The Institute for Software Technology (IST) is concerned with the theoretical, practical and applied aspects of software engineering. Research lies in the field of intelligent systems, formal verification and systematic testing of software, artificial intelligence, requirements engineering, recommender systems, optimization of industrial problems, game theory, agile software development processes, computer languages, computer science education, management of software development projects (including knowledge management), software development for and on smartphones and tablets, combinatorics and complexity theory, algorithms and computational geometry, and intelligent autonomous robots. Research Groups: Applied Software Engineering (Univ.-Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Dr.techn. Alexander Felfernig): Research topics are intelligent methods, techniques and algorithms to improve the development, maintenance and usability of complex software systems. Examples include the development and use of recommender technologies in software engineering and knowledge engineering, the use of diagnostic tools to support knowledge acquisition and maintenance processes, the use of human computation methods for the development of knowledge bases, the examination of the role of decision-psychological theories in the development of software systems and the application of research results in industry (for example, configuration and recommender systems for financial services). Software Technology (Univ.-Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Dr.techn. Wolfgang Slany): Research topics are intelligent methods, techniques and algorithms to improve the development, maintenance and usability of complex software systems, optimization of industrial problems, game theory, visual computer languages, computer science education, software development for and on smartphones and tablets, combinatorics and complexity theory, intelligent robots for children, and the application of research results in industry, e.g., optimization of shift work or creating mobile tutorial systems. Software Development and Artificial Intelligence (Univ.-Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Dr.techn. Franz Wotawa): Research topics include the automation of testing and fault location in programs based on formal models and the diagnosis and configuration of systems. Besides the development of theoretical principles the research group is working on practical implementations together with industrial companies. This also involves to a large extent the empirical analysis of software repositories and static and dynamic program analysis. In the field of robotics, there is a close collaboration with Dr. Steinbauer, especially in the field of adaptive and self-healing systems. Algorithms and Computational Geometry (Assoc.Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Dr.techn. Oswin Aichholzer): Research topics are efficient algorithms in the field of combinatorial and computational geometry. Particular emphasis is placed on the implementation of often complex algorithmic solutions into practically applicable programs. This combination of theoretical insights and applied software development has proven to provide novel solutions in many areas. Applications can be found in both, basic research on complex combinatorial and geometric problems as well as in specific industrial tasks. Formal Development Methods in Computer Science (Ao.Univ.-Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Dr.techn. Bernhard Aichernig): Research topics include specification, production and verification methods based on formal logic and mathematical methods. The ultimate goal is to develop provably correct software for highly critical systems. In practice, we combine proof with testing techniques. One research focus is the automatic generation of test cases from abstract models with precise semantics (formal testing, model-based testing). This includes the investigation of appropriate modeling languages, the development of test case generators, and the evaluation of testing procedures. Application domains are, e.g., automotive engineering, railways, and aviation. Autonomous Intelligent Systems (Ass.Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Dr.techn. Gerald Steinbauer): Research topics include knowledge representation and robust decision-making processes for autonomously acting robots and agents. In particular autonomous systems operating in dynamic non-deterministic "real world" environments are considered. To function reliably in such areas, the systems must be equipped with appropriate diagnosis and inference mechanisms. Furthermore, we are working on the implementation of these mechanisms in real application scenarios such as search and rescue robots and service robots. We are also working on the use of educational robotics in academic youth development.