Close-up portrait of a happy senior woman looking at smart phone while sitting at desk with laptop.

IN-4-AHA – Innovation Networks for Scaling Active and Healthy Ageing

The EU-funded IN-4-AHA project will enhance the uptake of digital innovations in active and healthy ageing.

More information

Helena Merikoski
Project Manager
+358 40 648 6617
helena.merikoski(at)xamk.fi

Mervi Rajahonka
RDI Specialist
+358 40 755 1299
mervi.rajahonka(at)xamk.fi

Five finalists of IN-4-AHA Open Call

AVECEN is the virtual assistant for active aging of people with neurodegenerative mental illnesses

AVECEN aims to improve the lives of people with dementia, their caregivers and their families by helping to prevent and self-manage neurogenerative diseases, such as Parkinson´s or Alzheimer´s characterized by a progressive deterioration of cognitive functions.

The objective of the project is the development of a distributed platform that allows self-management of neurodegenerative diseases by patients as well as decision-making by medical professionals and caregivers of their environment. For this, the creation of a dynamic virtual assistant is proposed that continuously monitors and evaluates the execution of certain clinical and lifestyle routines. The assistant is also making recommendations adapted to the patient’s condition and evaluating their frequent or habitual behavior at all times, allowing to understand its evolution over time.

AVECEN is a project led by Plexus Tech, an IT products and services consultancy with more than 20 years of experience in the sector. Other project partners are Arcade Consultores and Insati Innovation.

COQUUS is a software for integrating menus with user-specific informating for healthy eating

Coquus is a software that integrates two sources of information for better nourished and happier elderlies. First, it supports the nutrition teams to configure the different diets and menus with their technical sheets, allergens, costs and nutrional assessments. Second, it collects all the characteristics of the diners such as allergies, tastes etc. The softwear then decides what each person should take and provides a wide set of tools to facilitate manufacturing and controlling the nutrition. Coquus is developed by Novos Sistemas de Información.

ENNA is an operating concept for tablets to facilitate independent digital communication for beginners

Enna by uCare enables digital beginners to communicate independently and digitally with family members and to access and use digital content such as entertainment and support. For this purpose, a commercially available tablet is extended with a haptic operating concept using NFC cards, which allows active and error-free use of the system.

MYONTEC utilizes muscle activation technology in smart clothes for active ageing

Myontec develops smart clothes to motivate elderly people to keep their muscles activated and maintain good balance. Myontec is the cutting-edge wearables company which takes muscle activation technology – electromyography (EMG) – out of the lab, for a new dimension in understanding muscles behavior. For example, smart stockings or calf sleeves monitor sufficient blood flow and metabolism to prevent appearance of blood clots (monitoring so called “calf pump” performance).

TEMPID SMART PATCH is a body temperature logger with mobile application.

TempID Smart Patch is a reusable body temperature logger with mobile application for early detection of health risks, potential COVID-19 infection and other health related issues. The aim is to support remote care and increase efficiency of medical system.

Open Call - Extended Deadline: 14th May 2021

The objective of IN-4-AHA Open Call is to facilitate the scalability of innovative solutions in active and healthy ageing across EU. ​

Open Call offers testing opportunities and business coaching for innovative and scalable solutions. ​

User-centred cross-border testing of selected innovations will be done in e-environments and physical spaces in Finland and Spain.

What are we looking for?

We are looking for

  • Scalable digital or technology-supported innovation to test according to real-life needs. ​
  • Solution offered to real users. Technology maturity level TRL5 or higher.​
  • The end-users of the solution have to be seniors (65 years or older), formal or informal caregivers of seniors, or organisations offering services to seniors. ​
  • Particularly in the following fields:​
    • mHealth solutions for active and healthy ageing​
    • smart age-friendly homes and independent living​
    • chronic disease management. 

Who can apply?

The eligible applicant must be legally registered in a member state of the European Union or in a Horizon 2020 associated country. 

  • SMEs, start-ups, large companies, universities, research and technology centres and other organisations

The eligible solution is a digital or technology-supported innovation for active and healthy ageing.

APPLY HERE

Please read first the detailed information about the Open Call from the Launch document and fill in the application form below.

We reserve the right to make changes.

What do the 5 finalists receive?​

The five finalists receive​

  • testing opportunities with users in living labs in Finland and Spain ​
  • business coaching for scaling up from an international coaching team​
  • feedback and report based on the user-centred testing in Finland and in Spain
  • visibility on IN-4-AHA webpages ​

All applicants receive​

IN-4-AHA network partners offer services for all the applicants eligible for their innovation and business support programs.  

Evaluation criteria

1-5 points are awarded to the following criteria:​

Team behind the solution (weight 25 %)​

  • For example clear vision and strategy, skills and competences, resources​

Solution (weight 25 %)​

  • For example novelty, PCC, TRL 5 or higher

Scalability (weight 25 %)​

  • “CORRECT” adapted from WHO (2009)

Business potential (weight 25 %)​

  • For example size and growth of the potential market

More information

See the details of the open call from the Launch of an Open Call for the IN-4-AHA Living lab testing scheme here:

Data protection

Timeline

1 April 2021:
Launching of the Call​

14 May 2021:
Extended deadline for applications​

From 15 to 30 May 2021:
Evaluation period, requests for additional information

31 May 2021:
Selection of the finalists​

From 1 to 13 June:
Preliminary discussions and agreements​

From June to December 2021:
User-centred tests ​

From August to December 2021:
Business coaching

Testing sites

Xamk Active Life Lab

CSG Cluster Saúde de Galicia

About the project

What we do?

IN-4-AHA will engage with stakeholders in multiple workshops throughout the project and capitalize those workshops in two ways-in improving both the innovation cycle as well as the engagement with all relevant stakeholders.

The main objective of the IN-4-AHA project is to ensure the overall coordination and support to further scale-up mechanisms provided by EIP on AHA and its stakeholders towards a more efficient uptake of innovations in active and healthy ageing.

The main outcome of the IN-4-AHA project is an active and healthy ageing innovation scale-up model that is validated by stakeholders and complemented by a clear implementation roadmap, an innovation impact evaluation toolkit and a strategy for long-term investments.

The IN-4-AHA project is aiming to bring together the supply and demand sides in implementing scaling up strategies for innovative solutions (technology, integration of health and social care, systemic change), taking into account end-users’ perspective.IN-4-AHA will develop a model which facilitates the scale-up of innovative solutions in active healthy ageing.

This model will be built around:

  • The efficient engagement and active contributions from stakeholder networks and the existing ecosystem;
  • The spill-over of actionable knowledge into practical tools for EIP on AHA and its Reference Sites;
  • A Roadmap to implement the change and boost the scale-up;
  • The Investment strategy.

Who we are?

The Innovation Networks for Scaling Active and Healthy Ageing (IN-4-AHA) project consists of nine partners from six EU countries with different and complementary backrounds. The project will build upon the legacy of the EIP on AHA ecosystem and advance digital innovation for the benefit of the silver economy.

The IN-4-AHA project (SC1-HCC-08-2020) will build on the achievements and legacy of the EIP on AHA ecosystem. Besides actively involving the EIP on AHA community, the project will also engage with the Joint Programming Initiative on More Years Better Lives, the Active and Assisted Living Programme, EIT Digital and EIT Health.

The main role of South-Eastern University of Applied Sciences Xamk is to test and study the developed product and service innovations and foster entrepreneurship around these innovations. Testing and studying will be done together with Aalto University Start Up Center.

IN 4-AHA is coordinated by Tehnopol Science and Business Park. Consortium partners are EIT Health Scandinavian Regional Innovation Hub, Galician Health Cluster, Civitta Estonia, European Regional and Local Health Authorities ASBL, Foundation Praxic Centre for Policy Studies, Proud Engineers, South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences Xamk, Competence Centre on Active and Healthy Agening of University of Porto, and Slovenian Innovation Hub, European Economic Interest Grouping SIH EEIG.

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101017603.

More information:

Five finalists of IN-4-AHA Open Call are selected!

We are looking for innovative solutions for active and healthy ageing – Extended deadline 14th May, 2021

Facts

IN-4-AHA - Innovation Networks for Scaling Active and Healthy Ageing

1 January 2021 – 31 December 2022

Project partners

Lead partner: Tehnopol Science and Business Park

Partners: EIT Health Scandinavian Regional Innovation Hub, Galician Health Cluster, Civitta Estonia, European Regional and Local Health Authorities ASBL, Foundation Praxic Centre for Policy Studies, Proud Engineers, South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences Xamk, Competence Centre on Active and Healthy Agening of University of Porto, and Slovenian Innovation Hub, European Economic Interest Grouping SIH EEIG..

Focus areas: Digital economy

Budget

Total budget: € 1 958 138

XAMK part of the total budget: € 223 750

Financiers and main source of funding: The European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101017603.