07 July 2009
Energy Storage Units Save 80 Tons of CO2 Per Year
Siemens has launched a new hybrid energy storage system forstreetcars. Streetcars equipped with the solution can be driven upto 2,500 meters without an overhead conductor, and the systemsaves lots of energy. This is possible thanks to a combination of adouble-layer capacitor and battery. Running streetcars without anoverhead conductor is especially appropriate for historic downtownareas, where the cables spoil the view, or in places where itis simply difficult to install cables — for example in tunnels, underbridges, or at large intersections.
03 July 2009
More Oil from the Well: Foam Increases Yield
Siemens researchers collaborating with the Russian oil companyRosneft have developed a process for boosting extraction of oilfrom wells. At present it is possible to extract only roughly between30 and 40 percent of the oil in a well, on average; the restremains in the deposit. Oil producers around the globe are workingto improve this yield. The new process from Siemens uses anacid-bearing foam to clean oil wells very efficiently. This frees thereservoir rock from substances that block the movement of oil,which can then flow more readily to the borehole. Rosneft wasable to significantly increase the flow at several wells using themethod.
01 July 2009
World's most frugal dryer sweeping the market
The new blueTherm laundry dryer seized 60 percent of the marketfor premium condenser dryers right out of the gate accordingto a study by the GfK Group of Nuremberg, Germany. blueThermis the first Siemens product in the market segment for condenserdryers costing more than €900. A total of 100,000 units havealready been sold. The reason: The dryer is the energy efficiencychampion. It features a unique automatic lint removal system andnew heat pump technology.
02 June 2009
"Green Megawatts": Peak Capacity in Less Time
By modernizing older power plants, Siemens engineers havesucceeded in significantly boosting the efficiency of facilities,while reducing their CO2 emissions. This has enabled facility operatorsto get more power output from the turbines, or to bringthe power plant up to full capacity in less time. In both instancesthe improvements are achieved without using more fuel, whichmeans "green megawatts" are generated. E.ON's Farge coal-firedpower plant near Bremen, Germany, for example, has boosted itsefficiency from 39 to 42 percent by means of the modernization.
01 June 2009
Reinventing Production: Company-Wide Approach
Siemens is paving the way to improve its own production processes.The aim of the new approach is to boost productivity evenin times of resource scarcity. As the latest issue of the researchmagazine Pictures of the Future reports, the company is currentlycarrying out a gradual conversion of the Siemens productionsystem in its 300 plants in 40 countries.
05 May 2009
Gas-Fired Power Plants to Be More Climate-Friendly
Siemens and the Norwegian power utility Statkraft are researchingmethods for removing carbon dioxide (CO2) from the exhaustgases of combined cycle power plants. Siemens is already workingon technologies for separating CO2 from the flue gas of coalfiredpower plants. Now this process is to be adapted to the specialconditions of combined cycle plants.
02 May 2009
New Insights into the Brain with 9.4 Tesla MRT
In the future researchers at Forschungszentrum Juelich (JuelichResearch Center) will be able to penetrate even deeper into thesecrets of the brain — thanks to state-of-the-art imaging fromSiemens. A large medical instrument that is unique worldwidewas put into operation on April 29 at the research center. Thisnew system allows detailed views of the interior of the humanskull and can pinpoint the locations of pathological tissue andstructural changes in the brain to within 100 micrometers. This ispossible with a magnetic resonance tomograph (MRT) with atremendous field strength of 9.4 tesla (almost 200,000 timesstronger than the earth's magnetic field) which will be combinedlater with a positron emission tomograph (PET).
06 March 2009
Fast Package Sorting in a Very Compact Area
Siemens has developed a logistics center sorting system thattakes up far less space than comparable products. Known as theVisicon Singulator, the system is unique in that it registers andindividually transports every item. To do so, the facility operatesan intelligent camera system in combination with a conveyor beltthat can proceed at various speeds along part of its length. SiemensMobility recently unveiled the Visicon Singulator at theLogiMat trade fair in Stuttgart.
04 March 2009
High-Speed Train Velaro: Ice Cold Endurance Test
The latest high-speed train from the Velaro family has successfullycome through an endurance test under extreme conditions. Beforeits delivery to Russia, experts from Siemens tested the trainin a climatic wind tunnel to demonstrate that it can handle thesevere weather conditions on the 650-kilometer route betweenMoscow and St. Petersburg. The Velaro RUS will go into operationat the end of 2009 and will be Russia's first high-speed train.
03 March 2009
Study Shows Potential for Dramatic CO2 Savings
According to a study carried out for Siemens by the WuppertalInstitute for Climate, Environment and Energy, large cities couldreduce their greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 90 percentwithout any noticeable compromises in the quality of life for theirinhabitants. Taking the example of Munich, the study shows howa large modern city can drastically cut its CO2 emissions. Cities inparticular need to take a leading role in protecting the climate,since they are responsible for 80 percent of CO2 emissions.
02 March 2009
New Drive Systems for Electric Cars
Siemens Corporate Technology supplied the drive systems for theprototypes of two electric cars that are being presented at theGeneva Motor Show from March 5-15. For each of two automotivefirms, the Swiss concept car manufacturer Rinspeed and theGerman company RUF Automobile GmbH, the research teamdeveloped an integrated system consisting of a motor/generator,power electronics and an interface with a battery connection.This research is taking place within the framework of an overarchingobjective, namely, the exploration by Siemens CorporateTechnology of the opportunities and challenges associated with acomprehensive concept of electromobility and its value-addedchain.
04 February 2009
Power from the World's Highest Dam Wall
Siemens is installing a gas-insulated high voltage line (GIL) with atotal tube length of about 3.2 kilometers for the world's largestdam wall, at the Jinping I hydropower plant in China. A GIL's highperformance allows it to transmit larger amounts of energy thanis possible with cables — in this case between the foot of the305-meter-high dam wall and the overhead line at the dam's water level.
03 February 2009
Real-time 3D Ultrasound in Just a Heartbeat
Siemens has developed the first ultrasound system in the worldthat can generate three-dimensional images of the heart in realtime during one single beat. Such technology can set a new standardin echocardiographic imaging that will improve patient care.Doctors can analyze results and begin treatment more quicklywith the new system. The first systems have been delivered recently.
02 February 2009
Automatic Toxicity Test System for Drinking Water
Researchers from Siemens Corporate Technology have developeda fully automatic system to test drinking water for the presence oftoxic substances. The lab demonstration model can analyze watersamples at a rate of one every 15 minutes and is sensitive to over100 toxins, including insecticides and chemical weapons. At theheart of the system is a biosensor that measures the activity ofspecial enzymes. The signal is transmitted electrically, whichmeans that the system is fast, highly sensitive, and durable. Initialtalks are now being held to discuss the possibility of developingthe demonstration model into a marketable product.
04 January 2009
Siemens Generates Solar Power for California
Siemens will be installing a steam turbine into the Invapah SolarComplex, the first commercial solar thermal power plant in theU.S. to feature a power tower. The steam will be generated fromwater heated by thousands of mirrors. The facility in California'sMojave Desert is being built by BrightSource Energy. The MojaveDesert also includes Death Valley, where summer temperaturescan climb to 45 degrees Celsius. Solar power technologies representan important component of the Siemens portfolio of environmentalproducts, with which the company generated €19billion in sales in fiscal year 2008.
02 January 2009
Low-Impact Raw Materials Extraction from Oil Sands
Researchers from Siemens Corporate Technology are working ona new, much more environmentally friendly process for extractingbitumen from oil sands. They want to use induction to heatoil-bearing sands and so release the valuable raw material. Canadais the main location of oil sand deposits, with around 178billion barrels of heavy oils. About three percent of these resourceshave been exploited since the 1960s. Increasing oil pricesfor the foreseeable future, however, are now making extractioneconomically attractive.
05 November 2008
New Computer TomographCuts Radiation Exposure
Siemens is launching a new computer tomograph (CT) that isfaster than all other such scanners and needs only a fraction ofthe radiation dosage previously needed to make images. The newCT scanner — the Somatom Definition Flash — is soon to beunveiled in Chicago at the world's largest radiologists' convention.The system uses an enhanced version of Siemens dual sourcetechnology, in which two X-ray tubes rotate around a patient's body simultaneously. The new CT scanner will become availableon the market in early 2009.
03 November 2008
Electricity from the Conveyor Belt
Siemens automation and drive solutions help to make the LosPelambres copper mine in Chile one of the most profitable minesin the world. Although located high in the Andes at an altitude of3,200 meters above sea level, where it is often subjected to challengingweather conditions including snow and rockslides, themine is an exemplary operation when it comes to reliable transportof materials and energy efficiency. As reported in the latestissue of the research magazine Pictures of the Future, for example,the mine's conveyor belt system transports ore downhill for adistance of 13 kilometers, generating electrical power that is fedinto the power grid.
02 November 2008
Sensors for Improving the Air in Building Interiors
Siemens is currently developing sensors that will be used as senseorgans in buildings. According to a report in the research magazinePictures of the Future, thousands of these sensors installedthroughout a building could notify the building managementsystem of all indoor air, temperature and lighting conditions,detect gases or toxins, and even neutralize noxious odors.
04 October 2008
Successful Test of 800-Kilovolt Transformer
A new transformer developed for one of the world' s longest andhighest-rated high-voltage DC transmission systems (HVDC) hassuccessfully completed final testing. It is the first HVDC transformerfor 800 kilovolts (kV). Today' s HVDC transmission systemsnormally operate at a peak transmission voltage of 500 kilovolts.The unit, which is the size of a family house, is destined for China.Siemens is delivering ten of these new high-performance transformersfor the Yunnan–Guangdong HVDC system, which frommid-2010 onward will be transmitting 5,000 megawatts (MW) ofpower over a distance of 1,400 kilometers. HVDC solutions formpart of Siemens' environmental portfolio, which generated €17billion in sales for the company last year.
03 October 2008
PET Scan of the Entire Body in Five Minutes
Siemens has introduced an imaging device that combines thefunctions of its most advanced computed tomograph (CT) with ahigh-resolution PET (positron emission tomography) system. Thenew Biograph mCT thus combines all the capabilities of molecularimaging and radiology in a single piece of equipment. It is theonly system that offers PET images with a resolution of two millimetersand image contrast four times better than conventionalPET imaging*. Now it' s possible to conduct a PET examination inonly five minutes. The CT' s X-ray source rotates around the patientthree times a second, and its 128-slice imaging technologymakes possible a resolution of 0.33 millimeter.
01 October 2008
Environmentally Friendly Subway Train in Munich
Syntegra, an entirely new bogie concept for rail vehicles, is nowsuccessfully completing a series of tests as part of a subway trainoperated by the Munich metro. The system, which has been functioningwithout any problems, combines drive, bogie, and brakingcomponents to create a unique overall unit featuring a compactdesign that makes it more efficient than conventional bogie setups.It also weighs less, which means it uses less energy. Thebogie system is one of Siemens' environmentally friendly products;the Group posted revenues totaling €17 billion with its EnvironmentalPortfolio last year.
04 September 2008
"Green" Transformerworks with Vegetable Oil
A new transformer from Siemens uses an insulation fluid basedon vegetable oil. This is not only completely biodegradable butalso much less flammable than the mineral oil normally used. As aresult, transformer substations will now be able to feed powerinto the grid while conforming to strict environmental regulations.The new transformer is also suitable for use in areas withchallenging fire-safety requirements, such as large cities. Thevirtually market-ready prototype is currently undergoing testingwith German utility EnBW. This green transformer is but the latestexample of Siemens’ ongoing commitment to developing environmentallyfriendly products. In the last fiscal year, the companygenerated revenues of €17 billion from its environmental portfolioalone.
03 September 2008
3D Imaging Tools forCancer Radiation Therapy
Thanks to a new treatment process, radiation therapy for canceroustumors has now become faster and more precise. Using acombination of a linear accelerator and the latest imaging technology,Siemens developed a solution that makes it possible notonly to monitor the size, position, and deformation of a tumorbefore each therapy session, but also to react immediately in theevent of any changes in these parameters. The result is that physiciansare now able to adjust the radiation therapy to the patient’sexact requirements at each stage of the treatment process.
02 September 2008
A Hearing Aid for ChildrenThat Adapts With Age
A new hearing system from Siemens adapts to changing hearingrequirements as a person grows and ages, so in theory it can beworn from birth onward. With the help of special software, thesolution can be adjusted to a wearer’s hearing requirements asthese alter with age — for following lessons in school, for example,or for listening to music without interruption.
04 August 2008
Software Detects Damageto Wind Power Plants
Siemens is developing an intelligent sensor system capable ofdetecting impending damage to offshore wind power plants.Siemens researchers are working on self-learning software thatautomatically analyzes the gears of a wind power plant and theirvibrations and predicts potential failures on this basis. As reportedin the research magazine Pictures of the Future, a prototype versionof the software has successfully passed initial tests.
03 August 2008
Encrypted RFID Chips toCombat Product Piracy
Thanks to a new forgery-proof radio frequency identification(RFID) chip developed by Siemens, life is about to become awhole lot more difficult for product pirates. Exploiting a technologysimilar to that used for a digital signature, the chip is able toverify its own authenticity and thus that of the product to which itis attached. The chip can also be used to store other informationsuch as the product's designation of origin and serial number.Unauthorized reading or copying of the data on the chip is impossible.Siemens has recently unveiled initial prototypes of this newchip.
02 August 2008
Record in Efficiency andBrightness for White LEDs
Development engineers at Siemens subsidiary Osram have set arecord for the brightness and efficiency of white LEDs. The prototypeLED measures one square millimeter and achieves a brightnessof 155 lumens at 350 milliamps (standard measuring conditions).This represents an increase in brightness of around tenpercent compared to the previous record-holder. The new LEDalso boasts an efficiency of 136 lumens per watt, also a record.Future applications include general lighting purposes and headlightsfor cars. Lighting systems that are energy-efficient and thusenvironmentally compatible are an important element in theSiemens portfolio of environmental products, which generatedrevenues of €17 billion for the company in fiscal year 2007.
06 July 2008
Simatic Celebrates 50th Anniversary
The most successful automation system in the world is turning50. With the controller series Simatic, Siemens once replacedbasic circuit elements like the relay and switch with tiny transistors.The company introduced its first Simatic controller at theParis machine tools fair in 1958. It was a hard-wired electronicsystem for controlling and regulating small sub-tasks on productionlines.
05 July 2008
Strong MRI Scanner for Cancer Research
One of the world's most powerful magnetic resonance imaging(MRI) scanners will start up in August at the German Cancer ResearchCenter in Heidelberg (DKFZ). The heart of the machine is a32-ton superconducting magnet, which was recently set up in abuilding specially erected for this purpose following shipment ofthe part from Oxford, England.
04 July 2008
Windmill without Gearbox: Lower Maintenance Costs
In an effort to make offshore wind power facilities even morereliable, Siemens is now testing a new type of windmill thatworks without a gearbox. The main benefit of the new unit lies inits more simplified design, which requires fewer machine components,and will therefore result in lower maintenance costs and ahigher level of availability. This is especially important for offshorefacilities, where turbine breakdowns are always very expensive.Wind power units represent a key part of the Siemens environmentalportfolio which generated €17 billion sales in 2007.
03 July 2008
Fast Metallic Powder for Rust-Protection Finish
Siemens researchers have optimized a coating process that offersan environmentally friendly alternative to conventional techniqueslike galvanization or thermal spraying. The scientists’ developmentsignificantly lowers the cost and enhances the qualityof so-called cold-gas spraying procedures. The new techniquecould be used, for example, to protect turbine blades from corrosion,or to coat machine components that are exposed to harshenvironmental conditions. The researchers have already coatednumerous types of object with their technique.
01 July 2008
Unique EU Project: Osram Lamps for India
The emerging market of India is now also switching to energysavinglamps. The research magazine Pictures of the Future reportsthat Osram has become the world's first lamp manufacturerto participate in a United Nations climate protection program thatinvolves exchanging used light bulbs for energy-efficient lightingunits. The new lamps will lower electricity bills in hundreds ofthousands of Indian households, while helping to stabilize thepower outage-prone Indian power grid and reduce CO2 emissions.In return for providing this replacement service, Osram receivesemission certificates from the UN that the company can sell as itwishes. Energy-saving lamps are a key element of the Siemensportfolio of environmental products that the Group recently presentedin London. The company generated revenues totaling €17billion with the portfolio in 2007.
05 May 2008
Optimized Combustion: More Efficient Power
A new combustion measuring process is helping to improve theefficiency of coal-fired power plants. The core element of thissystem is a new laser-based measuring technology developed bySiemens and the American company Zolo Technologies. Accordingto the research magazine Pictures of the Future, this technologymakes it possible for the first time to analyze and automaticallyoptimize the combustion process in a coal-fired power plantin real time. This could improve the efficiency up to three percent.What’s more, emissions of pollutants and the plant’s operatingcosts are reduced in the process.
04 May 2008
Power in the Outback Without Cooling Water
Acting as part of a consortium, Siemens has built a coal-firedpower plant in the Australian outback that operates with almostno cooling water. By means of a special air-cooled condenser, theplant uses air instead of water to cool the hot steam from theplant turbine. As reported in the latest issue of the researchmagazine Pictures of the Future, the Kogan Creek power plantuses 90 percent less water than conventional plants, an idealsolution for coal-based power generation in arid regions.
02 May 2008
Data Transfer with Light Instead of Radio Waves
For the first time, Siemens researchers have succeeded in transmittingup to 100 megabits of data per second (MBit/s) with visiblelight. In addition to the established WLAN technology, thescientists also want to use light for wireless data transfer. Thefactor driving this research forward is the ever-increasing demandfor bandwidth and flexibility in gigabit home networks, which willbe needed for future Internet services. Using high-performance,white light-emitting diodes (LEDs), the researchers from CorporateTechnology in Munich succeeded in transmitting data acrossmore than a meter of empty space.
06 April 2008
RFID Chips Make Luggage Transport Reliable
Transporting passenger baggage between the world’s airports is expected to become far more reliable in the future — with RFID technology. Siemens has developed a system that relies on a radio chip to replace the bar code attached to a suitcase. The new technology will substantially reduce scanning errors and resulting sorting and delivery errors. The system, which has been exhibited at the Terminal Passenger Expo in Amsterdam, scans RFID chips with a success rate of 99.9 percent — far higher than that of the bar codes previously used.
05 April 2008
Tiguan Production at the Trade Fair: Real and Virtual
At this year’s Hannover Trade Fair Siemens demonstrated how the virtual and the real production worlds are connected. Using the example of the VW Tiguan, the company showed how software and simulations can help to maximize the flexibility, efficiency and quality of the process of designing and manufacturing products. To this end, the whole process chain was reproduced at the 160-meter-long trade show booth “The Tube.” Some production steps were portrayed in concrete terms, others only virtually — such as sheet-metal stamping, the paint shop or installation of the drive train.
01 January 2008
Using Mathematics to Optimize Processes
Siemens is using mathematical procedures to optimize industrial processes and make them more profitable. A team of mining experts from Industry Solutions in Erlangen and Corporate Technology (CT) in Munich is currently concentrating on the availability and energy efficiency of systems used in opencast mining. Experience gained to date with other systems indicates that cost savings of between ten and 15 percent are within reach. The higher efficiency also contributes indirectly to savings in the area of energy consumption.
05 December 2007
Green Circuit Boards: The Lead-Free Computer
Siemens is banning pollutant materials from its electronic components and computers. As reported in the research magazine Pictures of the Future, the company is replacing pollutants such as lead and bromine in its circuit boards with materials that are more environmentally acceptable. In addition to other applications, the environmentally friendly components are being used in a special industrial PC that also consumes a minimum amount of energy and is 90-percent recyclable.
02 July 2007
Locomotive for Europe: The Siemens Eurosprinter
The Eurosprinter enables cross-border rail travel in Europe, despitevarying voltage systems in different countries. This universaltrain set will go into operation on the Vienna-Prague-Berlin linebefore the end of 2008, according to the research magazinePictures of the Future. The core component of the Eurosprinter isa basic locomotive equipped with special system packages thatenable it to adapt to the specific rail and voltage networks inareas it is used in, eliminating the need for time-consumingchanging of locomotives at national borders. The Eurosprinter isthe world record holder for the fastest electronically driven locomotivewith 357 kilometers per hour reached in September 2006.
01 January 2005
High Tech MR-Tomograph at Lower Cost
The invention of Jian Min Wang of Shenzhen, China, makes the latest high-tech medical equipment affordable for hospitals struggling under the pressure of optimizing cost efficiency. For clinics with a smaller diagnostics budget, Siemens developed a 1.5 tesla magnetic resonance tomograph which is several 100,000 euros cheaper than comparable systems. Wang designed a small switching matrix which makes it possible to save costs while maintaining the high quality standards of Siemens MR tomographs. The systems work with a high magnetic field and coils for detecting the signals. The Siemens' TIM technology uses a combination of several coils which enables the system to deliver better pictures and faster detection times. This requires a very sophisticated detecting technology. The new, simpler switching matrix uses the TIM technology while at the same time lowering the cost of the system.
01 January 2005
Revolution in Train Drives: Less Energy, More Space
The teamwork of two inventors led to a revolution in drive systems for trains. Andreas Joeckel of Nuremberg and his colleague Martin Teichmann of Graz, Austria, developed a bogie concept that combines drive, running gear, and brake technologies. Their innovation also eliminates components that generate noise and are particularly subject to wear and tear, such as gearboxes. Moreover, the compact drive system is 20 percent more energyefficient than its predecessor. A four-car subway train using the bogie, for example, can transport about 200 more passengers than a conventionally equipped train, with the same level of energy consumption. The energy saved would be enough to supply 113 single-family homes with electricity. Joeckel's idea was to build the motor around the axis. Teichmann's contribution was to integrate the system into train drives. A prototype is already being tested in the Munich subway system. The new drive concept is also suitable for long distance trains and high speed trains.
First Fire of the World's Largest Gas Turbine
The first ignition of the world's largest gas turbine is approaching: On Thursday the turbine will be put into operation for the first time, at the test power plant in Irsching, near Ingolstadt. The 444- ton colossus is the first of a new generation of power plants from Siemens that produce electricity with even greater efficiency, and therefore more environmentally friendly operation, than has been possible in the past. The turbine has an output of 340 megawatts — equal to that of 13 jumbo-jet engines, and a single turbine blade takes up the power of ten Porsche 911 engines.