterns from the huge 

amount of data obtained through medical 

imaging processes. Among other things, this will 

enable the precise planning of operations and the 

visualization of results — even before an 

operations begins. 

or kidney disease? What environmental factors 

play a role in the development of breast cancer? 

Can poor teeth affect growth during childhood 

— or even increase the risk of a heart attack in 

adults? Siemens’ search for specialists who can 

ensure error-free functioning for the software 

used in this and other projects has led CT scientists 

to the Centre de Recherche Informatique de 

Montréal (CRIM), Canada. 

The increasing complexity of the software required 

for today’s products makes them more 

susceptible to errors whose origin is often impossible 

to trace, which means that all new software 

has to be examined closely. With this in 

mind, CRIM scientists are writing algorithms 

that serve as tools for testing software. Researchers 

at CT are working with them to help 

Siemens units test their software and make associated 

products more reliable. 

Along with direct cooperation with universities 

and research institutes, CT also works within 

numerous German and international research 

networks on the development of technologies 

for the future. For example, Siemens is helping 

to develop the Semantic Web (Web 3.0) as a 

member of the German Theseus consortium, 

which includes more than 30 other industrial research 

and development departments, as well 

UC Berkeley: Carbon Tubes 

Fresh from California 

Carbon nanotubes (CNT) — a new class of 

materials in the form of tiny tubes — were 

first discovered in the early 1990s. Single and 

multi-walled CNTs can have differing molecular 

structures and thicknesses of between 0.4 

and around 100 nanometers. Since their discovery, 

CNTs have been the subject of intense 

research worldwide. Compared with steel, a 

multi-walled CNT is five times more rigid, yet 

its density is less by a factor of 5.5. Its electrical 

properties are also remarkable, with a 

current-carrying capacity about 1,000 times 

higher than that of comparable copper wires. 

The greatest challenge for commercial applications 

is the transfer of CNTs’ different 

molecular properties to new materials that might be integrated into existing product 

manufacturing processes. Examples include high-strength reinforced plastics, wiring, 

electronic components and high-sensitivity gas sensors — all product area that Siemens 

researchers are involved in. For example, they are looking at CNT structures that can be 

used as absorber layers for gas analysis applications in sensor technology projects. 

The outstanding expertise regarding the synthesis and analysis of CNTs possessed by researchers 

at the Berkeley Sensor and Actuator Center (BSAC) of the University of California 

provided an exceptional foundation for the establishment of a long-term partnership. 

As a result, doctoral students on the Californian campus have been conducting 

research on behalf of Siemens into various types of CNT structures, which they pass on 

to Siemens for further study. The BSAC also benefits from this work, in that participating 

students and doctoral candidates gain experience with industrial research in the context 

of an international project. 



Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in 

Boston: Detecting Cancer Cells with Light 

When breast cancer is detected, the first thing the doctor wants to know is 

whether it has spread to nearby lymph nodes. Unfortunately, the only way of 

determining this is to remove all potentially-affected nodes, and there are 

typically 30 of them in a woman’s armpit. With a view to minimizing surgical 

intervention, John V. Frangioni, M.D. PhD of Boston’s Beth Israel Deaconess 

Medical Center has developed a new imaging system that allows doctors to 

see exactly which lymph nodes a tumor drains into. Whether cancer cells have 

actually migrated to these nodes can be determined after the nodes have 

been removed. Known as Fluorescence-Assisted Resection and Exploration 

(FLARE), the system uses unique medical image fusion and visualization 

software developed by Siemens Corporate Research (SCR) that combines a 

visible light image of the area of interest with an image of the invisible 

infrared light reflected from a fluorescent substance. Injected into the area 

surrounding the tumor, the substance rapidly finds its way from the tumor to 

the nodes it drains into. The resulting hybrid image, which appears in real 

time on a color monitor, displays concentrations of brightness at the tumor 

and at its associated nodes, as well as a river of light beneath the skin 

indicating the fluid’s drainage path. And that’s just for starters. Optical 

systems could detect a spectrum of physiological processes indicative of 

cancer, such as changes in oxygen saturation and hemoglobin and water 

concentrations in tissues long before any anatomical or structural changes are 

visible to a surgeon’s eye. Such a tool could have far-reaching consequences . 

By providing feedback within hours regarding a tumor’s response to a new 

medication, in vivo optical imaging could inexpensively accelerate and 

personalize drug testing as well as patient treatment for shallow lesions as 

well as those that could be approached with future endoscopic devices. With 

this in mind, SCR researchers are working with the Beckman Laser Institute at 

the University of California in Irvine, to develop a novel software imaging 

platform for a hand-held laser and broadband diffuse optical spectroscopy 

probe that would work in much the same way as does an ultrasound 

transducer — but with light instead of sound. The device could be applied 

directly to the surface of the breast, where it will emit light at a range of 

wavelengths, enabling quantification of many physiological properties. 


Research in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, 

and Tomsk: Strength through Cooperation 

Since its founding in 2005, CT Russia has accomplished a great deal (see p. 

28) — and much of this success is due to the approximately 20 research 

partnerships it has with leading Russian research institutes, universities, 

and industrial companies. CT researchers are now working on new types of 

combustion concepts for integrated gasification combustion cycle (IGCC) 

processes in cooperation with experts from the Moscow Engineering and 

Physics Institute, who have developed an experimental gas burner for the 

Siemens researchers to use in extensive tests of the new concept. 

CT is also working together with the Institute of Strength Physics and 

Materials Sciences (ISPMS) in Tomsk, Siberia, on the development of 

nanostructured ceramics for use in gas turbines. These new ceramic 

coatings are more ductile and longer-lasting than their current counterparts, 

which means that the service life of the turbines they’re installed in 

can be extended and the turbines themselves can be exposed to higher 

stresses without damage. All of this results in savings for power plant 

operators. ISPMS is using its expertise and tools to develop the nanostructured 

ceramics, and Siemens researchers are investigating how to optimally 

install the material in a gas turbine. 

Technicians need to react quickly if a complex system like a gas turbine 

develops a fault, as shutdowns can be very expensive. Russian researchers 

at Siemens are thus working with the renowned State Polytechnical 

University in St. Petersburg to develop intelligent software solutions that 

recognize and report potential defects before they occur. Such solutions 

monitor the operation of the system in question on the basis of 

programmed parameters such as oscillation and environmental data. 

Siemens is responsible for the software expertise here, while the university 

conducts practical tests, handles implementation, and optimizes the 

analysis system. A very different type of optimization was developed by 

CT researchers in conjunction with Russian oil company Rosneft. Together, 

they developed a chemical process to raise the pressure of less active oil 

deposits and thus enable the corresponding oil fields to be returned to 

production. CT carried out the modeling and simulations for this project, 

while Rosneft was responsible for the experimental part.

as several public research organizations. The focus 

of this work is on semantic technologies designed 

to enable computers to understand and 

arrange the content of words, images, and 

sounds. Siemens is also a leader in the Medico 

application scenario, which envisions, for the 

first time ever, combining medical knowledge 

with new methods of image processing, knowledge-based 

data processing, and machine learning 

(see p. 42). Initially, Medico will make it possible 

for computers to recognize diseases in 

medical images, automatically catalogue the 

data, and compare it with information from 

other databases. 

Universities in Beijing and Shanghai: 

Using Synergies to Perfect Developments 

The technologies leaving the research laboratory of CT China must, 

first and foremost, be “S.M.A.R.T.” — simple, maintenance-friendly, 

affordable, reliable, and timely to market (see p. 24). To perfectly align 

their projects with these criteria, Siemens experts seek out synergies — 

which they often find at prestigious Chinese universities. One such 

institution is Tongji University in Shanghai, which has comprehensive 

expertise in traffic technology. CT Research is working with Tongji in a 

project designed to gather traffic data. Here, researchers from CT’s Radio 

Access Technologies and Solutions group are focusing their mobile 

communications expertise on analyzing how individual mobile phone 

signals can be filtered out of the jumble of signals carried on today’s 

airwaves. Tongji University is currently working on finding a way to 

The SPINSWITCH research and training network 

is a Europe-wide project that includes 15 

research groups. The basis for this research project 

is the giant magnetoresistance (GMR) effect 

that was discovered by Nobel Prize winners Albert 

Fert and Peter Grünberg in 1988. The project’s 

objective is to obtain information that will 

lead to the development of extremely rapid 

magnetic switches and high-frequency components 

for the telecommunications industry, 

such as magnetic random access memory technology 

and associated sensors and logic devices. 

Siemens Corporate Technology is responsible 

for SPINSWITCH knowledge management. 

The great variety of Siemens partnerships, 

networks, and contacts has already led to the 

development of many innovations throughout 

the company. The days of closed doors in the 

laboratory have therefore become a thing of the 

past. “Open innovation” — bringing together 

the best minds from science and industry — is 

the key to the future. That’s because the overriding 

goal at Siemens is to jointly develop innovative 

solutions to the problems facing humankind. 

Key challenges here include how to 

deal with climate change, growing urbanization, 

and the demographic changes that are occurring 

in aging societies. 

correlate the locations of the signals as accurately as possible with the 

road network. Its goal is to extract the exact movements of mobile 

phone users (anonymously, of course). Tongji and Siemens are highly 

satisfied with the initial test results. 

Xi’an is the home of Xi’an Jiaotong University, which is another one of 

Siemens Corporate Technology’s most important cooperative partners 

in China. The venerable educational institution, which was founded in 

1896, is working with the CT research team on development of the User 

Interface Machine (UIM). While CT China is developing algorithms for 

the automatic diagnosis of numerically-controlled machine tools, the 

university is responsible for the system’s knowledge base. The Institute’s 

work includes evaluating numerous engineering interpretations of 

parameters, such as the degree of wear associated with various 

components of a machine tool, before the Siemens team imports these 

values into the UIM database. This constantly enlarges the data pool 

that’s available to the system for interpreting the parameters. 

Together with other Chinese universities, the Shanghai Jiaotong 

University assisted Siemens with a project called Automation for Life 

Sciences. Specifically, it performed market research to ascertain how 

interested industry is in this kind of technology. The development of the 

project’s biosensor platform is a good example of how the various 

institutions work together. Siemens took biosensor technology, which is 

already common in the medical sector, and adapted it for use in 

industry. In parallel, two Beijing research institutes, the Chinese 

Academy of Sciences and Tsinghua University, translated the theory into 

practice and produced the hardware, software, and finally the first 

platform prototypes. Initial pilot tests showed that this platform 

achieved ten times greater productivity than conventional processes. 

These outstanding results were due in large part to the Beijing 

University of Technology, which made it possible to get the biosensor 

prototype tested at pharmaceutical and biotech companies. 


Researchers 

Inventors 

Innovators 


Rupert Maier 

Rupert Maier always has 

paper and pen on his bedside 

table, because some of his 

best ideas come at night. A 

researcher in the Software & 

Engineering (CT SE) team, he 

is also the contact person for 

patents and improvement 

suggestions. 

Inside Everyone 

There’s an Inventor 

Rupert Maier has always liked to tinker with 

machinery. This interest started early on, in 

his father’s workshop. “On my parents’ farm, 

there were always opportunities to optimize, remodel 

or repair machines,” he says. Later on, 

during his work-study program at Siemens, he 

developed his first engineering ideas. 

Maier believes it’s important to distinguish 

between invention and innovation. “A good idea 

is still far from being an innovation. It first has to 

be developed to the stage of commercial success,” 

he points out. For Maier, an electrical engineering 

specialist with a focus on data technology, 

the innovation process begins with the 

identification of a customer’s problem, a potential 

market or the unfulfilled wish for a product. 

“More than 50 percent of all patents are either 

adaptations or combinations of existing 

technologies,” he says. Maier, who is convinced 

that every person is capable of becoming an inventor, 

is responsible for over 60 inventions, 

more than ten of which have been patented, 

while the others have been applied to a spectrum 

of fields. 

His inventions range from the optimization 

of industrial services and the modeling of business 

processes to new types of Web technologies 

such as the automatic generation of hyperlinks 

for web sites. In 2007, Maier was named 

“Inventor of the Year” thanks to the many software 

applications he has developed, including 

one for simplifying the maintenance of industrial 

machinery. 

Maier, who was born in Bavaria, Germany, 

enjoys making key contributions to successful 

innovations. He wants other researchers to benefit 

from his experiences with the patent 

process, which is why he became the patent and 

3i coach at CT SE. “My main aim is to sensitize my 

colleagues to this issue and help them get over 

their reluctance to implement their own ideas or 

in-house improvements,” he says. In individual 

talks and “Invention Mining Workshops” he runs 

all over the world, Maier explains to his colleagues 

“how important, and at the same time 

how simple it is to generate inventions and suggestions 

for improvement.” 

Maier values his personal contacts with colleagues 

all over the world. “It’s fascinating to 

find out how people from other cultures think 

and to work out solutions together with them,” 

he says. But that’s only one of the reasons he remains 

loyal to Siemens. Another reason, he says, 

is “the breadth of the company and its technological 

leadership in important areas.” 

Just as important for him are the excellent 

opportunities offered by Siemens for self-development 

and shaping one’s own career. For example, 

becoming a coach for Siemens researchers 

was something he had never even 

dreamed of. 

Meanwhile, he just can’t stop coming up with 

his own inventions. One of his most recent inventions 

is intended for road traffic. It involves 

equipping intersections that have traffic lights 

with video cameras featuring appropriate pattern 

recognition algorithms that enable them to 

sound an acoustic warning in dangerous situations, 

such as when a pedestrian crosses the 

street against a red light.

Maximilian Fleischer 

Sensor expert Dr. Maximilian 

Fleischer is one of the most 

successful patent holders at 

Siemens. His sensors sniff 

out pollutants in turbine 

emissions, test air and water 

quality, and find disease 

indicators in human breath. 

Sniffing out 

New Sensors 

Inventors face two dangers. The possibility 

that they will lose faith in their own ideas, or 

that management will lose its patience with 

them. Maximilian Fleischer faces both risks with 

quiet confidence. In the first place, he’s “an incurable 

optimist” who stubbornly develops his 

ideas and doesn’t allow failures to discourage 

him. And secondly, his attitude is justified by his 

success, which is recognized by management. 

One aspect of an inventor’s job is to get decisionmakers 

enthusiastic, both when an idea is born 

and during dry spells. This means that inventors 

have to review ideas and provide concrete details 

at an early stage “by exchanging ideas with 

other specialists and asking users what needs 

they have regarding the cost and performance 

of the product to be developed,” says Fleischer. 

Fleischer is the creator of chemical sensors 

embedded in microchips, which detect the presence 

of chemicals indicative of odors or gases. 

The gallium oxide sensor, which was the breakthrough 

invention in Fleischer’s career, has for 

several years been used to measure the CO content 

of exhaust gas in thousands of small combustion 

units, enabling these units to be operated 

in the most energy-efficient way with 

minimum emissions. The units are complemented 

by sensors that monitor air quality in 

buildings. Other sensors use laser light to detect 

poisonous or explosive gases in buildings so that 

occupants can be warned. And a sensor that 

measures the amount of alcohol in a person’s 

breath will soon go into production. 

The sensors, which have an area of only a few 

square millimeters, are based on very diverse 

processes. For example, some sensors consist of 

semiconducting metal oxides that are applied as 

a thin film to the surface of a chip. Any gas that 

docks with the device changes its electrical resistance, 

and the resulting signal is read by a 

processor on the chip. 

Fleischer’s team has now succeeded in placing 

different gas-sensitive receptors on one chip 

in order to be able to detect more than one gas 

at a time. The researchers are already using living 

cell cultures mounted on silicon chips to perform 

tasks such as monitoring water quality (see 

p. 17). The advantage here is that living cells react 

to all toxins, whereas with chemical sensors 

one has to determine in advance which hazardous 

substances are to be detected. 

As a rule, a sensor’s main purpose is to protect 

the environment or ensure people’s safety 

and comfort. For instance, a prototype “wellness 

sensor” developed by Fleischer’s team determines 

when the CO2 content of the air in offices 

or meeting rooms is too high and recommends 

that the windows be opened before the occupants 

become too tired and unfocused to go on. 

To achieve even more thorough measurement 

of the air quality in buildings, future sensors will 

have to measure at least four different values, 

says Fleischer: temperature, humidity, gases such 

as CO2, and odors. To this end, Fleischer and his 

coworkers are examining different materials to 

determine which of them reacts best with the 

gases that need to be detected. Fleischer’s inventions 

have benefited Siemens for a long time, 

because other companies that use his technology 

have to pay licensing fees to Siemens. 

Fleischer, a physicist, has been working for 

Siemens Corporate Technology (CT) in Munich 

since 1992. During that time, he has registered 

150 inventions. “I don’t sit alone in my room, I go 

out into the world with a sense of curiosity,” he 

says. For example, once he heard about a traditional 

practice of Chinese doctors, who check 

their patients’ breath because its odor can be a 

sign of illnesses. This inspired him to invent sensors 

that could be used to detect substances in 

human breath. Thanks to his work, sensors can 

now be used to help asthma patients determine 

whether an asthma attack is imminent. 

Fleischer has found his ideal sphere of action 

at Siemens. As he puts it, “Siemens operates in 

many different areas, so my inventions can be 

implemented in many new applications. Cooperation 

at the company is great; my colleagues 

are not solitary workers but team players. That’s 

crucial, because to develop fundamentally new 

things, you need good colleagues.” 


Wolfgang Rossner 

Wolfgang Rossner never tires 

of developing new applications 

for ceramic materials, 

which are key components 

for Siemens. Because of his 

achievements in this area he 

was named one of the top 

innovators at Siemens AG. 

King 

of Ceramics 

Dr. Wolfgang Rossner and his team at the Ceramic 

Materials and Devices Global Technology 

Field in Munich, Germany are mixing ceramic 

powders, which consist of artificially 

produced chemical substances that are as fine 

as the finest sand. The team use these powders 

to bake ceramic materials with new qualities. 

Their innovative research work consists primarily 

of designing materials — starting with their 

atomic structure — in such a way that the various 

components are tailor-made to fit the requirements 

of their respective areas of application. 

“Today, we accomplish this on the basis of 

both scientific and empirical findings. But in the 

future, given the increasing complexity of new 

types of ceramic materials, we hope to be able 

to do the same thing on a computer in the virtual 

world,” explains Rossner. Simulation tools 

will find the appropriate mixture ratios for different 

chemical elements much faster than empirical 

processes ever could. This is still a vision, but 

at some point it will be possible to “play” with virtual 

materials on the computer, simulate their 

behavior, and digitally forecast their properties 

such as hardness, reliability, and resistance to 

changes of temperature. 

Ceramic materials can be found in products 

as diverse as X-ray detectors, light-emitting 

diodes, and turbine blades. The special quality 

of these materials, which fascinates Rossner 

again and again, is the fact that they are the key 

components of a whole spectrum of products 

that influence the way systems function overall. 

For example, the ceramics contained in X-ray detectors 

very quickly and efficiently transform the 


X-rays into light signals — and that’s a crucial element 

in the technology of medical X-ray computer 

tomography. The ceramic coatings in gas 

turbines, on the other hand, have a completely 

different function: their main job is to protect 

the metallic turbine blades from the extremely 

high temperatures of the fuel gases. But ceramics 

can do even more. For example, they can insulate 

protected zones from strong electric voltages, 

change their shape when subjected to an 

electric charge (the piezo effect), or generate 

electricity directly as the result of a difference in 

temperature (the thermoelectric effect). 

Rossner and his team are busy employing 

such material characteristics in order to come up 

with other possible applications for this crosssector 

technology. That requires a highly interdisciplinary 

team — and Rossner’s 30 colleagues 

therefore represent a colorful spectrum of experts 

from the specialized disciplines of materials 

science, physics, chemistry, mathematics, 

and electrical engineering. 

Rossner, who studied materials science, has 

been working at Siemens since 1984. He knows 

how long the road from an idea to a product can 

be. At Siemens, he developed ceramics for X-ray 

detectors in the late 1980s. 

By the mid-1990s he and his team had 

reached the point where they could transfer 

their findings to medical technology and move 

their product from the laboratory to the production 

line. This step proceeded quickly, taking less 

than two years in all. The product soon became 

a success on the market, and today ceramic is an 

essential component of the best X-ray detectors. 

“For me as a researcher, that’s the exciting thing 

— Initiating this value chain and supporting it as 

it develops, from basic materials to finished 

product,” says Rossner. 

In the process, he too has overcome quite a 

few difficulties. “There are always skeptics,” he 

says. That’s why the basic requirement for researchers 

is to believe in their own ideas and 

their own approaches. If that is the case, then 

they will be able to convince decision-makers 

not only with the facts but also through their 

own enthusiasm. 

At the same time, however, they also always 

have to deal with technical obstacles. A tiny but 

difficult problem can sometimes stand in the 

way of overall success. “If you haven’t got good 

and creative colleagues, you don’t have a 

chance,” says Rossner. 

Furthermore, it’s essential for a researcher to 

engage in a dialogue with application experts — 

preferably from the very start. Of course not 

every idea will become a technical and commercial 

success. But if you talk with potential users 

at an early stage in the process, you can quickly 

find out what they would expect from a product 

and what factors are crucial to its success. If 

these findings are built in, the researcher has already 

taken an important step forward. 

Of course, new ideas also come from the 

company’s competitors. “We keep a close eye on 

one another,” Rossner says with a grin. However, 

through his inventions, Rossner is creating 

unique selling points for Siemens. And in cases 

where competitors are caught unaware, he’s 

particularly pleased.

Sebnem Rusitschka 

Peer-to-peer technology 

fascinates computer specialist 

Sebnem Rusitschka. A member 

of CT’s Intelligent Autonomous 

Systems team, her work 

focuses on enhancing 

communication between 

computers and improving 

computer self-organization. 

From Student to 

Computer Science Mentor 

The reason why Sebnem Rusitschka stayed 

on at Siemens after her work-study program 

ended is very simple. “My master’s thesis was exciting 

and very fruitful,” she says. “Besides, peerto-peer 

(P2P) research promises to result in applications 

in every area you can think of, from 

multimedia to embedded systems. I realized 

that I simply had to go on working in this field.” 

For her master’s thesis, Rusitschka, who now 

works at CT, designed, modeled, and implemented 

a scalable P2P network. In a P2P network, 

all computers have equal status and can 

use services as well as providing them. The advantage 

of such a system is that the work to be 

done by the network can be distributed among 

several computers. 

Rusitschka has written a protocol that makes 

it possible to share resources flexibly in cases 

where a user is conducting a search using several 

keywords. “At that time, there were protocols 

that could search for a single keyword very 

efficiently, but not for several at a time,” she 

says. “We had set ourselves the task of making 

such a search as simple and efficient as possible, 

just like the process that Google users are familiar 

with. With my protocol, you can simply type 

in the keywords. The network then searches 

specifically for computers that have saved the 

data related to these words, instead of flooding 

the entire network with the inquiry. That saves 

computer capacity and shortens the time you 

have to wait for an answer.” 

Rusitschka’s first contact with Siemens was at 

Ludwig Maximilian University (LMU), in a course 

on applied data processing where the instructor 

was lecturing on agent technology. “I was very 

interested in this topic, because in 2000, when I 

began my studies, Internet hype was at a peak,” 

she says. The instructor came from CT, and he 

brought back stories about exciting research projects 

at Siemens. As a result, Rusitschka, who is 

German but was born in Turkey, joined a workstudy 

program at CT in 2001. Her first project focused 

on the design and development of an ISDN 

telephony interface for a language dialog system. 

This was followed by a second project devoted 

to her major area of interest, which she is 

still as enthusiastic about today as she was at the 

start. After getting her degree in computer science, 

Rusitschka stayed with Siemens, because, 

she says, “Here I can accompany a product idea to 

its market launch, while also involving the customer 

in the process.” 

Now 28, she ended up studying computer 

science after a slight detour. After completing 

her secondary education, she pursued her interest 

in foreign languages in the U.S. In 2000 she 

applied to Mount Holyoke College, the 

renowned women’s college in South Hadley, 

Massachusetts, and was accepted. There, she 

majored in economics and computer science. 

“Up to that point I had hardly had anything to do 

with computer science,” she reports. But then 

she had to write her first C program for a course. 

“For me, it was a leap into the deep end of the 

pool,” she recalls. “Two weeks later, when the 

program started to run after I had finished debugging 

and fine-tuning it, I had an epiphany. I 

knew this was what I had to do!” Nine months 

later, she transferred to LMU in Munich. “I 

wanted to do as many internships as possible, 

and because I’m a German I knew this would be 

simpler and quicker in Germany,” she explains. 

At Siemens, Rusitschka, the daughter of two 

teachers, learned that her love affair with technology 

was not the only thing she needed for 

business success. “Customers will buy an application 

only if it solves a problem for them,” she 

says. “In other words, our job is to assess trends 

for the customer and translate them into objective 

results.” By now she has worked on a range 

of developments in the Intelligent Autonomous 

Systems team, such as the iPlayer, which enables 

peer-to-peer streaming of video and audio 

content directly within a browser. The user does 

not need to install any software or enter a new 

configuration. He or she must only press “Play” 

to start the film. Another advantage can be seen 

in the case of videos that suddenly become 

wildly popular and are watched by millions of 

viewers. Here, the millions of computers in the 

network share the load during access via a selforganizing 

process. Other applications were developed 

for the energy sector, for example for 

use in distributed energy management systems 

and embedded systems. 

Although Rusitschka is one of only two 

women in a 30-person team, she has never felt 

like an outsider. She would very much like to act 

as a mentor for a young woman just beginning 

her studies, and she encourages young women 

to give computer science a try. “All you need to 

make it in this field is courage, self-confidence, 

and the ability to roll your sleeves up. Then 

you’re sure to succeed,” says Rusitschka. 


Bernhard Stapp 

Since joining Siemens, 

Dr. Bernhard Stapp has 

worked in many different 

fields, some of them outside 

of Corporate Technology. 

Today, he is head of the 

Solid State Lighting Business 

Segment at Osram Opto 

Semiconductors. 

From Optical Fibers to 

Luminescent Plastics 

My new boss at Medical Engineering 

wanted someone with an unprejudiced attitude,” 

says Bernhard Stapp, referring to his 

switch from Corporate Technology in Erlangen, 

Germany, to Siemens’ ultrasound center in Issaquah 

near Seattle, Washington, in the early 

1990s. From his training, Stapp, who was 37 at 

the time, was not the most likely candidate to 

prepare a new generation of ultrasound devices 

for the market. “When I joined CT, I was a materials 

researcher for fiber-optic cables, which were 

being developed for data transmission back 

then.” A trained chemist, Stapp wasn’t worried 

that he had to acquire new skills before being 

able to really take on the task — on the contrary. 

“I liked the job because my knowledge complemented 

that of my colleagues,” he says. In 1995, 

Stapp returned to CT, where he became head of 

the Competence Center for Electronic Materials. 

“Besides working on semiconductor materials, 

such as photoresists, we also began to develop 

luminescent plastics known as organic lightemitting 

diodes (OLEDs). These organic semiconductors 

emit light when an electric current is 

passed through them,” explains Stapp. “I managed 

to convince the head of Osram-Opto that 

this technology had a future.” The next phase in 

Stapp’s career followed two years later, when he 

was appointed head of the Materials & Microsystems 

department (see p. 12) in Berlin. 

“We were involved in a wide variety of optoelectronic 

activities, such as the development of 

phosphors for light-emitting diodes, which 

would transform the blue light generated by 

semiconductor crystals into white light. Today, 


phosphors are used in all white LEDs from Osram,” 

says Stapp. As a result of these contacts to 

the opto-semiconductor business at Siemens, 

which would later become Osram Opto Semiconductors, 

Stapp was able to take the next step 

in his career in 2001, when Dr. Rüdiger Müller 

asked him to become the chief technology officer 

of his team in Regensburg. Stapp played a 

crucial role at Osram Opto Semiconductors in 

the development of LED and OLED technology. 

In 2007, he was appointed head of the Solid 

State Lighting Business Segment, with responsibility 

for LEDs and OLEDs used in general lighting 

applications. 

Stapp has fond memories of his time at Corporate 

Technology. “It provided me with deep insights 

into a wide range of technologies,” he 

says. “It was great to work in such a creative environment.” 

Outside of CT, in the various Siemens 

Divisions, the focus is clearly on products. “I like 

that a lot too. Forging ahead with practical projects 

until a product is ready for market,” says 

Stapp. Today, he still likes to make use of CT — 

for example, when he needs support in areas 

such as numerical mathematics, in which Osram 

Opto Semiconductors has no expertise of its 

own. “CT is strong here,” he says. “With their algorithms, 

the researchers have greatly helped us 

improve the efficiency of processes in production 

control and logistics.” Something that still 

fascinates Stapp about Siemens is how quickly 

employees can switch from one job to another. 

“You need to be flexible and not only have your 

sights on your career,” he says. “I have never regretted 

any of the changes I’ve experienced.” 

Vishnu Swaminathan 

Vishnu Swaminathan had a 

keen interest in technology 

even as a child. Today, he 

works as a computer scientist 

at Corporate Technology in 

Bangalore, India, where he 

researches embedded systems 

that are very cost effective 

and competitive. 

A Specialist 

in S.M.A.R.T. 

It’s an old cliché that top-notch researchers 

are not natural communicators, but Vishnu 

Swaminathan certainly doesn’t fit that mold. 

When he talks about his research field of embedded 

systems, his enthusiasm immediately 

carries over to his audience. It’s a trait that 

seems to run in the family, because his father, 

who was Director of the Defense Electronics Research 

Laboratories in Hyderabad, a city in 

south-central India, was also a great believer in 

the value of science. 

Swaminathan was born in what is now 

Chennai, the fourth largest city in India. Until 

1996, Chennai was known as Madras. Since 

2004, together with Bangalore and Hyderabad, 

the city has emerged as an important center for 

software development. 

And this is where everything comes full circle 

for Swaminathan, who began his professional 

career at the University in Madras. After 

obtaining his bachelor’s degree in computer science 

and engineering in 1996, he went on to 

earn his PhD in electrical and computer engineering 

at Duke University in the U.S. “I already 

knew when I was still at school that I wanted to 

do something technical,” says Swaminathan, 

“and that I would like to work in research and 

development.” 

After receiving his doctorate, he returned 

home to India in 2004, arriving at just the right 

time. Mukul Saxena, an engineer also returning 

to India from the U.S., had just been given the 

job of developing CT India, and Swaminathan 

happened to be in the right place at the right 

time.

Systems 

Swaminathan soon began to build up the 

“Embedded Systems” department, whose function 

is to create coordinated, optimized, lowcost 

hardware/software solutions for cross-Sector 

applications. One of his successful, 

long-term projects involves S.M.A.R.T. cameras, 

which played an important role in the “Vision- 

Based Traffic Monitoring” project. He and his 

team further developed the existing algorithms, 

which they made more resilient by 

adding software modules. They also adapted 

the algorithms to the existing hardware. 

Swaminathan is now developing a new image 

processing system for C-arm X-ray machines. 

In the past, these had to be brought in 

from outside by the Healthcare Sector. The Sector 

and Corporate Technology are pursuing two 

goals with this all-Indian development: to develop 

a cheaper system and, as a result, to 

strengthen their competitiveness externally. 

Andrey Bartenev 

Analytical, highly qualified, 

creative, and courageous — 

these are some of the words 

used to describe Andrey 

Bartenev by those who know 

him best. The 43-year-old 

physicist from Moscow is a 

dedicated researcher. 

Energy 

Expert 

After completing high school, Andrey 

Bartenev studied at the Moscow Institute 

of Physics and Technology. His special area, “the 

chemistry of fast processes,” was the perfect 

major for such a determined and ambitious student. 

After graduating with high honors, he 

wrote a doctor’s thesis investigating the physical 

and chemical processes in “closed spaces,” 

meaning primarily engines and turbines. He 

was also very interested in the types of damage, 

including cracks and fractures, that can occur 

when such machines are subjected to high 

stress loads. 

Bartenev continued his scientific career at 

the Russian Academy of Sciences between 

1987 and 2005 — more specifically at the Academy’s 

Institute of Chemical Physics, where he 

specialized in flow characteristics and the simulation 

of combustion processes and explosions. 

He consequently wrote his habilitation thesis 

on the gas dynamics of spontaneous processes. 

Bartenev’s research work frequently took 

him abroad. He participated in two research 

projects at RWTH Aachen University, Germany, 

for example, and he also spent time in England 

and the U.S., where he and colleagues conducted 

experiments for NASA that addressed 

various aspects of explosions. “When I then 

heard that Siemens was setting up its own research 

center in Russia, I applied for a position 

immediately,” he recalls. Bartenev already knew 

Siemens from his days at the Russian Academy 

of Sciences. 

Bartenev has served as director of the Chemical 

Thermo-Gas Dynamics group at CT Russia 

since 2005. His team of ten or so scientists is 

currently taking a close look at oil and gas production 

technologies. Here, the experts are focusing 

on three areas. First, technologies that 

make it possible to extract oil and gas from underwater, 

since such systems are of great importance 

to Russia’s drilling activities in the Arctic 

Ocean. The second area is related, as it has to 

do with chemical technologies that liquefy gas 

and keep it stable in that state, regardless of the 

temperature. The team’s research work is 

rounded out by the third area: the automation 

and modernization of drilling rigs. Thanks to 

the expertise of Bartenev and his team, CT Russia 

is now the global technology field leader for 

such research, with a team of its own. 

Developments in his field are so dynamic 

that Bartenev, who has a six-year-old son, has 

little time to pursue his hobbies — diving and 

studying Russian history. 


Dorin Comaniciu 

Dorin Comaniciu, 44, is 

head of the Integrated Data 

Systems team at Siemens 

Corporate Research in 

Princeton, New Jersey. He is 

responsible for coordinating 

Siemens’ activities in 

biomedical informatics. 

From Data Fusion to 

Expert Systems 

Dorin Comaniciu, has lots of ideas. In fact, 

with 30 patents granted and more than 80 

patent applications to his name, he is one of 

Siemens’ most prolific inventors. 

A native of Romania who moved to the U.S. 

in 1996 to pursue a second PhD, Comaniciu has 

developed inventions that span the gamut of applications 

from new ways of interpreting the 

contours of a beating heart to a method for the 

molecular diagnosis of depression. 

Comaniciu’s most far-reaching patent is a 

mathematical invention called Robust Information 

Fusion — a novel way of detecting and 

weeding out questionable information from any 

given sensor source. 

What’s more, he has already used his invention 

to pave the way to the next step toward machine-based 

interpretation. “Once you have reliable 

data that can be fused, you can then 

develop expert systems to evaluate it and draw 

conclusions from it,” he says. The idea is called 

“database guidance,” which is a way of translating 

expert knowledge into algorithms that can 

support human decision making. 

The first commercial example of database 

guidance was syngo Auto Ejection Fraction (EF), 

(see p. 8) — a unique program developed by 

Siemens Corporate Research in conjunction 

with the Ultrasound Division of Siemens Healthcare. 

Auto EF is used in the context of an ultrasound 

exam to automatically measure the 

heart’s ejection fraction — the difference in the 

amount of blood pumped between diastole and 

systole. “Today,” says Comaniciu, “this crucial 

measurement is either eyeballed or traced man- 


ually. It takes an expert approximately 30 seconds 

to perform this operation. It takes the software 

only seconds to perform the same computation.” 

Auto EF was just the beginning. Following up 

on another one of his projects, Comaniciu’s 

team — in collaboration with experts from 

Siemens Ultrasound — has developed programs 

that accelerate key ultrasound tests in obstetrics. 

syngo Auto OB, for instance, uses advanced 

pattern recognition technology to reliably recognize 

anatomical landmarks and take fetal 

measurements, thus reducing the number of 

keystrokes by as much as 75 percent in routine 

fetal exams. 

Comaniciu’s team is also involved in longerrange 

projects. For example, it is developing 

databases that will support automated identification 

of colon cancer, prostate cancer, and 

autism based on magnetic resonance scans. 

Database diagnostics and breakthroughs in 

Robust Information Fusion are what Comaniciu 

refers to as “powerful science” — in other words, 

science that can unleash new applications 

across the board. “You have to push the limits,” 

he says. “People often come to me and tell me 

that something’s not possible. And my response 

to them is always the same: ‘Then try it again!’ As 

a manager, you constantly have to walk a 

tightrope. You have to have a plan and know 

how to stick to it. But at the same time, you also 

have to brainstorm, leave room for creativity, 

have fun, and know how to convince your team 

members that they are doing something that 

could make a real difference for society.” 

Martin Stetter 

Martin Stetter, 44, has always 

been fascinated by the way the 

human brain learns and by 

how living organisms organize 

themselves. For this reason, 

Stetter is forging ahead with 

the development of semantic 

technologies for medical 

images. 

Machines 

that Think 

When Martin Stetter started working at the 

Neural Computation department of Corporate 

Technology as a Senior Scientist in 2000, 

he already was able to look back on a 14-year 

university career. His last position had been at 

the Computer Science department of the Berlin 

Technical University, Germany, where he 

worked on neuroscience and medical imaging. 

The systems he had developed there included 

processes for improving data and signal quality. 

The switch to a job in industry was not a hard 

one for Stetter. “At the university I missed the 

practical world,” he says. However, he always 

made sure that the work was interdisciplinary in 

nature. Born in Regensburg, Stetter studied 

physics and earned a PhD in theoretical biology. 

He wrote his habilitation thesis on applied computer 

science. A poster in his office bears the 

words “Understanding thought processes for 

man and machine.” Put simply, this means that if 

researchers can understand the way the brain 

learns, they can also apply the process to machines 

by means of algorithms. 

Stetter’s vision involves intelligent machines 

whose software works more like the human 

brain than is currently the case. This applies to 

hierarchical structures as well as to the way the 

brain’s attention is gained and how it makes decisions. 

GeneSim — his adaptive IT platform — 

gains information on molecular interactions in 

living cells by extracting knowledge from gene 

and protein data and medical literature. It serves 

as a system of building blocks for creating new 

software applications for molecular medicine 

and for pharmaceutical purposes. The objective

of all of this is to improve the precision of diagnoses 

and treatments. This capability was not 

lost on Siemens’ Diagnostics Division, which was 

established in 2007. The Division now makes 

use of solutions that are based on GeneSim. 

“The difficulty in industrial research is finding 

the right time for introducing and promoting a 

new idea,” says Stetter. “You can’t just focus on 

research, however, because you then risk losing 

sight of the customers’ needs.” 

Stetter not only worked with Healthcare’s 

sales department, but also got pharma and 

biotech firms involved in order to “gain an external 

assessment of GeneSim’s potential.” He has 

submitted at least 80 invention applications at 

Siemens, of which 60 applied to GeneSim and 

the rest to brain research findings — an achievement 

that earned him an “Inventor of the Year 

2008” award at Siemens. 

Stetter now provides advice to managers at 

CT and Healthcare. He is also involved in the 

Theseus research program initiated by the German 

Ministry of Economics and Technology. 

Theseus will develop a new Internet-based infrastructure 

to improve the use of online knowledge 

(see p. 42). Stetter’s role will be to manage 

the Medico sub-project, which is designed to 

combine medical information with image processing 

methods and adaptive machine 

processes for the first time. “We want to help 

doctors make decisions by creating an intelligent 

search engine for medical databases,” he 

says. In this project, human thought processes 

and neural networks will once again serve as 

blueprints for the medical platform of the future. 

Shun Jie Fan 

Shun Jie Fan, 34, is a 

senior research scientist at CT 

China, where he heads the 

Automation for Life Sciences 

project, and is responsible for 

the world’s first industrial 

biosensor platform. 

From Mystical Enigma 

to Biosensor Platform 

During his childhood in his hometown of 

Handan, which is situated approximately 

400 kilometers south of Beijing, Fan dreamt of a 

career as a librarian. In his fantasy he would 

spend life tranquilly browsing through ancient 

tomes each day and work on deciphering neverbefore-solved 

mysteries. 

But as the years slipped by, reality began to 

set in. “The economic viability of such a career 

seemed highly questionable to me, especially in 

such a rapidly growing society as China’s,” he 

says. 

Fan, who is now 34, chose a more reliable 

path, by enrolling at Tsinghua University of Beijing 

in 1991, completing his Bachelor of Engineering 

in process automation instrumentation 

and finally wrapping up his university career in 

2001 with a doctorate in control engineering. 

This was followed by a three-year scientific research 

stint at the Imperial College of London, 

UK, in process systems engineering, after which 

he was offered a job as an engineer by a young 

Beijing technology company in 2004 and returned 

to China. 

When Siemens offered Fan a job in 2005, he 

didn’t have to think twice. Because of his expert 

knowledge of control technology and his experience 

in the automation of petrochemical, synthetic 

materials and biotechnology processes, 

the assignment seemed tailor-made for him. 

The goal was to adapt biosensors commonly 

used in medical applications — devices, which, 

for example, are used in the identification of 

blood cells and metabolic substances such as 

blood sugar, cholesterol and urea — to industrial 

biotechnology. Fan immediately found himself 

in his element — mainly because he frequently 

had to solve a problem by means of his wealth of 

experience and his interdisciplinary knowledge. 

And he has done so with resounding success. 

His work recently resulted in the world’s first 

biosensor platform for biotechnology — a prototype 

that works flawlessly. In fact, following initial 

experiments, the platform promises to dramatically 

improve the efficiency of bioprocess 

automation (see p. 24). And Fan, needless to 

say, is pleased with himself. After all, he managed 

to fulfill his childhood dream and solve a 

complex enigma that no one before had unraveled. 

Besides having a passion for his job in technology, 

Fan is the father of a two-year-old son 

and an avid amateur athlete. His favorite pastimes 

are swimming and chess. 


Corporate Intellectual Property and Functions / Chief Technology Office 

Patents and Synergies 

In the age of globalization, knowledge and know-how are the trump cards of the 

Siemens integrated technology company. The protection, utilization, and expansion 

of its intellectual property is crucial to the company’s success. 

Intellectual property is vital, says Prof. 

Winfried Büttner. Page 56 

Patented inventions are the foundation 

of Siemens’ success. Page 57 

The art of correctly utilizing existing 

Siemens patents. Page 58 

Becoming a patent professional: 

Technology, language, and law. Page 59 

Standards as the criteria of worldwide 

operations and progress. Page 60 

The excitement of standardization and 

regulation. Page 61 

Climate protection: Siemens’ 

environmental portfolio. Page 62 

Environmental protection at Siemens: 

Finding ways to save energy. Page 63 

CT O: The heart of Siemens’ innovation 

network. Page 64 

Defying oil prices and climate change 

with electric vehicles. Page 65 

54 Corporate Technology

Siemens holds more than 55,000 patents. 

Managing these patents and protecting 

them from competitors is one of the missions of 

Corporate Intellectual Property and Functions 

(CT I). CT I’s 550 employees worldwide support 

Siemens’ researchers and developers when it 

comes to applying for patents, defending 

claims, and exploiting patent rights. CT I’s responsibilities 

also include representing Siemens 

in committees for the establishment of interna- 

tional norms and standards, acting as the central 

contact point for issues connected with the 

environmental compatibility and technical 

safety of products and processes, and issuing appropriate 

regulations, such as the Siemens-wide 

environmental standards. This central function 

is particularly significant in view of the tremendous 

breadth of Siemens’ environmental portfolio, 

which accounted for nearly €19 billion in 

sales in business year 2008. 

One of the responsibilities of Prof. Hermann 

Requardt, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and 

Head of Corporate Technology, is fostering synergies 

throughout Siemens. The crucial requirement 

for this job is the ability to recognize trends 

at an early stage, identify new technologies, and 

make these technologies available in an efficient 

and effective manner. Requardt receives 

vital support for these missions from the employees 

of the Chief Technology Office. 


Interview 

Why Intellectual Property Represents 

Siemens’ Future 

The number of inventions registered at 

Siemens has risen substantially since the 

early 1990s — from 2,000 per year at the 

beginning of the last decade to around 

8,000 per year today. Patent registrations 

are also up significantly — from 2,000 per 

year in the 1990s to some 5,000 per year 

today. Are inventions and patents more 

important now than they were 15 or 20 

years ago? 

Büttner: In this era of globalization and 

increasing international competition, a 

company’s future depends on its intellectual 

property. And that’s much more the case today 

than ever before. Employee knowledge is the 

most important component of added value for 

a company like Siemens that is striving to be a 

technological trendsetter. Patents are also one 

of the few elements that can be used to gauge 

the effectiveness of investment in research and 

development. R&D investment has also risen 

since the 1990s, and inventors are able to share 

more in the success of their new ideas than 

used to be the case. Both of these factors have 

led to an increase in the number of inventions 

registered. The global significance and value of 

patents has also grown significantly. Our patent 

portfolio today is very valuable both in terms of 

the licensing agreements we reach with other 

companies and patent disputes. 

But it’s not just the number of patents in 

the portfolio that counts? 

Büttner: The quality of the patents is the most 

important factor, of course. For example, a key 


Prof. Winfried Büttner is the Head 

of Corporate Intellectual Property 

and Functions (CT I). 

patent that serves as one of the foundations 

of an international standard — or a must-use 

patent that cannot be circumvented by any 

other solution — is worth much more than an 

average patent. We therefore pay very close 

attention to the value of our patents — not least 

of all because international patent registrations 

are costly. 

What’s your strategic approach here? 

Büttner: Once the Siemens operating units 

have determined what their trendsetting 

technologies will be, we work with them to 

define the focus of the subsequent patent 

approach with regard to things like international 

standards and strategic R&D projects. 

This enables us to assign a specific value to each 

patent, whereby we assess, for example, how 

important the patent is with regard to the 

competition. We also examine what our 

competitors are doing, of course. If we find, 

for example, that they’re registering a lot more 

patents in a certain area than Siemens is, we 

use this information to determine the potential 

risks facing our business, and this may also 

cause us to take a closer look at such research 

fields. 

Can you provide some examples of 

especially valuable patents? 

Büttner: Take the Healthcare Sector. Here we 

have X-ray machines equipped with a so-called 

C-arm. The latter is guided by a robot in a 

process that makes it possible to carry out more 

precise and more rapid X-ray examinations. 

Siemens holds key patents that enable the 

practical implementation of this technology. 

In fact, we’re currently the only manufacturer 

to have launched such a device on the market, 

and our constantly growing patent portfolio 

continues to protect this competitive edge. 

Another example is our new computer 

tomograph with two X-ray tubes and two 

detectors, which is protected by numerous 

patents. 

Are there similar examples from other 

Siemens Sectors? 

Büttner: Yes — in the Energy Sector, for 

example, with regard to gas turbines, wind 

power facilities, electrical power grids, control 

systems, and low-emission power plants. And 

our Industry Sector has contributed significantly 

to the establishment of standards. For 

instance, consider the field bus used in factory 

communication systems or the Simatic system 

in the realm of industrial automation. And, 

of course, we mustn’t forget the ETCS — the 

European standard for train control systems. 

What goals does Siemens pursue when it 

serves on international standardization 

bodies? 

Büttner: As a company that is active in more 

than 190 countries, we are committed to the 

development of global markets and the 

principle of global competition. Globally valid 

standards open up markets and make it easier 

for all companies to compete. They also benefit 

customers because they make products from

Patents on Siemens’ own inventions 

have always been among the company’s 

most important assets — even back 

in the 19th century. 

different manufacturers compatible and make it 

possible to use such products in the same way in 

different countries. 

What will be the biggest challenges in the 

patent sector in coming years? 

Büttner: For one thing, there are still no 

standard international regulations with regard 

to what’s patentable or not in the software, 

biotechnology, and genetic engineering 

sectors. Here the rules are different in the U.S. 

and Europe, for example. A big challenge facing 

Western companies is most certainly the huge 

attempt being made by Asian firms — especially 

those from Korea and China — to catch up to 

the West. Chinese companies, for example, are 

now trying to protect their own developments 

through patents —naturally, for reasons 

of self-interest. There’s a benefit for us here, 

though, because their approach will make it 

easier to establish effective patent protection 

laws in China. 

What impact do Siemens’ numerous 

research partnerships have on patents? 

Büttner: It’s true that the trend toward open 

innovation brings with it new challenges. 

Siemens launches more than 1,000 new 

research partnerships around the world every 

year. It’s important here to precisely define 

beforehand how the partners will deal with 

jointly-developed intellectual property. We 

pursue a fair-partnership approach here — 

and patent policies are an important element 

of every partnership agreement. 

Patented Inventions are the Foundation of 

Siemens’ Success 

Company founder and famous inventor Werner von Siemens shaped 

Siemens as a firm that aims for technological leadership. “I believe that 

one of the main reasons why our factories are flourishing is that most of 

what they produce is based on our own inventions,” he once said. Werner 

von Siemens was very much occupied by the issue of patents. In 1876, 

he even published a paper in which he explained why it was necessary 

for the German empire to introduce a national patent law, as the only 

patent laws in existence at that time were those of the individual 

German states. Such a law was passed the following year, accompanied 

by the establishment of the Reichspatentamt (German Patent Office). 

Werner von Siemens actually registered a patent in the state of 

Prussia for an easy-to-operate pointer telegraph just one week after 

founding his company in October 1847. This invention made it possible 

to send messages over great distances. 

Siemens’ dynamo patent in 1866 ushered in the age of large-scale 

electrical power generation, which also played a major role in the 

advent of electrical engineering. 

The invention of the electric railroad and the tantalum lamp were 

the driving forces behind the further development of mass mobility and 

electric lighting systems. 

The traffic light control system patented by Siemens & Halske in 1928 

monitored the electric circuits in multi-colored traffic light lamps and 

created the basis for today’s complex traffic guidance systems. 

Most of the silicon production techniques for semiconductors are 

based on a Siemens’ patent from 1953 for producing the purest silicon. 

Other inventions in the last 60 years include Simatic (the foundation for 

industrial automation), thyristors (used as high-performance power 

network switches), and EWSD (a rapid digital telephone switching 

system). All pregnant women today are familiar with the result of a 

patent registered in the 1960s for realtime ultrasound. 

Key patents have been registered in recent years for new computer 

and magnetic resonance tomography procedures, energy-saving and 

resource-conserving industrial processes, a completely new bogie 

concept for trains, and innovative power plant concepts that enable 

CO2 separation. 

In the ideal case, one patent will benefit several different fields. One 

of the best recent examples of this is the invention of a procedure for 

rapidly registering the three-dimensional shape of objects (see p. 9). 

This technique is now used in security systems (for 3D face recognition), 

industry (for chassis calibration in vehicle assembly), power engineering 

(for examining turbine blades) and the medical sector (for measuring inear 

hearing aids). 

Knowledge: The Competitive Edge 

The Corporate Information Research Center (IRC), which is also a part of CT I, collects and 

evaluates scientific, economic, and technological information for thousands of Siemens 

employees around the world. In addition, more than 50 IRC experts produce customer-focused 

reports, as well as trend, market, and company analyses. 


Intellectual Property With a portfolio of 55,000 patents, 

Siemens is among the world’s most 

innovative companies. Managing this 

portfolio efficiently is an enormous task. 

Recent years have seen information and knowledge acquire 

growing importance compared to other production factors such 

as capital, raw materials, and real estate. Today, a company’s 

competitiveness depends very much on its know-how. At Siemens, 

over 220 specialists are responsible for optimizing the use of 

existing patents. At the same time, their job is to ensure that all 

new patents meet the company’s needs. Here, the value of a new 

invention is a function not only of its technological ingenuity but 

above all of the level of market interest it is likely to generate. 

Securing Siemens’ Intellectual 

Property 

With its more than 55,000 patents, Siemens 

takes intellectual property very seriously indeed. 

Patent rankings show the company is consistently 

one of the most innovative firms anywhere 

(see p. 5). Especially important here are 

“key patents,” which protect know-how in specific 

areas from competitors. These give Siemens industrial 

property rights that are exceedingly difficult 

for the competition to circumvent by means 

of alternative technologies. This applies particularly 

to patents that have been incorporated in an 

international standard or have themselves established 

a de facto standard. At Siemens this includes 

not only the entire GSM and GPRS mobile 

communications portfolio but also patents relating 

to instrumentation and control technology, 

and to industrial automation and communications, 

network management, rail traffic management 

(ETCS), and operator interfaces. 

Siemens conducts a number of programs to 

encourage development of major patents and 

patent portfolios, including its “Inventor of the 

Year” award, which goes to the company’s 12 

most creative people worldwide. This is in recognition 

of innovations that provide answers to today’s 

major technological issues, such as the need 

for more efficient power supply systems, more intelligent 

manufacturing processes, and healthcare 

systems with maximum efficiency. 

The patent team’s strategy is above all to promote 

industrial property rights in trendsetting 

and cross-sector technologies such as remote 

maintenance. Generating patents is an integral 

part of the entire development process, thus ensuring 

that know-how is secured for Siemens as 


quickly and fully as possible. On particularly 

important projects, the team expressly solicits 

submission of inventions by means of “invention 

on demand” workshops or by IP benchmarking — 

a process whereby competitors’ patent portfolios 

and the state of their technologies are analyzed 

and shown to developers. 

In addition to securing protection for the company’s 

intellectual property, a key aspect of strategy 

for the patent team is to monitor whether 

rights are being illegally exploited by any market 

players. In this area, however, different businesses 

require different approaches. Whereas all 

instances of product piracy in the field of automation 

technology must be effectively combated, 

the company’s commanding position in the 

healthcare sector means that its patents can often 

be used to negotiate unrestricted access to 

the technology of major competitors. And in the 

services business, patents covering the design of 

specific processes or business models, for example, 

help defend the company’s good ideas 

against the competition. 

The patent team’s expertise is also needed 

when Siemens acquires companies. Patent specialists 

then analyze the value of the acquisition’s 

patent portfolio and ensure property rights are 

rapidly incorporated in the company’s own portfolio, 

allowing them to be properly administered 

and made available throughout Siemens. Conversely, 

whenever business interests are sold, 

patent professionals work to secure protection for 

technologies still used by Siemens. 

In order to strengthen its own market position, 

Siemens also actively uses its patent portfolio to 

swap or sell licenses, negotiate comprehensive 

cross-licensing agreements, and pursue patent 

infringements. This is also the reason for ensuring 

that its patent portfolio has a regional spread, 

which enables Siemens to protect its products 

particularly in the emerging Asian markets, for example. 

The activities of the Intellectual Property 

team help to secure and increase the tremendous 

value that Siemens derives from its industrial 

property rights. The battle to defend intellectual 

property — described by former EU Commissioner 

for Trade Peter Mandelson as the nerve 

center of the European and U.S. economies — 

has intensified dramatically in recent years. 

Siemens is well prepared for this fight.

Siegfied Söllner Söllner’s art calls for ensuring 

optimum protection for an invention — 

without revealing too many of its 

technical features. 

A degree in electrical engineering, 

a way with words, and a 

big interest in legal issues have 

made Siegfried Söllner a 

professional in the patents 

field. Today his department 

secures patents at Siemens for 

several hundred inventions 

and innovations every year. 

A Fascinating Mixture of 

Technology, Language, and Law 

Working through mountains of files, delivering 

eloquent testimony before a court of 

law, and polishing the wording of texts — not 

exactly the kind of work for which a young engineer 

enters his chosen profession. In fact 

Siegfried Söllner’s first job after a degree in electrical 

engineering was in hydroelectric power. 

After several years in his profession, he first encountered 

the world of patent and trademark 

law at Siemens while being involved with minor 

inventions of his own and supervising graduate 

and postgraduate students. 

“Reading the draft of a patent application for 

one of my inventions made me realize I didn’t 

understand a word of it, although I’ve always 

been interested in language,” Söllner recalls. But 

instead of being scared off, he resolved to get in 

deeper. Research into the job description of a 

patent engineer fired his enthusiasm all the 

more. A degree in an engineering or scientific 

subject is a must here, and a way with words 

plus an interest in the legal side are helpful 

when it comes to mastering the challenges of 

acquiring a second degree in this field. 

Like all patent professionals, Söllner initially 

worked for three years while gaining this qualification, 

under the supervision of an experienced 

colleague from the Intellectual Property Department. 

This team of experts is organized in line 

with the corporate structure of Siemens, so that 

the divisions are provided with all the knowledge 

and advice they need. During their training, 

patent professionals are expected to plow 

through mounds of legal texts and seminar papers. 

Depending on the precise focus of their 

studies, they can then take on the heavy schedule 

of exams to become either a European or a 

German patent attorney. 

Given that the type of training and the nature 

of patent law differ from country to country, additional 

qualifications are required to practice on 

the international stage. After qualifying as a 

patent attorney, Söllner went to the U.S. for two 

years to gain procedural experience in American 

patent law. Now he is head of the department 

responsible for all patent matters in the field of 

motors and drives. 

Four times a year, a Siemens Patent Committee 

evaluates all inventions and innovations submitted 

by employees and then selects those suitable 

for patenting. “That takes a lot of foresight. 

For a start, patents cost money, and secondly we 

have to make sure the portfolio as a whole has 

no gaps in it, and remains manageable,” explains 

Söllner. His department applies for between 

400 and 500 patents a year. Drafting a 

suitably worded application takes a certain 

power of abstraction as well as a feeling for language. 

“The art is to achieve optimum protection 

for an invention without revealing too many 

of its actual technical features,” says Söllner of 

the complex balancing act. Once a year, the entire 

Siemens portfolio of existing patents is assessed 

to decide which ones should be extended 

and which should be allowed to lapse. 

To ensure effective implementation of 

patents, experts must also closely monitor new 

developments from other companies in the 

same field. Trade fairs are often where Söllner 

and colleagues find evidence of possible patent 

infringements. “If this proves to be the case, 

that’s when negotiations start,” he says. Often 

companies can reconcile their differences by 

means of a licensing or cross-licensing agreement. 

If that’s not possible, then the courts must 

decide. By the same token, Söllner’s job includes 

monitoring all in-house product developments 

from his area of expertise for any infringement 

of third-party patents. Working in the midst of 

such fierce competition makes the work anything 

but a cushy ride. New trends in the field 

and aggressive exploitation of patents, especially 

in the U.S., mean the patent professionals 

have to continually rethink strategy. “But that’s 

what makes this job so exciting — in spite of all 

the files,” Söllner reveals. 


Standardization & Regulation 

For globally-operating 

companies like Siemens, it’s 

important to ensure that 

standards are accepted 

around the world. That’s why 

specialists from Siemens take 

part in international committees 

for the development of 

new standards. 

Establishing Standards 

Means Defining Markets 

Standards are an important part of today’s 

global trade. Without internationally recognized 

norms, trade barriers would multiply and 

technological progress would be stalled. Companies 

that operate around the world, such as 

Siemens with its activities in 190 countries, 

would find it unprofitable to have to adapt developments 

for small sub-markets. If technologies 

couldn’t be operated with the same standards 

in different countries, they would spread 

much more slowly. And incompatible solutions 

from different manufacturers would also prove 

to be a hindrance. 

For Siemens, as a trendsetter for innovative 

technologies, standards and norms therefore 

play a crucial role. To guarantee efficient interaction 

with the standardization process for all 

Siemens divisions, Corporate Technology’s Standardization 

& Regulation (CT SR) team uses specialized 

methods and tools, mastered by more 

than 20 experts who are familiar with international 

standardization activities. They ensure 

Siemens is able to maintain and expand its 

strong position in competitive international 

markets. This is true because of a general rule: 

those who make standards, make markets. 

One of the most familiar examples of how international 

standardization helped a new technology 

to achieve a breakthrough worldwide is 

the GSM standard (Global System for Mobile 

Communication). This standard has now made 

it possible for approximately 90 percent of all 

people to communicate with one another 

worldwide via mobile phones. This would not 

have been possible had there been many differ- 


ent standards in effect. This example also 

demonstrates that uniform international standards 

ensure equal opportunity in the marketplace 

— by making it easier for even small national 

economies to gain access to markets and 

innovative technology. 

For Germany, for example, the economic 

benefit of standardization is valued at over €16 

billion per year. This figure was determined empirically, 

because economic methods for evaluating 

the business value of standardization are 

only now being developed. 

Other examples that clearly illustrate the operational 

benefit of internationally-accepted 

standards for Siemens — utility from a business 

management point of view, in other words — 

are the IEC standards for industrial field bus systems 

like Profibus, and the IEC norm for the standardized 

communications protocol for energy 

network infrastructures. Once they were published, 

these standards made customers more 

willing to invest; they enlarged the market and 

thereby spurred business for all manufacturers 

involved. 

As a company that does business in more 

than 190 countries, Siemens pursues a proactive 

standardization strategy and is represented 

on the committees of all the important standardization 

organizations, including the International 

Organization for Standardization (ISO) 

and the International Electrotechnical Commission 

(IEC). For the company, this entails the advantage 

of being able to help formulate the 

technical content of standards at an early stage 

in the standardization process — and the ability 

to incorporate it into the product development 

process. Standardization organizations, on the 

other hand, ensure that standards are of a high 

level of quality when they collaborate with the 

most important developers of new technologies. 

By participating in standardization committees, 

specialists from Corporate Technology’s 

Standardization and Regulation team not only 

help to shape standards, but also strengthen the 

bonds among innovation, patents, and standards. 

Particularly in the case of relatively new 

fields — such as RFID and nanotechnology — it 

is essential to coordinate patent and standardization 

work. 

Another focus of CT SR’s work is making sure 

that regional Siemens companies are thoroughly 

integrated in the international standardization 

process. For example, CT SR advises 

Siemens standardization specialists in all relevant 

countries regarding the committees on 

which Siemens specialists must be represented 

in order to help shape standardization 

processes. Here too, Siemens strives to advance 

international standardization in order to avoid 

the possibility of having to manufacture according 

to many different standards. 

Only when as many countries as possible participate 

in standardization and adopt the resulting 

standards for their respective territories does 

the process lead to the desired effect of reducing 

trade barriers to the advantage of all involved. 

Siemens is thus helping to define the technical 

and economic requirements for market access. 

Nevertheless, in spite of efforts to achieve 

international standards, different requirements

Universal standards are a major benefit, 

whether for systems in industry 

(top photos) or for energy network 

infrastructures (bottom). 

for access to the markets of various countries 

continue to exist. Knowing these different requirements 

— and informing the Siemens divisions 

of them early on during a product’s development 

phase — is thus another core area of 

activity for CT SR. 

Ultimately, everyone profits from standards 

that are internationally harmonized, because 

such standards include the best technologies, 

and help to ensure that users worldwide have a 

high level of security. Products from different 

manufactures are then mutually compatible as 

well, and products from many different countries 

can be used in the same way. 

Siripong Treetasanatavorn 

What might well seem like 

fairly dry subject matter to 

an outsider — standardization 

and regulation — is 

actually a very exciting field 

of technology management 

for Dr. Siripong Treetasanatavorn, 

an engineer and 

a native of Thailand. 

Negotiating Standards: 

Many Skills Required 

Dr. Siripong Treetasanatavorn, an engineer 

and computer specialist, was born in 1974, 

which makes him one of the younger members 

of the Standardization and Regulation (CT SR) 

department. Those involved in formulating 

international standards for technologies, 

whether working within the company or on 

committees, need to have quite a lot of experience. 

Demands are considerable. In addition to 

having a strong background in technical issues, 

such experts must also be well acquainted with 

product development and customer needs. Interpersonal 

considerations are also important. 

Work on the committees of the international, 

European and German organizations — including 

ISO, IEC, CEN, CENELEC. VDE and DIN — calls 

for negotiating skills and powers of persuasion 

based on a high degree of technical and 

methodological competence. 

Treetasanatavorn grew up in Thailand. Coming 

from a Chinese-Thai family, he inherited an 

enthusiasm for travel and a mastery of multiple 

foreign languages — qualities that he is now 

putting to very good use. Before he began working 

at CT SR, Treetasanatavorn had already completed 

an academic career with periods at universities 

in Erlangen, Hamburg, and Bangkok. 

After earning his doctorate, with a dissertation 

for Siemens on statistical models and algorithms 

for multimedia communication systems, 

Treetasanatavorn gained valuable experience 

implementing technology-oriented business 

ideas in start-up companies at the Siemens 

Technology Accelerator in Munich (see p. 33). 

The entrepreneurial knowledge that he acquired 

in the process is now very useful to him in his 

new duties at CT SR. Together with colleagues 

from the divisions, Treetasanatavorn analyzes 

existing standardization processes and develops 

methods for evaluating and assessing them. 

“Well-managed standardization processes that 

consistently follow our business and portfolio 

strategy, and are closely linked to it, contribute 

noticeably to the success of the company’s operational 

business,” explains Treetasanatavorn. 

His objective is to make this contribution and its 

benefit not only noticeable but also measurable 

and, in particular, to make it subject to deliberate 

control in the future. 

To date, no one in the world has come up 

with a truly practical method for this. At this 

point, standardization experts can only estimate 

what effect it will have if they take part in a standardization 

process — and what will happen if 

they do not. 

When evaluation methods are developed, 

matters can be taken to the next stage. Standardization 

experts can then draw inferences 

from the processes that are most successful for 

Siemens and feed them into new optimization 

methods. 

There is still a long road ahead before that objective 

can be reached, but Treetasanatavorn 

loves to think in terms of protracted periods — a 

characteristic that’s much appreciated in his department. 

“Maybe it’s because of my name, 

which comes from Sanskrit and means roughly 

‘three permanent visions’,” says Treetasanatavorn 

with a wink. 


Environmental Affairs & Technical Safety 

Siemens is a leading supplier 

of products and solutions 

for protecting the environment 

and the climate. 

The Environmental Affairs 

& Technical Safety team 

defines both the company’s 

environmental portfolio and 

its associated rules. 

A Broad Portfolio for Climate 

Protection and Efficient Energy Use 

For many years Siemens has been promoting 

environmental protection and sustainability. 

In its environmental portfolio, Siemens has 

brought together products and solutions that 

are very friendly to the environment and the 

earth’s climate. These products cover all areas of 

energy generation, transmission and use, as 

well as water treatment and air purification. In 

2008, the environmental portfolio generated 

sales of nearly €19 billion, or almost one-fourth 

of the company’s total sales. This figure is set to 

climb to around €25 billion by 2011. 

In business year 2008, Siemens customers 

who had acquired the appropriate products and 

solutions were able to reduce carbon dioxide 

emissions by 148 million tons. This is nearly 30 

times the CO2 emissions produced by Siemens 

itself. The aim now is to increase the annual CO2 

savings to around 275 million tons by 2011. This 

figure corresponds to the current total CO2 emissions 

of six of the world’s major cities, including 

London, New York and Tokyo. 

The Environmental Affairs & Technical Safety 

team is responsible for handling the company’s 

wide range of climate protection measures and 

sustainability activities. Here, experts define 

which products and solutions should be included 

in the environmental portfolio. To do 

this, they calculate which products and solutions 

help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and 

improve the quality of air and water. 

With a view to determining the value of these 

measures, the team commissioned PricewaterhouseCoopers 

to check its numbers and methods 

according to the criteria of the Green House 


Gas Protocol Initiative. Auditors have confirmed 

all of the statements made by Siemens regarding 

its environmentally-friendly solutions. 

All of Siemens’ divisions contribute to the 

company’s environmental portfolio. The biggest 

CO2 savings are generated by energy-efficient 

gas turbines, wind power plants, energy-saving 

light bulbs, light-emitting diodes, environmentally 

friendly trains, energy-efficient industrial 

facilities, high-voltage direct current transmission 

systems and the modernization of older 

power plants. 

Among Siemens’ pioneering products are 

also systems from the Healthcare Sector, such as 

the Somatom Definition computer tomograph, 

which not only requires 30 percent less energy 

for a scan than conventional models, but also 

contains 80 percent less lead. 

At Siemens itself, the goal is to increase the 

energy efficiency of production locations by 20 

percent between 2006 and 2011. To achieve 

this, Siemens is using systems from its own portfolio, 

such as efficient drives, energy-saving 

light bulbs and buildings systems. 

However, the corporate environmental program 

that was developed by the company’s own 

experts also specifies that water consumption 

and the production of waste must be reduced by 

15 percent. More importantly, it stipulates that 

carbon dioxide emissions must be cut by 20 percent, 

despite the fact that they already are quite 

low, at 5.1 million tons. This figure consists of all 

emissions generated for electricity and heat, as 

well as direct greenhouse gas emissions and 

those produced through business trips or by the 

company’s vehicle fleet. By comparison, automakers 

produce two to five times as many 

emissions per employee than Siemens. 

Environmental protection is a comprehensive 

process at Siemens, extending from the 

product development phase to production and 

sales. Not until all costs and savings have been 

determined and balanced against one another, 

can experts ascertain how big a product’s carbon 

footprint actually is. All of the associated 

rules are contained in an eco-design guideline, 

which Siemens introduced 15 years ago. 

Siemens’ environmental standards take into 

account all aspects of carbon dioxide emissions, 

including energy efficiency, emissions reductions 

for guaranteeing air and water quality, the 

avoidance of hazardous substances, and the 

conservation of natural resources through the 

use of new materials and production processes. 

The rules take a holistic view of a product’s life-

Siemens’ environmental portfolio 

includes the world’s most efficient gas 

turbines, wind parks, and recycled 

medical tomographs (below). 

cycle, from the planning phase to the product’s 

disposal, as this is the only way of achieving the 

greatest economic and environmental benefits 

possible. 

In addition to environmental protection, 

safety also plays a key role in production 

processes. That’s why the team’s responsibilities 

extend to performing risk analyses, drawing up 

safety strategies, and developing safety concepts. 

In accordance with the broad range of 

products that Siemens offers, these tasks require 

expertise in a large number of different 

safety-related areas involving things such as 

lasers, electromagnetic fields, X-ray machines, 

radiation protection systems, and the transport 

of hazardous goods. Through the ongoing improvement 

of the company’s safety management, 

experts at CT have succeeded in continuously 

increasing safety standards while at the 

same time reducing costs. 

Winfried Mayer Winfried Mayer provides environmental 

tips and looks for energy-saving 

potential at many of Siemens’ more than 

200 production locations worldwide. 

Environmental protection has 

been gaining in importance 

at production plants in 

recent years. Winfried Mayer, 

who is responsible for this 

topic at Siemens Corporate 

Technology, is well aware of 

just how much progress has 

been made. 

Maximizing the Efficiency 

of Siemens’ Plants 

Winfried Mayer’s work at the Industrial Environmental 

Protection department affects 

the entire company. He is, for example, responsible 

for the carbon footprint report on the company’s 

greenhouse gas emissions. The data collected 

for this report enables Mayer’s team to 

find out where energy consumption has risen or 

declined and why. In addition to reducing costs 

and emissions, the focus here is on ensuring 

that Siemens will once again be listed in the 

Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) and the 

Climate Leadership Index of the Carbon Disclosure 

Project (CDP). Siemens has been listed in 

both indices every year since 2000. Only companies 

that disclose their environmentally-related 

data and provide information on product-related 

environmental protection activities can 

hope to achieve good ratings in these indices. 

Although tasks such as analyzing data for the 

environmental report are far removed from the 

practical concerns of industrial environmental 

protection, Mayer is familiar with the latter. After 

earning degrees in surface engineering and 

materials science, he gained valuable experience 

in the production of printed circuit boards 

at a plant in Augsburg, Germany, where he 

worked as a chemical process engineer. He was 

also head of activities related to water treatment 

and electroplating. 

Today, Mayer is responsible for providing coordination, 

guidelines, and advice with regard to 

climate protection, energy management and air 

quality at Siemens. “It’s very useful that I know 

what is and isn’t possible in a plant,” he says. Although 

Mayer has personally been to many of 

the more than 200 Siemens production facilities 

worldwide, his job generally involves forwarding 

environmentally-related information to individual 

divisions, providing assistance when it 

comes to implementing measures, and checking 

results. Mayer regularly trains divisional environmental 

officers so that he can give them 

valuable suggestions and tips for saving energy. 

Some improvements are easy to implement, including 

the use of energy-saving light bulbs and 

the installation of systems for recovering heat. 

Sometimes, Mayer even suggests taking a 

major leap, such as when a graduate student in 

his charge showed in a master’s thesis that a factory 

could be much more efficiently heated with 

a new combined heat and power plant. When 

dealing with such cases, Mayer calculates how 

the project can be financed and provides assistance 

in making a detailed analysis. “Like everywhere 

else in the industry, the modernization of 

buildings and facilities offers the greatest energy 

savings potential,” he says. “Examples here 

include the use of heat insulation, advanced 

lighting technology and energy-saving drives.” 

Siemens has set itself the goal of reducing its 

plants’ energy consumption by 20 percent in relation 

to sales by 2011. The analyses and recommendations 

that Mayer makes help plant directors 

take action in the right areas. The challenge 

in his work is to know all of the details without 

losing sight of the overall picture. Even though 

environmental protection begins with seemingly 

banal activities such as not setting the heat 

too high in offices, it sometimes also requires 

that entire production processes be revamped. 


Chief Technology Office 

In order to remain a trendsetter, Siemens is working to strengthen 

the innovative power it possesses as an integrated technology 

company. Such a strategy requires that innovations be pursued in 

an open network where cooperation with partners both inside and 

outside the company is a given. At the heart of this innovation 

network is the Chief Technology Officer (CTO), who is supported 

by the Chief Technology Office in his mission to bring together the 

strongest forces within the company, and ensure that innovations 

drive the creation of value for Siemens. 

Synergies for an 

Integrated Technology Company 

Practically no other company in the world 

possesses as much technological expertise 

in so many different fields as Siemens. As if that 

weren’t enough, the company’s three Sectors of 

Industry, Energy, and Healthcare give it a presence 

that covers virtually the entire planet. A 

global presence is only one of many advantages 

enjoyed by integrated technology companies, 

however. 

Other factors that have led to Siemens’ success 

include its excellent financial position, its 

definition of clear performance goals, and its active 

portfolio management strategy, which concentrates 

on those business areas in which 

Siemens occupies a leading position in the market. 

Also important is the great attention the 

company pays to management skills that promote 

an entrepreneurial spirit and strong customer 

focus. 

Nevertheless, one of the crucial elements of 

Siemens’ success is its ability to effectively manage 

innovations and push ahead with the development 

of new products and solutions. It is 

therefore very important for Siemens as an integrated 

technology company to develop methods 

that strengthen its innovative power in order 

to ensure that innovations increase its value. 

This can be achieved only if innovation strategy 

is part of the company’s overall business strategy 

— and if both are targeted toward attractive 

markets that are themselves undergoing sustained 

growth. 

Siemens views itself as a trendsetter that 

combines strong market performance with technological 

strength. Its innovation strategy incor- 


porates elements such as technology strategy, 

resource optimization for research and development, 

shaping the innovation process, and 

patent and standardization strategy, whereby 

consistent and rigorous application holds the 

key to success. 

Siemens’ Chief Technology Officer (CTO), Prof. 

Hermann Requardt, who also serves as the Head 

of Corporate Technology, is essentially the heart 

of Siemens’ innovation network. Requardt’s job 

is to safeguard the company’s innovative power 

as a competitive advantage. His responsibilities 

therefore focus on: 

➔ promoting the development of innovations 

and new business activities that impact all Sectors, 

➔ improving the efficiency of research and development, 

➔ assessing the company’s innovative power in 

a clear and transparent manner, 

➔ creating open global innovation networks 

both internally and with universities, research 

institutes, and other companies, and 

➔ improving both internal and external communication 

on innovations. 

In this capacity, the CTO can act as an entrepreneur 

and take action to open up new business 

opportunities that have yet to be addressed 

by the individual Sectors (see “eCar” article on p. 

65). Here, the crucial requirement is to be able 

to recognize current and future trends, identify 

new technologies, and make these technologies 

available in an efficient and effective manner by 

utilizing the innovation network. 

The Chief Technology Officer is supported by 

a number of corporate bodies, organizations 

and processes. These include: 

➔ the Siemens Managing Board — for example, 

when dealing with corporate strategy issues or 

during presentations on the company’s innovative 

power (so-called Innovation Reviews) — in 

addition to detailed innovation strategy discussions 

at the divisional level; 

➔ the Steering Committee Innovation — a CTO 

body whose members mainly include the divisional 

CEOs — and the Innovation Working 

Group, which consists of the divisional CTOs; 

➔ Corporate Technology, which contributes its 

technology, application, and innovation-process 

expertise, as well as its knowledge of patent, 

standardization, and regulation issues. 

Requardt has also been receiving support 

since mid-2008 from the Chief Technology 

Office (CT O), which is part of the Corporate 

Technology organization. The CT O has approximately 

25 employees who evaluate innovation 

strategies at the company, initiate innovation 

projects, promote open innovation networks, 

effectively utilize contacts with universities and 

research and scientific institutes through joint 

projects, and further improve project management 

processes and expertise under the motto 

“PM@Siemens.” 

The overriding goal here is to bring together 

the company’s strongest forces in order to transform 

technologies and innovations into value 

drivers for Siemens in conjunction with the operating 

units, the regions, and Corporate Technology 

itself.

Open Innovation throughout the Company 

One important way to enhance Siemens’ innovative ability is to 

strategically open up the company across all units and departments, 

as well as to the outside. The Open Innovation program develops 

and makes available methods that accelerate innovation processes 

and increase the effectiveness of R&D investment. This approach is 

leading to the establishment of a company-wide IT-based network of 

experts that enables the company to more efficiently link together 

its existing knowledge of various technologies and markets. Plans 

also call for the structured consolidation of the innovative ability of 

numerous Siemens employees from diverse disciplines and regions 

to be achieved through so-called Innovation Jams. Also in the works 

is a project involving the use of specialized Internet marketplaces to 

attract thousands of experts worldwide simultaneously to make 

external knowledge and technologies available to Siemens in a 

targeted manner. 

Establishing a Uniform Project Culture 

Siemens generates more than 50 percent of its sales through 

projects. “PM@Siemens” is a company program administered by the 

CT Office that helps to continually improve project processes. The 

program supports all Siemens units worldwide that have a large 

share of project business. The aim is to help them with the further 

development of their project management processes and expertise. 

The requisite knowledge and the experience of the entire company 

has been brought together in PM@Siemens. For example, the 

program sets company-wide project management standards and 

promotes a systematic exchange of best-practice examples. The 

result is a uniform project culture designed to ensure sustained 

profitability. Success is measured by regularly collecting and 

analyzing the most important reporting data from units involved in 

project business. PM@Siemens therefore provides top management 

with a valuable instrument for assessing projects — and one that can 

also be used to improve them. 

CT T: eCar Project 

New Look at 

Electric Cars 

U ncertain oil prices and increasingly stringent regulations 

regarding greenhouse gas emissions are part of a trend 

that will profoundly impact personal transportation based on 

combustion engines in the near future. 

One alternative here is offered by electric vehicles 

equipped with powerful batteries that can be recharged via 

the public grid. Siemens is already active in this promising 

field. The company’s Corporate Research and Technologies 

(CT T) department is leading a project known as “eCar” that 

attempts to answer questions such as how to design batteries 

that have high charging capacities but aren’t overly expensive, 

and how to ensure that power electronics and electric 

motors meet the requirements of automotive technology. A 

research team is taking a close look at electric vehicle technology 

and studying its feasibility. Even though Siemens sold 

its automotive electronics division in 2007, the issue of electric 

vehicles remains important, as it impacts many other 

business areas, such as power generation and distribution, 

traffic management systems, intelligent electricity meters, 

energy management systems, power electronics, and sensors. 

Siemens is therefore analyzing both the requirements of 

electric vehicles and those of a possible associated infrastructure, 

including transmission networks. The company’s Drive 

Technologies and Mobility Divisions have extensive expertise 

in electric drive systems and energy recuperation. The wealth 

of knowledge in Siemens’ Energy Sector and the new eCar 

project organization also make it possible to estimate how 

the interfaces and system structures both inside and outside 

electric vehicles should be designed in order to ensure an optimal 

link with the electrical infrastructure. The eCar project 

team has already built a demonstration model of an electrical 

power distribution infrastructure to visualize how large numbers 

of electric vehicles would be supplied. The model is available 

for presentations. 


R&D Publications With the magazine Pictures of the Future 

and the book Innovative Minds, Siemens 

provides profound insights into its 

research labs and innovation strategy. 

Want to find out more 

about Siemens and our 

latest innovations? 

We will be glad to send you additional information. 

Please check the box next to the desired publication and 

language, and fax the page to +49 (0)9131 9192-591 or 

mail it to: Publicis, Publishing — Susan Süß — Postfach 3240, 

91050 Erlangen, Germany. Orders also can be e-mailed to: 

publishing-address@publicis.de 

Pictures of the Future, Spring 2007 (German, English) 

Pictures of the Future, Fall 2007 (German, English) 

Pictures of the Future, Spring 2008 (German, English) 

Pictures of the Future, Fall 2008 (German, English) 

The book Innovative Minds — A Look Inside 

Siemens’ Idea Machine can be ordered at: 

www.siemens.com/innovation/book 

I would like a free sample issue of Pictures of the Future 

(please check the respective box(es), circle a language, 

and fill in the address): 

Title, first name, last name 

Company Department 

Street, number 

ZIP, City 

Country 

Telephone number, fax or e-mail 


Additional information about Siemens innovations is available 

on the Internet at: 

www.siemens.com/innovation (the Siemens R&D website) 

www.ct.siemens.com (the Corporate Technology website) 

www.siemens.com/innovationnews (weekly media service) 

www.siemens.com/researchnews (research-related news) 

www.siemens.com/photonews (innovations in fascinating photos) 

www.siemens.com/pof (Pictures of the Future on the Internet, 

with downloads — also in German, Chinese, French, Portuguese, 

Russian, and Turkish)

Jobs at Corporate Technology Siemens offers scientists from around 

the world not only exciting research 

topics but also a chance to bring 

their ideas to market success. 

Interested in 

exploring a career with 

Corporate Technology? 

Discover the fascinating world of Siemens Corporate 

Technology and learn more about Siemens at: 

www.ct.siemens.com/en/jobs 

Information on current career opportunities at Corporate 

Technology — openings for entry level jobs, internships, 

work study openings, and positions for graduate and postgraduate 

students — can be found at the Siemens jobs and 

career site: www.siemens.com/jobs/en 

Conduct your search under “Corporate Technology” 

Jobs-seekers can submit resumés and related materials at: 

www.siemens.com/jobs/en/index/jobsearch 


Publisher: Siemens AG 

Corporate Communications (CC) and Corporate Technology (CT) 

Wittelsbacherplatz 2, 80333 Munich, Germany 

For the publisher: Dr. Ulrich Eberl (CC), Arthur F. Pease (CT) 

ulrich.eberl@siemens.com (Tel. +49 89 636 33246) 

arthur.pease@siemens.com (Tel. +49 89 636 48824) 

Editorial Office: 

Dr. Ulrich Eberl (Editor-in-Chief) 

Arthur F. Pease (Executive Editor, English Edition) 

Klaudia Kunze 

Sebastian Webel 

Additional Authors: 

Dr. Norbert Aschenbrenner, Stephanie Lackerschmid, Katrin Nikolaus, 

Gitta Rohling, Dr. Evdoxia Tsakiridou 

Picture Editing: Judith Egelhof, Irene Kern, Jürgen Winzeck, 

Publicis Pro, Munich 

Photography: Kurt Bauer, Jan Greune, Dietmar Gust, 

Bernd Müller, Volker Steger, Jürgen Winzeck 

Internet (www.ct.siemens.com): Florian Martini 

Graphic Design / Lithography: Rigobert Ratschke, Seufferle Mediendesign GmbH, Stuttgart 

Graphics: Jochen Haller, Seufferle Mediendesign GmbH, Stuttgart 

Translations German – English: Transform GmbH, Köln. Daniel Pease, Munich 

Translations English – German: Karin Hofmann, Publicis Munich 

Printing: Bechtle Druck&Service, Esslingen 

Picture Credits: V. Laforet / with permission of The New York Times (23 b.), 

EnOcean (33), Keystone / Zick (58 t.), Private (61 t.r.). 

All other images: Copyright Siemens AG 

Cover Picture: Magnetic resonance tomography and digital image processing have 

opened new perspectives in terms of visualizing the brain, such as this view of the 

pathways of nerves made visible by the motion of water molecules. 

Pictures of the Future, syngo and other names are registered trademarks of 

Siemens AG or associated companies. Other product and company names mentioned 

in this publication may be registered trademarks of their respective companies. 

The editorial content of the reports does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the 

publisher. This magazine contains forward-looking statements, the accuracy of 

which Siemens is not able to guarantee in any way. 

Printed in Germany. Reproduction of articles in whole or in part requires the permission 

of the editorial office. This also applies to storage in electronic databases or on 

the Internet. 

© 2008 by Siemens AG. All rights reserved. 

Siemens Aktiengesellschaft 

Order number: A-19100-F-P131-X-7600 

www.ct.siemens.com

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