Fraunhofer Society

The Fraunhofer Society (German Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft) is a German research organization named after the German physicist Joseph von Fraunhofer, with 58 institutes spread throughout Germany, each focusing on different fields of applied science, as opposed to the Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, which works primarily on basic science. Some basic funding for the Fraunhofer Society is provided by the state (the federal government together with the German Länder "owns" the Fraunhofer Society), but about two thirds of the funding are earned through contract work, either for government sponsored projects or from industry.

Related Topics:
German - Joseph von Fraunhofer - Max-Planck-Gesellschaft

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It is named after Joseph von Fraunhofer because he was deemed to have been a scientist, an engineer, and an entrepreneur in one person, superbly exemplifying the goals of the society.

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Fraunhofer USA, a subsidiary of Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, has 5 centers in the USA.

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The official name of the Fraunhofer Society is Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V. (German for "Fraunhofer Society for the advancement of applied research").

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Some notable projects

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• The MP3 compression algorithm was invented and patented by Fraunhofer IIS
• They are developing a program for use at IKEA stores, which would allow people to take a picture of their home into a store to view a fully assembled, digital adaptation of their room.
 
Fraunhofer Society: Fraunhofer Scheme ►