What role does artificial intelligence already play in electrical engineering today – and what can the industry expect in the coming years? What opportunities are emerging, and where do challenges remain? These questions were discussed by Nico Baumgart (inIT) and Mathias Rump (Eplan) during the webcast “AI in Electrical Engineering – Vision or Reality?” on 27 August. More than 200 participants joined the webcast.
The webcast was part of a series by SchaltschrankGESTALTER. The industry initiative by Eplan, Phoenix Contact, Rittal, Siemens and WAGO regularly addresses current developments in control cabinet manufacturing and provides practical insights.
Where AI can already provide support
The discussion focused on current developments and concrete applications of AI: from process automation and more efficient use of data to support for planning and engineering tasks. The speakers also discussed how data is handled, the limitations of current systems and the conditions that need to be met for AI to be used effectively.
“With AI, we have long moved beyond purely hypothetical future scenarios. At the same time, we need to take a close look at the systems: What data do they use, where can they already provide meaningful support today, and where are their current limitations?” explains Nico Baumgart.
Mathias Rump contributed the perspective of Eplan. The company develops engineering software for electrical engineering, automation and energy technology.
Research meets application
The topic is closely linked to Nico Baumgart’s research at inIT. As a research associate in the Mathematics and Data Science research group, headed by Prof. Dr. Markus Lange-Hegermann, his doctoral research focuses on generative AI in engineering and the automated creation and optimization of control cabinet configurations using large language models.
In addition, he is part of the KI-Akademie OWL, which makes artificial intelligence accessible and understandable through practical applications while also addressing its opportunities, limitations and societal impact.
Learn more about Eplan: https://www.eplan.com/
Learn more about SchaltschrankGESTALTER and its webcasts: https://www.schaltschrankgestalter.de/