Prof. Dr. Nicolas Bennerscheid

Dr.-Ing.

Faculty of Information, Media and Electrical Engineering

Institute of Automation Engineering

Campus Deutz
Betzdorfer Straße 2
50679 Köln
Mailing address

+49 221-8275-2146
nicolas.bennerscheid1@th-koeln.de

Positions

Lab supervisor
Member of NAMUR Working Group AK 4.5 Functional Safety
Member of DECHEMA Working Group on Functional Safety

Responsibilities

Head of Laboratory – PLT Laboratory

Research fields

Process Control Technologie: Planning, specification, and implementation of instrumentation, control, and automation systems; development of test environments for research, training, and certification; integration of new technologies into existing infrastructures.
Ethernet APL: Development and validation of Ethernet-APL communication in laboratory and real-world environments in collaboration with PNO, NAMUR, and industry partners – including certification at the emerging APL Competence Center.
Functional Safety: Integration of machine learning into safety-related systems; automated risk assessments; linking established safety standards (e.g., IEC 61511) with data-driven approaches. ChatGPT fragen
Explosion Protection: Development of digitally supported protection concepts for hazardous areas (Ex zones); condition monitoring, risk assessment, and implementation of practical protection strategies in new and existing installations.
Modular Type Packages (MTP): Focus on the development and orchestration of modular automation units with vendor-independent integration.
Data Science: Data-driven analysis and modeling in technical automation – including digital twins, AI-based document analysis, predictive maintenance, and LLM-powered assistant systems.
Equi Science: Technical assessment of animal welfare and riding behavior using camera- and sensor-based pose estimation for rider and horse – supported by an in-house testing lab for certifying technical systems used in official competitions.
Smart Farming: AI-driven control of agricultural processes using modular, energy-autonomous MTP units with edge intelligence, sensor fusion, and semantic data models for resource-efficient farming. ChatGPT fragen
Home Automation: Industrial-grade building automation with intelligent, energy-adaptive control and model-based optimization for heating, ventilation, shading, and predictive maintenance.