ifesca Future Technology Centre

ifesca’s mission is to support decision-making processes with innovative software solutions. The cloud-based platform of ifesca, which is based on artificial intelligence (AI), offers groundbreaking possibilities, especially in the area of forecasting and optimising energy consumption (such as electricity, natural gas and district heating).

With the opening of the ifesca Future Technology Centre by State Secretary Valentina Kerst, the technology and science location of Ilmenau will become a beacon for future technologies and cross-industry digitalisation processes. Here, visitors can experience artificial intelligence up close – visually, haptically and acoustically.

At the heart of the AI Showroom and the object-based interface to the platform is a multi-touch scanning table from Garamantis. It controls the entire room, including the audio system, lighting and screen wall. The table’s people sensor constantly monitors the room. As soon as a visitor enters the room, a lighting scene and audio greeting are played. Visitors are visually greeted on the table surface and screen wall. The ifesca.AIVA forecasting and optimisation software is operated using capacitive markers, which can be used to dimension renewable energy systems, combined heat and power plants or electricity storage systems in a supply scenario. It then optimises the system size and visualises the expected generation capacity over an entire month at 15-minute intervals, with the actual calculation taking place in the cloud. The multi-touch scanner table has an interface (API) to the ifesca.AIVA platform. The AI then provides feedback via the screens, as well as via the lighting situation (e.g. red light in case of predicted undersupply) and acoustically.

Capacitive object detection for energy scenarios

Another application of the table is to control the ifesca.AIVA dashboard using capacitive markers. Settings that would otherwise be made using a mouse and keyboard are made by the user directly on the surface of the table: For example, by placing and rotating the marker, the dashboard’s chart values can be adjusted or the time series visualised can be changed. The table is connected to the screen wall via a network so that control and display are in perfect harmony and without delay.

In presentation mode, individual content can also be projected from the table to the screen wall with a swipe gesture. Individual slides or graphics in the form of spheres are swiped with a finger towards the wall and unfold there.

The ifesca Future Technology Centre is a place for presentations, but also for hands-on experience of artificial intelligence and modern cloud services, which will be expanded to include other use cases and scenarios in the future.