INO–A WWW information system for innovative coatings and surface technology

In the last years, a lot of research work has been performed in the field of surface coatings and thin films technology, often supported by governmental research programs, as i.e. in Germany, the ‘Thin Film Technology’ and ‘OSTec’ research programs. But up until now, there is still a lack in transfer of this large amount of knowledge created by research activities on to industrial application and commercialization. To overcome this problem, a new web based information system has been developed (http://www.schichttechnik.net), which in a first step will make the whole content of the German OSTec research program (approx. 180 research reports) of the last 10 years available. In further steps, data from products of coating suppliers and other research programs will be taken into account. The database contains the following sections: definition of the coating system, deposition equipment, deposition processes, application properties, test procedures and test equipment, information about standardization and base information about coating processes etc. It will be possible to search for coatings by material properties and functions of coatings, considering also restriction on the substrate. In addition, searching regarding combination of properties, e.g. for wear-resistant, conductive, decorative coatings etc. will also be possible.