Project

EMUVALID – Human physiological multimodal signal emulation environment by utilizing comprehensive validated data

Biomedical engineering and health technology are continuing on a strong growth trajectory in the Oulu region. Dozens of technology companies operate in the area developing sensors and measurement technologies as well as commercial applications based on various data processing methods serving the needs of the medical and healthcare industries as well as the health and wellness industries. Wearable sensors and continuous long-term measurement applications are a growing trend in the world. Moreover, the need for multimodality, with multiple methods / modalities measured simultaneously, has been identified as necessities in the development of diagnostics and artificial intelligence applications. However, the development of multimodal measurement methods and applications and the validation of analytical models require the ability to replicate the test protocol hundreds of times and accurately with several and the same physiological excitation signals. In practice, this is only possible with an emulation model developed for this purpose. In the joint ERDF-BAE (Body Area Emulator, A74649) project of the University of Oulu, VTT and companies in the Oulu region a research infrastructure for the emulation of human physiological signals was developed.

In the EMUVALID project, the emulation environment will be further developed to take greater account of multimodality in the emulation model, and in particular the simultaneous emulation of circulation, muscle and respiration will be further developed, for which a special need has been identified for wearable sensors. In addition, an extensive library of physiological signal simulations is collected that can be validated in the developed emulation environment. To this end, the research groups at the Faculty of Medicine are now participating in the project as a key new partner, e.g. in the production of simulation models from, for example, different patient groups. During the project, we will also organize training and workshops for companies and students in the field, so that the results of the project can be utilized as widely as possible among the actors in the field in the Oulu region even after the end of the project. The project follows the equality and diversity plan of the University of Oulu in recruitment, and advances sustainable and responsible use of natural resources in material and equipment acquisitions.