Open Call SC1-HCC-01-2018: Supporting Investment in Smart Living Environments for Ageing Well through Certification

European CommissionThe building stock in Europe today is not fit to support a shift from institutional care to the home-based independent living model for the ageing population. There is a recognised need to facilitate the development of community-based services and to stimulate the emergence of "age-friendly home" conversions. These homes should enable independent living and remote health monitoring to the growing ageing population. In addition to physical / spatial alterations, making homes age-friendly should include upgrading existing ICT infrastructure to support digital services for independent living and connected and integrated care including telehealth and telecare, as well as solutions supporting health status and healthy lifestyle (e.g. sensor based physiological measurements, mHealth apps, telepresence, robotics supported living). Ideally, these ICT upgrades for independent living and health status management could be combined with the needs related to energy-efficiency, security, and entertainment.

Despite its proven potential for systemic change, large-scale investment (both public and private) in sustainable homes still faces barriers, often caused by insecurity about personal, societal and financial returns on investment and a lack of clarity about concrete elements of sustainable age-friendly living environments and the choice of building, retrofitting and adaptation measures to be implemented.

Coordination and support is needed to develop a sound basis for safe investment decisions in smart age-friendly, adaptable living environments made by procurers, public authorities, industry and citizens.

This should be achieved by bringing stakeholders together (including researchers from the social sciences and the humanities), synthesising innovation from European projects, analysing and aligning (emerging) national certification and labelling schemes and facilitating development and exchange of best practices.

This CSA should aim to support the establishment of a European reference framework for age-friendly housing and should build on the ongoing work in the emerging stakeholder-driven Reference Framework for Age-Friendly Housing and the smart living environments for ageing well as demonstrated in the Large-Scale Pilot on Internet of Things.

Scope

The action will consolidate knowledge from related projects and initiatives to identify the most appropriate scheme for harmonisation, certification, approval labelling or other forms or reliable identification of adequate smart living environments for ageing well, including indicators and good practices.

In a coordinated effort with relevant R&I projects, national initiatives and other stakeholders (among them national schemes, procurers, civil society representatives, certification and regulation & standardisation bodies, building and ICT industry), the scheme should be developed and agreed for adoption.

Tasks include:

  • Frequent exchange with relevant R&I projects which can contribute to certification, especially large-scale pilots on Internet of Things and other projects in the fields of independent living and ageing well;
  • Providing an overview of relevant standards;
  • Development of a comparative overview of relevant European and international certification or labelling schemes with their respective advantages and disadvantages;
  • Development and validation of a full concept of European certification scheme based on results of comparison and validation;
  • Quality and risk management concept for sustainability and further development of the proposed scheme;
  • At all stages, the CSA should take into account outcomes of the ongoing work around a European Reference Framework on Smart Age-Friendly Housing and ensure that its subject and conclusions align with the framework;
  • It will support the delivery on the Commission's commitment to Leadership in the Internet of Things as described in the Communication "Digitising European Industry - Reaping the full benefits of a Digital Single Market", particularly in the field of smart living environments.

The Commission considers that proposals requesting a contribution from the EU of up to EUR 1 million would allow this specific challenge to be addressed appropriately. Nonetheless, this does not preclude submission and selection of proposals requesting other amounts.

Expected Impact

The proposal should provide appropriate indicators to measure its progress and specific impact in the following areas:
  • Agreed scheme for European certification with potential for wide-spread adoption across Europe;
  • Adequate basis for investment decisions in smart living environments for ageing well (both private and public) based on expected returns;
  • Proof of increased investment into building stock fit for the longevity challenge, i.e. to move from institutional care to the home-based independent living model for the ageing population.

Deadline: 24 April 2018 17:00:00

Deadline Model: single-stage

Type of action: CSA Coordination and support action

For topic conditions, documents and submission service, please visit:
http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/portal/desktop/en/opportunities/h2020/topics/sc1-hcc-01-2018.html

PS: Find your partners or consortia preparing a project proposal
If you are working on Horizon 2020 research project proposals and you would be interested in a SME partner from Germany, please contact us, we are happy to share our experience, expertise and knowledge. If you need help to identify a potential partner with particular competences, facilities or experience, please join and explore our project, (HEALTH IT) SPACE, at www.healthitspace.eu.

Most Popular Now

AI-Powered CRISPR could Lead to Faster G…

Stanford Medicine researchers have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) tool to help scientists better plan gene-editing experiments. The technology, CRISPR-GPT, acts as a gene-editing “copilot” supported by AI to help...

Groundbreaking AI Aims to Speed Lifesavi…

To solve a problem, we have to see it clearly. Whether it’s an infection by a novel virus or memory-stealing plaques forming in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients, visualizing disease processes...

AI Spots Hidden Signs of Depression in S…

Depression is one of the most common mental health challenges, but its early signs are often overlooked. It is often linked to reduced facial expressivity. However, whether mild depression or...

ChatGPT 4o Therapeutic Chatbot 'Ama…

One of the first randomized controlled trials assessing the effectiveness of a large language model (LLM) chatbot 'Amanda' for relationship support shows that a single session of chatbot therapy...

AI Tools Help Predict Severe Asthma Risk…

Mayo Clinic researchers have developed artificial intelligence (AI) tools that help identify which children with asthma face the highest risk of serious asthma exacerbation and acute respiratory infections. The study...

AI Model Forecasts Disease Risk Decades …

Imagine a future where your medical history could help predict what health conditions you might face in the next two decades. Researchers have developed a generative AI model that uses...

AI Model Indicates Four out of Ten Breas…

A project at Lund University in Sweden has trained an AI model to identify breast cancer patients who could be spared from axillary surgery. The model analyses previously unutilised information...

AI Distinguishes Glioblastoma from Look-…

A Harvard Medical School–led research team has developed an AI tool that can reliably tell apart two look-alike cancers found in the brain but with different origins, behaviors, and treatments. The...

Smart Device Uses AI and Bioelectronics …

As a wound heals, it goes through several stages: clotting to stop bleeding, immune system response, scabbing, and scarring. A wearable device called "a-Heal," designed by engineers at the University...

Overcoming the AI Applicability Crisis a…

Opinion Article by Harry Lykostratis, Chief Executive, Open Medical. The government’s 10 Year Health Plan makes a lot of the potential of AI-software to support clinical decision making, improve productivity, and...

Dartford and Gravesham Implements Clinis…

Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust has taken a significant step towards a more digital future by rolling out electronic test ordering using Clinisys ICE. The trust deployed the order communications...