Partners

INSA Strasbourg is member of the INSA network of engineering schools, and member of the TriRhenaTech consortium. The institution is involved through the AVR-ICube group, internationally recognized in medical and surgical robotics, in particular in the mechatronic design of robotic devices and their control. INSA brings its expertise in the design for interventional radiology, the design of 3D printed robots and teleoperation with force feedback. The partner INSA is headed by Prof. Pierre Renaud, head of AVR-ICube. The SPIRITS project benefits from the I2RM platform of AVR-ICube, including a multimaterial additive manufacturing system and interventional MRI platform shared with Strasbourg Hospital.

Hochschule Furtwangen is a University of Applied Sciences (HAW) and member of the TriRhenaTech consortium. One of the largest Universities of Applied Sciences in Baden-Würtemberg with around 6600 students, it is also one of the top-ranked ones in respect to research indicators. The institution is involved through the research group of Prof. Dr. Ulrich Mescheder, that has a profound expertise in the realisation of microsensors and micractuators for different applications. Work on DEAP technology which will be used for force feedback has been initiated within the BMBF project iView (miniaturized tactile display to support navigation of blind people). Partner HFU is headed by Prof. Ulrich Mescheder, Director of the Institute of Applied Research. HFU brings micro- and nanosystems technology labs to the SPIRITS project. These outstanding facilities include in a clean room of around 270 m² machines and processes for the fabrication of micro- and nanosystems, including thin film technology, lithography (submicrometer resolution) and etching (dry and wet).

University Hospital Mannheim (UMM) hosts The Project Group for Automation in Medicine and Biotechnology (PAMB) at the Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University. PAMB develops new concepts for automation in medicine and biotechnology and benefits from close cooperation with clinical and industrial partners, e.g. SIEMENS Healthineers, regarding image guided surgery. An example for this synergy is the M²OLIE (Mannheim Molecular Intervention Environment) “Forschungscampus”, a 15-years research initiative with a lead project on needle treatment of till now untreatable tumors. The research group has developed hydraulic drives for medical applications for more than 5 years. PAMB is headed by Prof. Dr. Jan Stallkamp, chair of automation in medicine and biotechnology at the Medical Faculty of Heidelberg University. The SPIRITS project benefits from the implantation of PAMB at CUBEX41 on the campus of the University Medical Centre Mannheim. This innovative competence centre offers the chance to work very close to local medical partners, and access the intervention room of the future and the Biomedical Innovation Lab.

Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz hosts the Institute for Medical and Analytical Technologies (IMA) in the School of Life Sciences. The IMA is composed of interdisciplinary experts and is active in the area of in-vivo systems for diagnostic and therapeutic applications, operating at the innovative intersection of industry, medicine and academia. The IMA is addressing inter alia the research topic of Smart Implant Development with a special emphasis on implant design, additive manufacturing technologies of titanium, titanium alloys and magnesium. The partner FHNW is headed by Prof. M. de Wild. Having both academic and industrial experience, he is leading research on material production and characterization for health applications. The SPIRITS project benefits from production facilities available at IMA labs, in particular with most recent additive manufacturing technologies.

Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne is a leading technological university with global reach. The institution is represented by Instant-Lab, lead by Prof. S. Henein, created in 2012. In its Medtech activities, the Instant-Lab specializes on design, actuation, fabrication and control of surgical tools using smart material and flexible structure based mechanisms, and therefore create ‘intelligent’ tools that are notably able to measure tool tip interaction with the environment. Its expertise on intelligent tools, their design, fabrication and integration is being unique at the European level, and absent from the RMT Upper Rhine area. The partner EPFL is headed by Dr. C. Baur, the Instant Lab Medtech group director. He has successfully launched several startups / spin offs to turn technology into products : ForceDimension (haptic Feedback System), Atracsys (Navigation System & User interfaces). KB Medical (Surgical Robot for Spinal Surgery) can be mentioned. The SPIRITS project benefits from the EPFL infrastructure in Lausanne as well as in Neuchâtel, with Microcity, the EPFL Microtechnology centre Instant-Lab. With experimental rooms and facilities to fabricate and characterize surgical devices.