Welcome to the Chair of Lightweight Design!

Lightweight design is an inherently interdisciplinary discipline at the interface of mechanics, materials science, manufacturing processes and mechatronics. It is concerned with the development of resource-optimal structures. An application of modern lightweight design technologies is important wherever particularly high-performance and functionally integrated structures are required - for example, in mechanical engineering, aerospace, marine technology or medical technology. Lightweight design research is also driven by the need for sustainable use of resources.

Our research is addressing new adaptive components and material systems for the lightweight designs of the future. The focus here is on fiber-reinforced polymer composites as well as other composite materials. Computational methods and experimental considerations are combined to precisely understand the corresponding functional and failure mechanisms through modeling and analysis. The results of this research will then be used to open up new technological possibilities in many areas of application in mechanical engineering, aerospace, medical technology and other fields.

Teaching at the chair is aimed at students in the bachelor's and master's degrees in mechanical engineering, industrial engineering, mechatronics and biomedical engineering. In Bachelor's and Master's courses, the fundamentals and practical applications of lightweight design are studied together. A very good supervision of the students in the courses and the final thesis is particularly important to us. Students can directly participate in the current research topics of the chair via "HiWi" jobs and final theses.

Please do not hesitate to contact us!

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Philipp Weißgraeber