Imaging as a Challenge for the Future
"Da muss ich mir erst ein Bild von machen“ or "I have to visualize it" - a German idiom patients often encounter in medical practice. With anticipation they wait for the results of X-rays, ultrasounds, or computer tomography, which determine the diagnosis and therapy. Imaging does not just play an important role in the medical field, however. Its importance is evident in other fields such as production, materials science, and quality and process control.
RWTH Aachen is currently opening a new collaborative research center for biomedical imaging under the name ACTIVE. The abbreviation stands for Aachen Center for Biomedical Image Analysis, Visualization and Exploration. Professor Dorit Merhof brought the German Research Foundation's grant, which funds the center with more than 500,000 Euros, with her, upon her appointment in Aachen. RWTH Aachen is also funding an additional position.
The center is anchored in the Institute of Imaging and Computer Vision, of which Professor Merhof is the chair. The engineer has already established an equivalent center at the University of Konstanz. ACTIVE is also interested in developing methods for the automatic, efficient analysis, classification, and visualization of biomedical image data and the processing of big data.
As a result, work in the field of biomedical imaging and data analysis in Aachen will be simultaneously combined and expanded. Modern imaging processes require dedicated, professional editing processes, so that a strong, growing need for professional biomedical imaging and data analysis is evident. Additionally, the analysis of innovated image data is a challenging research environment for technical disciplines like electrical engineering, computer science, and mathematics. As a result, the cross-section of these areas offers great potential for innovative, interdisciplinary research.
A workshop on imaging took place at RWTH to kick off the opening of ACTIVE and to work out a joint research strategy university-wide. Professor Jörg Schulz represented the Medical Science and Technology profile area, Professor Fabian Kiessling the Helmholtz Institute of Biomedical Technology, Professor Thomas Schmitz-Rode the Integrated Interdisciplinary Institute of Medical Technology, Dr. Volker Backes JARA-Brain, Professor Torsten Kuhlen the Visual Computing Institute, Professor Robert Schmitt the Interdisciplinary Imaging & Vision Institute Aachen, and Dorit Morhof ACTIVE as a new center.
Source: Press and Pubic Relations