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Success takes experience. The OptiSense story.

Innovation is our tradition. It's easy to see this by taking a look at the key years in our history. Take a closer look at the company's history via the various dates. Behind the dates, interesting surprises await …

1998

Start as a spin-off of the Fraunhofer-led Optics Centre NRW in Bochum

1999

The first photothermal coating thickness sensor for a robotic industrial application was developed

2001

Audi in Ingolstadt becomes pilot customer for PaintChecker modular sensors

2002

Based on a solely thermoelectrically cooled infrared detector a new, photothermal coating thickness sensor is developed

2007

Setting up the first laboratory measuring station in the own company

2010

Based on uncooled infrared detectors, the first eye-safe photothermal hand sensor is created

2016

Entry into the Chinese automotive market with the miniaturized PaintChecker Tube sensor

2017

The patented PaintChecker mobile manual sensor goes into series production

2018

The first industrial controller that measures the coating thickness at up to eight positions simultaneously was installed

2019

OptiSense launches the probably smallest sensor cube in the world

2020

The high-power controller versions are specially developed for extremely thick layers

2020

Move to the new company building

Fascinating development: Our latest sensors weigh only 50 grams – a hundredth of the original PaintChecker (left in picture)

Like Walt Disney, Amazon, Google, Hewlett-Packard and Harley-Davidson, OptiSense also started as a garage company.