The foundation is dedicated to promoting education, applied research, and knowledge transfer in the field of humanoid robotics and embodied artificial intelligence (Embodied AI). In particular, the plan calls for application-oriented research and technology transfer projects, the establishment and maintenance of a network of academic and industry experts, and initiatives to support talented young people in STEM fields, with the aim of strengthening the region's workforce of skilled professionals. The foundation receives funding from the state of Baden-Württemberg. The goal is to pool expertise, strengthen transfer structures, and further expand the robotics ecosystem throughout the entire value chain in Germany.
The foundation is supported by Offenburg University of Applied Sciences. It operates a research center for robotics and cobotics – the only one of its kind in southern Germany – that collaborates with companies to develop innovative robotics applications for industrial environments. The focus is clearly oriented toward applications: through research conducted in close cooperation with the business community, the goal is to strengthen the competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises in particular. This will specifically advance teaching, research and development in fields such as industrial robotics, collaborative robotics, and care robotics. With the establishment of this foundation, the university is consistently expanding its research fields of artificial intelligence and robotics.
The Foundation Board includes three organizations – SCHUNK, the BURGER GROUP, and Offenburg University of Applied Sciences – which play mutually complementary roles: research expertise and talent development on the one hand, with industry requirements, market access, and engineering and implementation experience on the other. The foundation complements SCHUNK's long-term strategy in humanoid robotics. The company brings about 20 years of experience in the development of humanoid hands and aims to deploy them in demanding industrial applications. The path to achieving this is based on partnerships: with research institutions such as the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and Offenburg University of Applied Sciences for access to technology, and with industrial companies such as Bosch for scaling and industrialization.
"Humanoid robotics is the next step in the evolution of highly flexible automation. However, it will only succeed if solutions are developed in close collaboration with industry and scaled up collectively. That is why we are systematically expanding our technology transfer efforts and combining them with our many years of automation experience," says Timo Gessmann, CTO of SCHUNK. Alongside the establishment of the foundation, SCHUNK is also advancing its activities on the organizational front – including through the establishment of SCHUNK Humanoid Robotics GmbH to accelerate the development of a new hand platform for various robot systems.
SCHUNK is a technology pioneer in toolholding, workholding, gripping, and automation technology, driving productivity gains for its customers and partners in the industry with a portfolio of components, engineering expertise, and machines – for over 80 years. To achieve this, 3,700 employees worldwide are committed across 10 plants and 34 directly owned subsidiaries, working closely with sales partners in 75 countries. Drawing on close partnerships with its customers and collaboration within innovation networks, SCHUNK develops future technologies for a wide range of industries, such as automotive, e-mobility, life science, aerospace, and electronics.
Learn more
Offenburg University of Applied Sciences is one of the leading universities of applied sciences (UAS) specializing in technology, business, and media. The Work-Life Robotics Institute (WLRI) conducts targeted research into practical robotics applications, with a focus on industrial and collaborative robotics, additively manufactured components, and care robotics.
Learn more
The BURGER GROUP, headquartered in Schonach in the Black Forest, is one of the leading system partners for customized drive technology. More than 1,000 employees at eight locations in Europe and North America develop and manufacture innovative solutions ranging from metal, plastic, and composite materials to complete mechatronic systems with embedded software. Its core expertise lies in intelligently integrating metalworking, plastic injection molding, electronics manufacturing, firmware development, and automated assembly. This results in precise, cost-effective, and reliable solutions for a wide variety of industries.
Learn more