The multi-sensing 'Medical Integrated Photonic Ultrasound Transducer' (MED-IPUT) project will develop a high-resolution, high-quality, recyclable medical imaging system based on a disruptive integrated photonic ultrasound transducer concept. We envisioned a 100x increase in sensitivity compared to conventional US. The IPUT-based sensing system, combines optical waveguides and micromechanical membranes with two optical read-out techniques (RR and MZI) to at least two US applications; medical ultrasound (US) and photoacoustics (PA). We will solve technical challenges such as increasing sensitivity, mass parallelization by optical multiplexing and hybrid integration of microelectronics in PIC, tuneable waveguides, fiber chip coupling manufacturability and packaging. These advances will lead to a higher production yield and increased insight in the processing solutions of hybrid integrated photonics. The IPUTs are based on easily accessible materials, don’t require lead to improve the performance and laser power can be reduced significantly. We will iteratively develop an effective SOI and SiN manufacturing process to realize very sensitive IPUT sensors and integrate them into US transducer arrays for medical imaging and PA for validation and demonstration on phantoms instead of tissue. The partners have the in-house capability to develop, manufacture, integrate and package the novel IPUT-based sensing systems into transducers, covering the full manufacturing value chain. The increase in sensitivity will enable: 1. An increase of the US image by a factor 2. 2. An increase of the penetration depth by a factor 2. 3. A 100x reduction of the peak pressures. 4. A 100x reduction of the required laser power for PA resulting in the use of low-cost lasers. MED-IPUT reinforces European industrial leadership in high-performance multi-sensing system development and manufacturing, particularly in the healthcare sector.

Friction Stir Welding (FSW) is a material joining technique that is a major breakthrough due to its substantial advantages compared to other techniques for welding aluminum alloys. This has allowed aircraft manufacturers such as Boeing to achieve 60% cost saving and reduce manufacturing time by 73% in aircraft models. This is only a fraction of what could be achieved. Despite its merits, FSW use is still limited due to a certain defect termed “kissing bond”. Kissing bonds reduce the stress-load resilience of FSW materials and are extremely difficult to detect. Thus, out of fear of low fatigue performance, aerospace and automotive manufacturers cannot leverage FSW to its full potential which translates to manufacturing cost savings of €1.6 billion, fuel savings of €1.9 billion and a reduction of 2 million tons of CO2, during the next 20 years. This gap gives rise to a unique business opportunity which Vermon (developer of nonlinear ultrasonic transducers) and RISE (expert in signal processing algorithms), IKH (high-tech SME specializing in human-machine interfaces and service robotics) along with Coskunoz (leader in FSW machinery with commercial presence in 4 continents) seek to seize with the aid of TWI (world class research institute who originally invented FSW) by commercializing FrictionHarmonics. FrictionHarmonics is the fruit of four years of R&D financed by private funds and public grants. It has already been validated in a relevant environment and is proved to detect kissing bonds of less than 0.3mm in diameter with 100% accuracy. We now need to finalize the system’s commercial version, certify it, and validate its performance in a complete FSW production line. Our primary target customers will be aerospace and automotive manufacturers in Europe and North America. To this end, we request a grant of €2.2m. Our aim is to grow our businesses by €33.44m in gross cumulative revenue, operating at a profit of €13.83m and generating 215 new jobs over the 5 years after market launch.

Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is the formation of a blood clot within the deep veins, most commonly those of the lower limbs, causing obstruction of blood flow. In 50% of people with DVT, the clot eventually breaks off and travels to the lung to cause pulmonary embolism. Clinical assessment of DVT is notoriously unreliable because up to 2/3 of DVT episodes are clinically silent and patients are symptom free even when pulmonary embolism has developed. Early diagnosis of DVT is crucial and despite the progress made in ultrasound imaging and plethysmography techniques, there is a need for new methods to enable continuous monitoring DVT diagnosis at the point of care. ThrombUS+ brings together an interdisciplinary team of industrial, technology, regulatory, social science and clinical trial experts to develop a novel wearable diagnostic device for point-of-care, operator free, continuous monitoring in patients with high DVT risk. The device will combine autonomous, AI driven DVT detection based on a novel wearable ultrasound hardware, impedance plethysmography and light reflection rheography for immediate detection of blood clot formation in the lower limb. Activity and other physiological measurements will be used to provide a continuous assessment of DVT risk and support DVT prevention via serious gaming. The aggregated data will drive an intelligence decision support unit that will provide accurate monitoring and alerts. Extended reality will be used to guide experts to design exercises and patients to use the device optimally. ThrombUS+ is intended for use by postoperative patients in the ward, during long surgical operations, cancer patients or otherwise bedridden patients at home or in care units, and women during pregnancy and postpartum. ThrombUS+ will use big data sets for AI training collected in the project via 3 large scale clinical studies and will validate the outcome in the clinical setting via 1 early feasibility study and 1 multi-center clinical trial.