TOMORROW TODAY DIGITAL HEALTHCARE
HEALTH DIALOGUE SMART GRIDS OF THE FUTURE // Greater security and resilience EMILIA ON THE ROAD // Pioneering ideas for urban freight logistics BLINDBITS // Training for blind and visually impaired school children
Anton Dunzendorfer, Head of Business Unit Assistive Healthcare Information Technology
05 16
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THE PATIENT AS HEALTH MANAGER
Top-Story
Anton Dunzendorfer: “Our technologies are designed to enhance the lives of people with chronic medical conditions.”
“Patient empowerment” covers a range of options for patients with chronic medical conditions to actively and confidently manage their own lives. With its Digital Healthcare initiative, AIT offers an important basis for achieving this goal.
Photos & Coverphoto: Johannes Zinner
Checking and injecting several times a day. Calculating the impact on blood sugar levels at every meal. Josef Bauer* has Type 1 diabetes. The Diabetes Health Dialogue offers him a whole range of new options. “Using state-of-the-art telemedicine is a great advantage,” says Bauer, “and an important support in everyday life.” The Diabetes Health Dialogue is part of the Digital Healthcare initiative which was presented at this year’s Forum Alpbach. It is funded by the Austrian railways insurance institution VAEB, the regional governments of Tyrol and Styria, and the AIT Austrian Institute of Technology. The aim is to roll out new care and disease management programmes in selected areas of Styria and Tyrol in the near future which are designed to provide patients suffering from chronic medical conditions such as diabetes and heart failure with the best possible care and therapy.
INTERACTION WITH ELGA The telehealth services developed by AIT are based on existing and emerging Austrian eHealth infrastructures, including ELGA, the electronic health record. They are implemented according to identified care needs and reflect regional factors and structures. This allows new care and disease management programmes to be established
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in selected regions of Styria and Tyrol, as well as supporting cross-sector cooperation in the form of integrated care for patients with heart problems and diabetes. “Styria, Tyrol and VAEB are pioneers in the use of telehealth services,” says Anton Dunzendorfer, Head of the Assistive Healthcare Information Technology Business Unit at AIT. Using a special telemedicine technology platform developed by AIT, pilot projects have been successfully running for more than five years right across Austria. Already more than 600 patients from the VAEB health centre in Breitenstein, for example, are taking part in the Diabetes Health Dialogue.
RECORDING AND REPORTING VITAL SIGNS The results from these projects will be combined and used to plan future joint activities, because eHealth applications which are embedded in a networked care setting impact almost all areas of health and care systems. Recording, saving, processing and securely transmitting data to authorised peo-
patient. Where a particular threshold value is exceeded the doctor can quickly react and promptly adjust the medication.
ENHANCING PATIENTS’ LIVES Patients suffering from chronic medical conditions such as diabetes mellitus require support including strengthening their personal motivation to enhance their lives. The technology helps patients stay in close contact with their doctors. This enhances patient understanding of the disease and encourages individual responsibility, with the result that patients become “their own therapists”. Dunzendorfer stresses that initiatives such as this enjoy top technological priority at AIT. “Data security, simple handling, extreme reliability and the greatest possible flexibility for users are the basic requirements for modern digital applications in the field of medicine.” AIT has developed significant expertise in this area, positioning itself as a leading research establishment both at home and abroad. It is seen as an enabler in the field of preventative medicine, realistic risk assessment, prognosis of disease progression and effectiveness of therapies. And it’s people like Josef Bauer who benefit.
Over 600 VAEB patients are already taking part in the Diabetes Health Dialogue and actively manage their everyday lives.
ple helps increase the efficiency and effectiveness of therapies. Already, for example, 50 patients in Tyrol are receiving care via telemedicine in the HerzMobil Tirol pilot project. The patients record their vital signs on a daily basis with easyto-use measuring devices and transmit them to the central data service via the HerzMobil Tirol app. The care network includes nurses specially trained in heart failure who are responsible for the immediate care and direct communication with the patients in coordination with the doctor in charge of the
Ground-breaking pilot project for our future Treating chronic medical conditions is a fundamental challenge for the healthcare system and requires efficient care structures. The regional governments of Styria and Tyrol, and the Austrian railways insurance institution VAEB aim to extend integrated healthcare using digital telehealth services, and to significantly raise the quality of care for patients by applying state-of-the-art telemedicine technology. The new joint health initiative, Digital Healthcare, which extends digital health services in selected regions of Tyrol and Styria, was presented at the Alpbach Health Symposium by the relevant regional ministers Prof. DI Dr Bernhard Tilg and Mag. Christopher Drexler, Prof. DI Kurt Völkl (General Director of the VAEB), and DI Helmut Leopold (Head of the Digital Safety & Security Department, AIT Austrian Institute of Technology).
Photo: Johannes Zinner
* name changed
Performance & Success
FOCUS ON PERFORMANCE & SUCCESS A highly sought-after speaker at international conferences: Matthias Weber, Head of the Research, Technology and Innovation Policy Business Unit at the AIT Innovation Systems Department.
BLINDBITS
ORIENTATION AND MOBILITY TRAINING FOR BLIND AND VISUALLY IMPAIRED SCHOOL CHILDREN Being unable to see, but able to move from one defined place to another: orientation and mobility training is designed to improve the ability of the blind to do just this. The BlindBits project, coordinated by the AIT Austrian Institute of Technology and undertaken in cooperation with the Austrian institute for educating the blind (BBI) and the University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria, is making a valuable contribution towards this end. The innovative approach of applying an accessible editor to educational games turns pupils into active designers of learning content. In modelling the game content themselves by applying spatial knowledge of their own school, they learn their way around a virtual school building. This complements their training in the real environment, strengthening their connection with the real world. Close cooperation between researchers and users is of central importance in order to satisfy the research project’s user-centred design approach, which delivers design findings equally relevant to non-visually impaired groups in accordance with the principle of universal design. Project leader, Elke Mattheiss, of the Innovation Systems Department: “Blind and visually impaired pupils should not be lumped together – if pupils are to accept the game approach then it’s essential that it covers their different needs.”
Photos: AIT/Michael Bösendorfer, AIT/Krischanz.Zeiller
Elke Mattheiss, AIT Innovation Systems Department: “Covering different needs.”
FP9-CONFERENCE
WHERE IS EUROPEAN RTI POLICY HEADING? At the Science|Business Europe Conference held in Brussels on 12 October, Matthias Weber, Head of the Research, Technology and Innovation Policy Business Unit at the AIT Innovation Systems Department, gave a keynote speech on the topic of Research Strategies: Europe 2030 and the next Framework Programme. The event involved extensive discussion of the future direction of RTI policy. As coordinator of the BOHEMIA project (Beyond the Horizon: Foresight in Support of the Preparation of the EU’s Future Policy in Research and Innovation), AIT expert Weber plays an important role in developing ideas for a forward-looking RTI policy. Within the framework of the BOHEMIA project he is working closely with various Commission offices to develop an intelligent, sustainable and socially acceptable European research policy. “In the next Framework Programme we will have to focus on developing hybrid research fields which link new scientific and technological opportunities with social needs in order to venture beyond traditional lines of research,” Matthias Weber is convinced.
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Petra Wagner, Senior Expert Advisor at the AIT Innovation Systems Department: “What research does society need – and how should it best be organised?”
A new series of tutorials deals with questions of smart grid protection and security.
NEW GIT/AIT SERIES OF LECTURES
MAKING SMART GRIDS MORE SECURE AND RESILIENT RRI – RESPONSIBLE RESEARCH AND INNOVATION
SCHOOL PROJECT ON RESPONSIBLE RESEARCH RRI – Responsible Research and Innovation poses the question of how the entire research and innovation process can be organised so that new findings, developments and products not only cause no harm but also generate social benefits. As part of the BlindBits project, researchers at the AIT Austrian Institute of Technology (Innovation Systems Department) worked together with pupils at the Sir Karl Popper School in Vienna to study the implementation of the RRI concept. The pupils’ valuable contribution will form the basis for RRI guidelines which can then be used as the foundation for future projects. Project leader Petra Wagner: “There was intensive cooperation and the pupils were enthusiastic in helping to analyse BlindBits. Together we wrote an initial statement which positions the project with respect to RRI criteria – this forms the basis for developing general RRI guidelines.”
Photos: AIT/Michael Mürling, AIT, gleamproducts.com
Protecting tomorrow’s smart grids is challenging and requires multidisciplinary expertise. Potential threats range from energy theft achieved through manipulating energy meters, attacks on network operator controls to disrupt the system, and even blackouts of national power networks, for example by terrorist activity. The AIT Austrian Institute of Technology is therefore investigating new technologies and solutions to protect tomorrow’s power grids and ensure fail-safe operation. In a new series of tutorials organised by AIT in cooperation with the Society for Information and Communication Technologies at the Austrian Electrotechnical Association (GIT-OVE), AIT security experts present their research-based solutions to the challenges of protecting smart grids and ensuring their reliability. After a general introduction to the field, the tutorials present the latest methods and appropriate support tools. These approaches are the outcome of recent international research, and offer information not yet available from consultancies. The new tutorial series was launched at AIT on 21 September. After Helmut Leopold, Head of the Digital Safety & Security Department at AIT, welcomed attendees and introduced the series, AIT security expert Dr Oliver Jung addressed a fully packed auditorium on the subject of smart grid security and raising the resilience of power grids in the context of cyber-threats. This lecture marked the start of eight scheduled tutorials directed at the various stakeholders in the power grid industry and IT security sector (IT service providers and system architects, solution providers, network operators and network planners, authorities and research institutions). Dates will soon be published on the GIT-OVE and AIT websites.
INNOVATION CALENDAR
LOGISTICS
EMILIA ON THE ROAD The EMILIA project focuses on the use of electric vehicles for delivering goods in urban areas. The project develops the relevant logistics concepts and optimises the technology used in small electric vehicles in order to extend their range and reduce costs. The components developed as part of EMILIA are largely ready and will be integrated into the vehicles before the end of the year: they range from a cargo tricycle with an electric powertrain through to a hydrogen-driven road train. The demonstration phase is currently in planning and begins in early 2017 when the vehicles will deliver parcels and groceries on selected routes in Vienna and the Linz area. This will demonstrate the interaction between vehicle technology, logistics concepts, routing software with energy consumption estimates, and user acceptance. The demonstration phase will be precisely evaluated and the findings relayed to the relevant stakeholders. The project runs until the end of May 2017.
Environmentally-friendly and flexible: lightweight e-vehicle from Gleam Technologies for city logistics.
8-10/11/2016 // VISION The world’s leading machine vision trade fair is the marketplace for component manufacturers and a platform for system suppliers and integrators. VISION is where OEMs, system integrators, mechanical engineering companies and system houses learn about the latest innovations from the world of machine vision components. AIT contact: Michael Mürling Venue: Stuttgart Info: www.messe-stuttgart.de/vision/ // 9-10/11/2016 // 9TH RANSHOFEN LIGHT METAL DAYS Mobility concepts must meet ever more demanding requirements: tomorrow’s vehicles must be safe, environmentally friendly and cost-efficient. It is obvious that this cannot be achieved without weight reductions. Lightweight design plays a key role in this respect. AIT contact: Andreas Kraly Venue: Bad Ischl Info: www.lkr.at/lmt/lmt2016 //
AIT contact: Michaela Jungbauer Venue: Barcelona Info: www.european-utility-week.com/ // 30/11-2/12/2016 // SET PLAN CONFERENCE 2016 The conference is held under the motto “Energy Union: Towards a transformed European energy system” and deals with the issues of energy optimisation and sustainability. AIT contact: Michaela Jungbauer Info: www.era.gv.at/object/event/2489 // 2/12/2016 // MOV[I]E – EVERYTHING’S MOVING! The ScienceClip.at video contest for pupils, students and partner institutions awards prizes to science and engineering videos related to movement. AIT contact: Michael Mürling Info: www.scienceclip.at/videowett bewerbe.html //
15-17/11/2016 // SMART CITIES WORLD EXPO The leading “Smart City” congress this year focuses on the active role of city residents. AIT contact: Michaela Jungbauer, Sandra Schneider Venue: Barcelona Info: www.smartcityexpo.com/en/ //
8/12/2016 // QUALITY OF EXPERIENCE FOR MULTIMEDIA COMMUNICATIONS The QoEMC2016 Workshop of the IEEE Communications Society deals with the question of how research and innovation must be designed to generate maximum user success. Venue: Washington DC (USA) AIT contact: Raimund Schatz Info: www.qoe.diee.unica.it/ //
15-17/11/2016 // EUROPEAN UTILITY WEEK The event provides a platform for discussing the role of industry and the construction and energy sectors on the path to a sustainable future and for presenting awards to outstanding smart energy projects.
12/12/2016 // ETHICS IN RESEARCH PRACTICE The RRI platform organises a special event on “Ethics in Research Practice” in cooperation with AIT. Venue: House of Research, Vienna AIT contact: Petra Wagner Info: www.rri-plattform.at/
AIT Top Journal Papers
SEQUENCING OF PCR AMPLICONS
THE FUTURE OF R&I IN SOCIETY
ESTIMATION OF POPULATION DENSITY
This paper presents a novel tool, called TABSAT, for analysing targeted bisulfite sequencing data generated on Ion Torrent sequencers. The workflow starts with raw sequencing data, performs quality assessment, and uses a tailored version of Bismark to map the reads to a reference genome. In order to assess the performance of the targeted bisulfite sequencing workflow, 48 samples were used to generate 53 different bisulfite sequencing PCR amplicons from each sample, resulting in 2,544 amplicon targets. We obtained a mean coverage of 282X using 1,196,822 aligned reads. Next, we compared the sequencing results of these targets to the methylation level of the corresponding sites on an Illumina 450k methylation chip. The calculated average Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.91 confirms the sequencing results with one of the industry’s leading CpG methylation platforms and shows that targeted amplicon bisulfite sequencing provides an accurate and cost-efficient method for DNA methylation studies. TABSAT is freely available under a GNU license (GPLv3) at https://github.com/tadkeys/ tabsat/ and demo.platomics.com/.
The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of research and innovation futures and to sketch the landscape of recent findings in this field. It includes a review of literature on the embedding of research and innovation in society, outlines the main domains of current drivers of change and summarises the contributions to the special issue. Recent controversies about the future of research and innovation draw on a long-standing trajectory of debate about the role of science, technology and innovation in society, and the balance between autonomy in striving for scientific excellence on the one hand and the quest for social and economic relevance on the other. Six major domains of current and expected future changes in research and innovation are identified, and serve as the backdrop for positioning the more specific contributions to this special issue. The main value of this contribution is to provide a condensed and original look at emerging directions of change in research and innovation practices and their organisational and institutional embedding in society.
This paper addresses the problem of estimating the population density from mobile phone data. After critically examining the relevant network-based data sources, a novel methodology involving two key novelties is presented. First, it enables the fusion of cell-level and location area-level data from heterogeneous data sources. Second, it considers a novel tessellation scheme based on cell coverage maps, instead of cell tower locations. Furthermore, it allows data from different network operators to be integrated onto a common reference grid. Within the proposed framework, a maximum likelihood formulation for the population density estimation problem is developed and tested via simulations, showing a significant gain over existing Voronoi-based schemes. Fabio Ricciato, Peter Widhalm, Francesco Pantisano, Massimo Craglia: Beyond the “single-operator, CDR-only” paradigm: An interoperable framework for mobile phone network data analyses and population density estimation. Published: http:// www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/ S1574119216300323
Weber, K.M., Amanatidou, E., Erdmann, L. and Nieminen, M. (2016): Research and
Stephan Pabinger, Karina Ernst, Walter Pul-
innovation futures: exploring new ways of
verer, Rainer Kallmeyer, Ana M. Valdes, Sarah
doing and organizing knowledge creation.
Metrustry, Denis Katic, Angelo Nuzzo, Albert
Foresight. Special Issue: Research and inno-
Kriegner, Klemens Vierlinger, Andreas Wein-
vation futures, 2016, 18, 3, 193- 203. http://
haeusel: Analysis and Visualization Tool for
www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/ abs/10.1108/
Targeted Amplicon Bisulfite Sequencing on Ion
FS-04-2016-0017
Torrent Sequencers. Published: 28 July 2016 dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.016022w7
Imprint: Editor-in-chief: Michael H. Hlava, Production manager: Daniel Pepl, Editorial team: Beatrice Fröhlich-Rath, Florian Hainz, Michaela Jungbauer, Michael Mürling, Fabian Purtscher, Juliane Thoß. Please send your feedback to: presse@ait.ac.at