TEF-Health
Research Area:
Research Lines:
Research Lines:
Digital Europe
DEIB Role: Partner
Start date: 2023-01-01
Length: 60 months
Project abstract
Technological advances in the field of AI and robotics are being made at a breathtaking pace – and the healthcare sector is not spared from these developments. Yet it goes without saying that new medical devices and procedures must first prove their safety and usefulness before they can be adopted in clinical practice. In the European Union, the areas of AI and robotics, which are set to have a far-reaching impact on the healthcare sector, especially have to meet high quality requirements, but there is still a lack of testing infrastructure for developing standards, validating innovations, and certifying new products.
This is precisely where the Testing and Experimentation Facility for Health AI and Robotics (TEF-Health) comes in. The new project, supported by the EC and national funding agencies with a total of about €60 million, aims to facilitate and accelerate the validation and certification of AI and robotics in medical devices. In total, 51 academic and private partners from 9 European countries are involved in the project, integrating existing infrastructures as well as building new ones.
TEF-Health will mainly test novel AI approaches in real-world scenarios. This includes new software used in areas such as patient care and diagnostics, as well as devices controlled by artificially intelligent programs, some of which are designed for direct use on humans – such as surgical and nursing robots. The consortium will evaluate how to facilitate market access and acceptance of these smart technologies.
The plan is for the project partners to develop new regulatory and ethical requirements, including, for instance, standardized testing protocols and certifications or a specific code of conduct for use of the technology. In addition, the necessary technical and administrative procedures must be developed and created. The newly created evaluation resources and infrastructure will be made available to industry in the future in the form of fee-based services.
The TEF-Health project has the express aim of generating and consolidating sustainable collaborations between industry, academic research, and other players. Long-term partnerships in innovation networks have shown to provide a particularly favorable environment for the transfer of technology from research to practice. What’s more, close cooperation between the various partners avoids duplicating work already done. This makes sure investments are used for highest impact. The close collaboration will also help to ensure that going forward research findings are translated more quickly into new products and services. Ultimately, the entire value chain in AI and robotics technologies for healthcare will benefit from this – which in turn will increase the prosperity and quality of life of society as a whole.
In the end, TEF-Health will contribute to increase the effectiveness, resilience, and sustainability of European health and care systems and reduce healthcare delivery inequalities in Europe, while ensuring compliance with relevant legal, ethical, quality, and interoperability standards and requirements.
This is precisely where the Testing and Experimentation Facility for Health AI and Robotics (TEF-Health) comes in. The new project, supported by the EC and national funding agencies with a total of about €60 million, aims to facilitate and accelerate the validation and certification of AI and robotics in medical devices. In total, 51 academic and private partners from 9 European countries are involved in the project, integrating existing infrastructures as well as building new ones.
TEF-Health will mainly test novel AI approaches in real-world scenarios. This includes new software used in areas such as patient care and diagnostics, as well as devices controlled by artificially intelligent programs, some of which are designed for direct use on humans – such as surgical and nursing robots. The consortium will evaluate how to facilitate market access and acceptance of these smart technologies.
The plan is for the project partners to develop new regulatory and ethical requirements, including, for instance, standardized testing protocols and certifications or a specific code of conduct for use of the technology. In addition, the necessary technical and administrative procedures must be developed and created. The newly created evaluation resources and infrastructure will be made available to industry in the future in the form of fee-based services.
The TEF-Health project has the express aim of generating and consolidating sustainable collaborations between industry, academic research, and other players. Long-term partnerships in innovation networks have shown to provide a particularly favorable environment for the transfer of technology from research to practice. What’s more, close cooperation between the various partners avoids duplicating work already done. This makes sure investments are used for highest impact. The close collaboration will also help to ensure that going forward research findings are translated more quickly into new products and services. Ultimately, the entire value chain in AI and robotics technologies for healthcare will benefit from this – which in turn will increase the prosperity and quality of life of society as a whole.
In the end, TEF-Health will contribute to increase the effectiveness, resilience, and sustainability of European health and care systems and reduce healthcare delivery inequalities in Europe, while ensuring compliance with relevant legal, ethical, quality, and interoperability standards and requirements.
